Write the story that scares you 😱
Today's guest is author Leodora Darlington
Readers can tell when you’ve done the work.
Readers know when a writer has truly lived inside a topic — when the emotional details are pulled from real experience, real research, real conversations.
That’s what makes a book feel alive instead of just well-written.
The deeper you go, the more readers will follow.
The themes that scare you to write about are often the ones readers are starving to see on the page. The darkest, most terrifying parts of your story are the hardest to articulate, but usually exactly the parts that will make your story unforgettable.
In today’s interview, author Leodora Darlington shares how she shaped her novel’s emotional core, the title that sparked her novel idea, and her nontraditional querying approach that led to 11 agent offers.
OUR SPECIAL GUEST TODAY IS…
Leodora Darlington
Author
Good Morning America book club pick, THE EXES, OUT NOW!
What’s the best piece of feedback you ever received? How did it change your story?
The best feedback came from the therapists in my life. A massive part of The Exes is about healing, and I wanted to get the emotional texture of sitting in a therapist’s office exactly right. I showed these scenes to experts to aid authenticity. Their feedback helped The Exes become a compelling psychological deep dive as well as a pacy thriller. It ensured that Natalie’s journey to self-forgiveness—and her terrifying quest to uncover the truth about her dead boyfriends—feels incredibly grounded and real.
What’s one thing about the publishing process no one tells you, but should?
They don’t tell you how intimately readers will connect with the darkest, most terrifying parts of your story. The Exes explores some heavy themes—the subtle red flags that masquerade as care, the danger of power imbalances in dating, and the universal impulse to figuratively (or literally) murder your ex.
I thought, as a former publisher, I knew what to expect from the market. But seeing readers feel so deeply seen by Natalie’s unapologetic female rage and her messy journey to break generational trauma has been a revelation. It turns out people are incredibly hungry for thrillers that tackle the reality of navigating dating where there’s a stark imbalance in power.
What’s been the toughest moment in your publishing journey, and how did you get through it?
The Exes began with a title that just popped into my head: To All the Boys I Killed Before. I adore the romance genre—I’m a huge fan of tropes, from enemies-to-lovers to fake dating. But that love for romance exists alongside a growing frustration with how heteronormative relationships are increasingly becoming a less safe space for women.
That convergence of feelings made me wonder: what kind of girl would write letters to former flames, not out of love, but out of despair? I wanted to write a revenge fantasy, but my protagonist, Natalie, isn’t a confident, wisecracking assassin. She’s a woman who feels absolute terror at what she is capable of.
Are you querying this year?
Preorder my querying guide written with the creator of QueryTracker!
What part of the writing process brings you the most joy?
Building in the twists brings me immense pleasure. Because I spent a decade commissioning thrillers, I know exactly where to place a reveal for maximum impact. But the true joy with The Exes was using those gasp-out-loud moments to build deep reader empathy.
I love making readers understand the dark, messy impulses of a woman who has been pushed to the edge by fractured family and failed romance. I hope the surprising things that happen to Natalie lead people to feel that as is the case for her, it’s never too late for anyone to choose healing and a better life for themselves.
Ready for feedback that takes your story to the next level?
“I have greatly benefitted from my collaboration with Alyssa; I would not be where I am today without her! Her developmental ideas and vision for my novel taught me so much and helped to elevate my work in highly effective ways. Her editorial fingerprint is evident in the final result—a novel on bookshelves nationwide.”
—Jill Beissel, author of Glitter and Gold
How did you get your literary agent? What was the querying process like for you?
My querying process was a bit of a chaotic undercover sting. I actually created a fake identity to test the waters. As a commissioning editor in crime fiction, I wanted to see if the story was irresistible on its own merits, without my industry CV attached. I was pitching a high-stakes thriller featuring a woman grappling with memory, coercive control, and the cost of survival. It ended up sparking an 11-way agent beauty contest.
It proved to me that the market is desperately craving fresh, diverse voices in the thriller space—books that offer the familiar gasp-out-loud twists but with a new and authentic lens.
ICYMI…this week on YouTube, I share why most writers get exposition wrong, along with the 5 most common backstory mistakes I see in opening chapters.
How many writers are afraid of standing out in their writing? From fear of being attacked on social media, or being misunderstood that the things they've written don't equate to who they are as a person, or trying to fit into an idea of a palatable commercial segment. I think a lot of people hold back these days. The interview above just got me thinking about this.
This is such a cool article, just this week, I started working on a YA dystopian suspense, and it’s way out of my comfort zone, but I love it. Such a coincidence that you’re writing about this! 🤍