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Speaking to an audience of students and aspiring writers, the author of A Flicker in the Dark and All the Dangerous Things shared how her stories often begin with exploring how past experiences shape perception.
“I have my protagonist, Chloe. She’s the daughter of a serial killer, and I thought to myself—if that was her upbringing, how would that affect the way she viewed the world today?” Willingham said, discussing her debut novel A Flicker in the Dark, described by critics as an edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller.
“You would probably be paranoid, unwilling to trust the people around you or even yourself. So, I turned her into a psychologist who helps troubled kids because she once was one”, she added.
The New York Times bestselling author explained that many of her story settings emerge as metaphors for her characters’ inner worlds. “I set the story in the swamps of Louisiana,” she said, “because that environment—where danger lurks beneath the surface, hidden in black water, mirrors the emotional undercurrents of Chloe’s life. You can’t see the threat until it’s too late.”
Drawing from real-life inspiration, Willingham also highlighted the power of truth in fiction. She recalled that All the Dangerous Things was inspired by a Washington Post article about a true-crime conference. “There was a man whose sister had been murdered in the 1980s. Decades later, he still travelled to these conferences to tell her story in front of strangers, reliving his worst moment because he hoped it could help solve the case. That kind of desperate persistence is what drives compelling storytelling.”
Offering guidance to emerging writers, Willingham emphasised that good writing comes from consistency rather than perfectionism. “The best advice I ever got was: you can’t edit what doesn’t exist,” she said. “Writers are bombarded with ideas. I have ten ideas in my phone notes but once you pick one, stick with it. Push through the first draft even if it’s bad. The book really comes together at the editing stage.”
A graduate of writing programmes herself, Willingham encouraged young authors to read critically, not just for pleasure. “It’s not just about absorbing the story,” she explained. “Ask why the author wrote a sentence that way, why they led you down that path. My early drafts are still bad—I’m on my fifth book and they’re still bad—but reading with a critical eye helps you grow.”
Willingham joined fellow author Jennifer Hillier for the session “Where Trauma Lives: Grief, Death and Anxiety in Thriller Writing”, exploring how loss and human fragility fuel the emotional depth behind modern thrillers.
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