Nalini Singh: On Writing Wildly and Weirdly

New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh is passionate about writing. Though she’s traveled as far afield as the deserts of China, the Highlands of Scotland, and the frozen landscapes of Antarctica, it is the journey of the imagination that fascinates her most. She’s beyond delighted to be able to follow her dream as a writer.

Nalini lives and works in beautiful New Zealand. You can contact her directly through her website. While visiting the site, Nalini invites you to join her newsletter for up-to-date news about both the Psy-Changeling and Guild Hunter series, as well as fun exclusive extras, including free short stories set in her worlds. You can also find her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Nalini Singh

Photo by Sharyn Barratt

In this post, Nalini discusses how the landscape around her inspired her new thriller novel, There Should Have Been Eight, her advice for writers, and more!

Name: Nalini Singh
Literary agent: Nephele Tempest at The Knight Agency
Book title: There Should Have Been Eight
Publisher: Berkley
Release date: November 21, 2023
Genre/category: Thriller
Previous titles: In thrillers: A Madness of Sunshine; Quiet in Her Bones. In romance (most recent title): Resonance Surge, Archangel’s Resurrection, Storm Echo, Archangel’s Light.
Elevator pitch: 7 old friends. A mansion in ruins. One last long weekend together. Someone is going to confess … because there should have been eight.

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What prompted you to write this book?

All of my thrillers have been inspired in large part by the rugged, beautiful, and at times, lonely New Zealand landscape.

In this case, two of us were standing on a golden grassland with snow-capped mountains looming in the background and there was nothing else of humanity around—no roads, no houses, nothing but pristine silence. The beauty of it was breathtaking. Then, while in the same region, we saw an unpaved road going off into nowhere, and decided to follow it … and it just kept winding deeper and deeper into the mountains.

And I thought, what if you were stuck out here in this lovely but could-turn-hostile environment with a group of people you thought you knew, but everyone was hiding something? A spark of an idea that I allowed to settle and grow as we continued to drive through that astonishing landscape, until I saw in my mind’s eye, a photographer who was riding through this same road, her eye pressed to the camera. And I knew she was going blind.

Luna was the first character I met, and she’s the one who took me into the dark history that unites her and her friends.

How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?

From memory, I think it’ll be about 18 months by the time the book releases. The idea stayed strong throughout, though my writing process means there are always surprises along the way.

Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?

Yes, there was something that startled me, but it’s toward the end of the book, so I can’t discuss it without massively spoiling the story—but from a writing perspective I absolutely love the twist. And I hope it startles readers as much as it startled me.

What do you hope readers will get out of your book?

A compulsive and intense read where they get caught up in the lives and memories of these characters—and become beguiled by a landscape that can be as breathtaking as it can be dangerous.

If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?

Don’t be afraid to take chances with your writing. Some of the most wonderful ideas come with letting go of what you think you “should” write. Write the wild and the weird and the things you think are unsellable. You might just surprise yourself with the end result.

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