Novel Writing Made Less Impossible -- Villains and Everyone Else
- Brian K. Morris
- Aug 23, 2017
- 4 min read
Last week, we discussed how to build your protagonists. I'll wait right here to allow you to read it, if you'd like.
Done? Did that help? Once you have your protagonist built, the next thing to consider would be the antagonist, frequently the villain of the piece. So what's so different about building a villain? Not a whole lot, at least as far as I'm concerned. Sure, audiences might have been content with a one-dimensional villain back in a less-discriminating day. But we're spoiled now.
Once, an antagonist could twirl his mustache, tie Pauline to the railroad tracks, and call it a day. Many villains launched their campaigns of eeeeeevil with a single goal in mind such as Wealth (every crook that ever held up a bank, most Batman and Spider-Man villains), Revenge (Doctor Doom, Die Hard's Simon Peter Gruber, Captain Ahab), Empire Building (The Red Skull, most evil Emperors and Kings in Fantasy fiction), Survival (Davros, Dracula, The Parasite), Unrequited Love (Mr. Freeze, The Phantom of the Opera), and being just plain ol' batcrap crazy (The Joker, Dr. Strangelove, etc.), et al.
One aspect of your antagonist may be that they don't see themselves at truly evil. In The Original Skyman Battles the Master of Steam, Albrecht Bruhner felt a kinship with Adolf Hitler who brought Germany back to life, in his eyes, just as he restored his own existence through his mastery of steam. In his eyes, the defense of his country and assisting his new allies made his agenda of kidnapping and murder easy to execute, so to speak..
On the other hand,Bruhner loved his family, even if they didn't return that affection. He appreciated intelligence and loyalty, if not gender.
However, most realistic antagonists will be aware that they are doing something morally or ethically wrong, which makes their inner conflict more interesting for the reader. Even heroes wonder if they're doing the right thing so why deny your villains the opportunity to soul search? Give your villains a flaw or a soft spot, just as you would a hero. In Fantastic Four #87 (June, 1969, co-produced by writer/editor Stan Lee and penciller Jack Kirby), the FF are powerless and trapped inside Dr. Doom's castle. However, when Doom's assistant Hauptmann decides to eliminate his boss' greatest foes inside a room filled with priceless works of art, using a flame thrower, the old man is killed by Doom. Doom reasons he can kill Reed Richards and his family any time he wants, but those works by the great masters are irreplaceable and worth more than mere revenge. This gives Doom a tad more depth, just as his love for his mother.
If your supporting characters are used to any large degree in your story, treat them the same way. Give them quirks that make them interesting, but perhaps not to the point where the reader asks how screwed up the protagonist must be to call them friends. Or maybe they're not as close as the supporting character might want to believe, eh?
YOU are not just one aspect of a person. You are like an onion or an ogre ... you have layers, different interests and components of your personality that not everyone might understand or even like. Like Transformers, there's more to you than meets the eye.
Treat your characters the same way. The reader will thank you for that.
NEXT WEEK: Find Your Characters' Voices LAST WEEKEND: Many, many thanks to Nathan Bonner and the incredible staff of volunteers at ECLIPSE COMIC CON in Carbondale, Illinois. This was the show that didn't behave like a first-time event (and to learn that it was organized in just THREE MONTHS, that's quite an accomplishment). I was treated like a rock star and was given the privilege of moderating a panel on Writing as well as MCing the Costume Contest. I already await next year's event.
THIS WEEKEND: If you live in Illinois, this is the month to see me. I've got two different gigs in two days at two ends of the state.
On Saturday the 26th, I'll be attending BURG CON at the Bonan Business Center at 540 North Commercial Street in Harrisburg, IL from 10 am until 5 pm. Scott Reed puts on a mighty fine comic-centric convention and talk about the coolest of the cool showing up: authors Cathy Jackson, Jeffrey Allen Davis; artists Joe Dodd, Todd Fox, Justin Holman, Brad Moore, David Clark, Justin Hicks, Jim Gillespie; comic creators Sean Dulaney, Brian Rhodes, Nathan Bonner, as well as my buddies from Burg Comics, Castle Perilous, and Campus Comics.
Admission is FREE, but a donation to the Saline County 4Cs is requested.
Then on Sunday the 27th, I'll be appearing at SPLIT LIT - A BOOK FAIR, hosted by my personal hero, Paul Barile. We'll be at the Berwyn Eagles, 6309 26th Street in Berwyn, IL from noon until six. Aside from MEEEEE, you'll get to meet filmmaker/historian John Borowski and writer/artist Charles D. Moisant among other examples of writing/publishing awesomeness.
Admission is $10 (cash) or pick up your tickets HERE.
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