What Makes a Good Villain?

Look, I'm not going to give a lengthy introduction here. I'm not about to justify nor delve into the many eccentricities of me. You guys know by now that I'm a pretty unconventional girl. So, I'm just going to throw it out there without attempting to give an explanation beforehand...but I sort of just did give an explanation, huh? Eh well.

I like villains.

I fall for the bad guy.
The darker and dangerous the better.
I don't give a darn if he's a stone cold killer.
I'm down for the sick and twisted crazy ride (just kidding, mom).

Yeah, I'm that girl. But this only applies to the marvelous world of fiction we find in totally awesome novels, comic books, films, shows, and what not. There is no way I would ever associate with a psychopathic scoundrel in my real life. I don't have a thing for illustrious miscreants and I sure won't ever give into the charms of a handsome serpent rocking a dazzling smile and....well, moving right along...heh heh.

Essentially, I have much admiration for writers who can humanize a villain that well. The sort who can cause their readers to develop sympathy for the treacherous monster causing all kinds of chaos. I'm talking about a writer who has the ability to mask a character's wickedness so well that the reader forgets and sometimes don't even care how evil the character is. They start rooting for the character.

That's how I am. My mother hates it--and she will probably hate this post too. She doesn't understand how I can be a nice (sometimes), saved good church girl (lol) and have a fascination with things I should really abstain from. I know, I know, I know...pray for me.

But really it's not that bad. My salvation is not in jeopardy. I think it's normal, actually. Honestly, how many people do you know absolutely LOVE Bellatrix Lestrange? I loved her from the moment she was introduced in the Harry Potter series. She has such character and her very essence is simply magical and graceful yet deranged and sickening. And yes, I did mourn the loss of Sirius Black...but I still loved Bellatrix! The same goes for The Joker, Cruella de Vil, Valentine, Dark Phoenix, Magneto, Voldemort, Dracula, Hannibal, Loki, Klaus...and the list goes on and on my dear friends.

I just think it's awesome, you know? And I believe this is an ability that every writer who wants to be successful in the publishing world (in the appropriate genre, of course) should have. Readers hate the stereotypical and mundane villains whose actions are totally predictable and eye roll worthy. Readers want villains who are unpredictable. Villains who are smart, crafty, has potential and great ideas, and are motivated. Readers dig rebels with a cause. And man...villains with a troublesome past? They take the cake.

Really guys, even Lucifer has a past. The villain of all villains! The guy was the favored angel in heaven head over the choir and he gave it all up simply for a control he would never acquire, a ridiculous amount of unnecessary envy, and crazy greed. That's one heck of a past. He had a father, no THE FATHER, a family, a marvelous place to call home...but something happened.

Something always happens, right? That's what readers like-that something that causes the villain to change. And I'm talking before he/she is actually deemed a villain. And although I detest Satan and he is one villain I would never play patty cake with....the dude has a past, present, and future. If you want to create a successful villain start by reading the Bible. There is so much good in there, of course, but it also tells of the evil side. Learning about that true evil--the very birth of it--has caused me to write villains a lot better. They all take after the devil anyway, right?

And by the way....Satan sucks to the utmost. Jesus rocks. Just thought I'd throw that out there, lol. Don't want you guys thinking I'm some psycho devil lover or anything. I'm all for God, folks. I just can get caught up with the villains in stories I read. ;-)

Brainstom. Outline. Organize. Write.

I'm not going to lie.
I'm a bit scatterbrained.
I know, I know, I know.
What can I say? Stuff happens.
Heck, blame the bloodline.

Externally, I'm a pretty neat and tidy person. My living quarters stay clean. I don't like messy areas. I hate weird odors. I can't cook or bake in a disgusting kitchen. I like my hair and makeup a certain way. I just like a nice, sweet candle scented area that also happens to be immaculate. Can you blame me?

But on the inside...honey baby chiiilllddd, I am a stanky hot mess. Especially when my creative juices flow. I'm talking ideas crashing into one another. Light bulbs exploding here and there. Ah ha! Moments popping up like freaking grasshoppers. No lie, it's nuts.

During the brainstorming phase of producing ideas for my novel I jotted down notes on whatever was available--phone, laptop, napkin, whatever. Those notes consisted of major details about my characters, the premise, difficulties to overcome, plot twists, main events, and so on. This exercise typically occurred after my college classes at a local café I frequented. Yes, I worked on my novel instead of writing a paper or studying for an exam. Bad student, I know. After enough brainstorming I really tried to get an idea of the desires I had for my novel. The themes, genre, target audience, how events will affect my characters, what will the setting be, do I want to make a career out of this and so on.

Then came my outline phase. I did a bit of research and learned not all writers feel the need to create outlines before diving into the actual writing of the manuscript. Some writers prefer an outline simply to have a guide. Something that will keep them on track without limiting their novel's possibilities, of course. It's perfectly okay to make changes to the outline whilst writing. It's normal to get more or better ideas when you really get into your story.

Now organizing my outline was pretty simple....well, kind of. First I went into deep detail for each of my characters. Then I listed their names again and provided short sentences, no more than 15 words, for each along with a possible quote. I spent a lot of time on my characters because I know a great fiction book is character driven. Sucky Characters = Sucky Book. Honestly, have you heard of The Joker? Pure awesomeness. I then expanded on the premise, setting, stakes, plot, definitions for certain artifacts, terms, or special items.

And really, a novel outline is just like a long list of stuff needing an explanation. That's it. Not all writers must create an outline before the actual writing, but I do simply because I like to hurry up and get my ideas into a saved document. And at the time I was a beginner. And like I said before, it's not mean to limit your novel's possibilities or restrict your creativity, it's just a guide. Like an organized tool to help you along the way. You don't have to stick with it. There is nothing in the heavenly sent writer's rulebook that states you cannot make changes to your outline.

After all this I felt comfortable enough to start writing. And what's so beautiful is that I wrote my entire novel within months. I was so excited and gung-ho about the whole thing that I cranked out 160k words in less than one semester of college. If I wasn't working, in class, or doing homework my face was glued to the laptop screen with my fingers typing away. Now, I wasn't that excited when the revision stages began but hey, it is what it is.

So that's how the writing of my novel started. I brainstormed, outlined, organized my ideas, and got down to writing. It's okay to spend a lot of time on those first three stages but you have to start writing some time. Don't get too hooked on making your outline perfect, it's not that big of a deal. Like I said, it's just a tool to help you stay on track and keep your ideas from being forgotten.