by Debbie Burke
Today’s post is an excerpt from my new book, The Villain’s Journey-How to Create Villains Readers Love to Hate.
While a power drill is a gruesome staple in horror and slasher films, we’re going to take a less gory, more surgical approach to drilling inside your villain’s head.
Let’s assume most readers of The Kill Zone are not kidnappers, rapists, or murderers. That makes it difficult for us to imagine the mindset of characters who commit heinous crimes. But to write convincing villains, authors need to delve into dark places of the soul.
Here are several questions to help channel your inner villain.
Warning: don’t write down your answers. Keep them inside your head. You don’t want to incriminate yourself, right?
§ Have you ever wanted something or someone so much you didn’t care about the consequences to have it/them?
§ Have you ever done something you knew was wrong, but you wanted to please, impress, or stay connected to someone else?
§ Have you ever lied or covered up the truth to protect someone else who acted immorally or illegally?
§ Has someone ever terribly harmed you or a loved one?
§ If you could take revenge against the person who harmed you without going to prison, would you be tempted?
A defense attorney friend observed that she often related to her clients’ destructive impulses. She wondered if the difference between regular people and criminals is lack of impulse control. I think she’s right. Most people might want to act in illegal, antisocial ways but they resist the temptation.
As you create a villain, dig deep into your memory. Tap into the powerful emotions you felt when you were in the situations described above.
§ Fear?
§ Panic?
§ Rage?
§ Frustration?
§ Helplessness?
§ Not caring about the consequences?
§ What else?
Why does a particular villain interest you?
Do they remind you of a person in your past? A rotten boss? A horrible ex? A family member who abused you?
What emotions does that person evoke in you?
§ Fear;
§ Helplessness;
§ Powerlessness;
§ Resentment;
§ Jealousy;
§ Hatred;
§ Love.
Yes, love. This often occurs in abusive domestic relationships. A beaten child can love and hate the parent at the same time. A battered spouse can simultaneously love and hate the vicious mate pummeling them.
Love is a complicated emotion with many layers. Exploring those complexities in characters draws the reader in closer to your story. It becomes real because they identify with the struggle.
~~~
Have you ever instantly disliked a person? Chances are good that person reminds you of someone in your past who negatively affected you. Tap into that association to describe your villain.
Here’s another trick to develop villains:
Write down their five worst qualities. What do they think, say, or do that makes you absolutely loathe them? Here are a few examples to get started but expand on these for your character.
§ Selfish;
§ Intolerant;
§ Cruel;
§ Vicious;
§ Conniving.
Now search your memory for times that you yourself displayed any of those five worst qualities, even for a fleeting second.
§ Did you ever say or do something hurtful or cruel to someone that didn’t deserve your wrath?
§ What stopped you from continuing that negative behavior?
Next, write down the villain’s five best qualities. Here are a few starter suggestions but, as above, list additional items to fit your character.
§ Intelligence;
§ Persistence;
§ Drive;
§ Resilience in the face of setbacks;
§ Adaptability to changing circumstances;
Wait a second. Don’t those qualities sound heroic? Yes.
To be a worthy opponent for your hero, the villain should possess positive traits that parallel your hero’s.
Except in the villain, those qualities become twisted. They use their strengths to do wrong.
List specific ways that your villain’s actions harm others.
§ Write down examples of malicious or cruel behavior toward a neighbor, a child, a pet.
§ Write down three examples of malicious acts to strangers;
§ Write down three reasons they use to justify their acts.
~~~
In The Writer’s Journey, Christopher Vogler discusses:
“Facing the Shadow,” an encounter between the hero and “a deadly enemy villain, antagonist, opponent…An idea that comes close to encompassing all these possibilities is the archetype of the Shadow. A villain may be an external character, but in a deeper sense what all these words stand for is the negative possibilities of the hero himself. In other words, the hero’s greatest opponent is his own Shadow.”
“There but for the grace of God go I.” Whether or not one believes in higher powers, most people understand the concept. If not for chance, luck, fate, or divine intervention, we could easily be an unfortunate person trapped in tragic circumstances.
In Sympathy for the Devil, the 1968 classic Rolling Stones song, Lucifer boasts of the evil he’s wreaked through history. Yet he also claims saints and sinners are one and the same.
Most people have both good and evil inside their hearts and minds, and are capable of either. Some give into destructive impulses and act immorally or illegally. Others control the impulses and remain inside the bounds of society and law.
Yet, under the right circumstances, a noble, moral person may commit terrible atrocities, while a vicious, corrupt person may show kindness.
When you need inspiration for your villain, listen to the Stones’ song. ~~~
TKZers: How do you get into the mindset of a villain? What are your favorite tricks to drill into your antagonist’s head?
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Want more tips to write memorable villains? Please check out The Villain’s Journey-How to Create Villains Readers Love to Hate.
It is questions like this that remind me I have lived too “interesting” a life.
“Has someone ever terribly harmed you or a loved one?
If you could take revenge against the person who harmed you without going to prison, would you be tempted?”
Yes and yes. Tempted? How about planned. Tod, it has been a long time but I still think about blowing you off the face of the planet. One day, at least on paper you will become just another senseless shooting victim.
I have known too many crime victims. And a few violent criminals. I discovered not long ago that my IT job and my pizza job crossed. A co-worker, worked for Michael Devlin, convicted child rapist. Devlin pled guilty to 70+ charges. Through quirks in Missouri law, he will eventually be eligible for parole. It will be in the fall of 5310. Still too soon.
Alan, an “interesting” life is tough to live through but also makes great story fodder. Enjoy your revenge on paper! The justice that eludes us in real life can be found in fiction.
My children enjoy the phrase, “Aunt Elaine kills people for a living.” Well, she does.
Hahaha!
“Write down examples of malicious or cruel behavior toward a neighbor, a child, a pet.
Write down three examples of malicious acts to strangers;
Write down three reasons they use to justify their acts.”
There is a phrase I see every few days now. It goes well with you can run but you can’t hide.
“The IDF neutralized the attackers.”
Interesting post, Debbie. If I wrote hero/villain stories, this could come in handy.
In my books, I’d use the term ‘bad guy’ rather than villain, and with one exception, have never written from their POV. When I read, I prefer NOT seeing the villain’s POV. My cops are more interested in catching the perpetrators of whatever crime is going on than wondering what made the bad guy do whatever he did.
Terry, in the book I differentiate between villains and antagonists. Villains are antagonists but antagonists are not necessarily villains.
In addition to “bad guys” there are plenty of “bad gals” in fiction, too!
Great thought-provoking piece, Debbie! This struck a chord: “There but for the grace of God go I.” I know in my heart this is true for me.
The villains in my books are intelligent and talented people. They are all tempted by something they give in to. They all start down a road to get the thing they want, but they can’t stop. It’s like quicksand – it keeps pulling them in until they put aside their own humanity to satisfy their desire. And then they have to hide what they’ve done, which leads them into an even darker place.
Kay, great point about characters who want something badly. They don’t initially have evil intentions but then they start down the slippery slope and can’t stop.
I dig for the fear. Of course, villains always deny that they fear anything. After all, they’re in the business of terrifying their victims or destroying lives as they please.
But somewhere deep beneath their crust of power, rage, and cruelty — beneath whatever form their villainy takes — there is a fear. Fear of being lost, forgotten, or ignored. Fear that someone stronger, smarter, or wealthier will have more or be more than the villain. Fear of being disrespected, devalued, or outwitted. Fear becomes so much a part of the villain’s identity that it’s hidden even from them.
Once I find that fear, I know how my villain acts and reacts to everyone and everything else.
Suzanne, that’s a great insight about a villain’s fear. Thanks for your thought-provoking comment.
Insightful excerpt from your very insightful book on villains and what makes them tick. As per Jung, we all have a shadow self, but villains gave into their dark side and let it consume them, in the end.
Answering these questions gives entry points into finding what the trigger(s) was/were.
Thanks, Dale. Jung was right about the shadow. We may not be aware of it until something that happens that forces us to face the dark side of ourselves.
Excellent starting points to craft a believable villain, Debbie. I’ve lived an interesting life with close friends and/or associates on both sides of the law. So, it’s easy for me to slip inside the villain’s skin and view the world through their eyes. 😎
Sue, your villains are always complex and compelling. Thanks for stopping by.
I just treat her like a regular main pov character – she has, she thinks, good reasons to do what she does. If people would be a little more cooperative and fall into line quicker, she’d not have to work so hard. She gets a smaller number of scenes – but that’s because she’s a lot less indecisive.
He would thank her, but it’s best just to accept the accolades, and not get involved in any little messes. Why take chances? She even offered every opportunity to do it naturally. After all, the only thing she wants is what he needs – it will all work out in the end.
Alicia, nice work getting into an antagonist’s POV. She of course thinks she’s the hero of her own story.
It IS a little more awkward each time I have a Bianca scene, and have to channel her – but she’s so right about so many things it’s almost a shame I don’t agree with what she’s doing. And she has the best intentions for herself!