*Lightning Blast, Explosions, Evil Laughter*
Hey guys! I'm back from my Book Coma, finally. For realz tho, I never wanted a book to not end so badly.
Keeper of the Lost Cities: Exile? Buy it, read it, love it, then join me in the fangirling.
But anyway, I'm here to talk about Villains today.
Ahh, Villains. Those cruel, plotting little characters that we use to torture and ruin our Protagonists life.
I read something on one of the blogs I stalk follow, that, contrary to what we may think, a Villain doesn't necessarily have to be a PERSON, which I found very interesting. I'd never thought of it like that before. The 'Villain', AKA the conflict, the trouble, the evil in the story could be an illness, it could be something that isn't even tangible. A Villain is not a wicked person, but, more so, a Wicked Cause.
Something or someone that taunts the Protagonist and does all in it's power to stop their happiness.
Sometimes the Protagonist gets caught in the cross fire of this rampaging Villain, or sometimes the Villain's evil is directed straight towards the Protagonist.
Now, I'm going to focus on Villainous BEINGS for a minute.
You can't just throw a black cloak on a random guy who cackles a lot and call it your 'Villain'.
Villains are characters too. You should always have TWO main characters: Your Protagonist and your Villain. Both should be just as well developed and as much thought put into one as the other. They are equals, in a way.
A Villain has his/her own likes, dislikes, meanings, causes, story motivation, lost ones, happy memories. A Villain is just a destroyed Hero. A Villain should represent your Protagonist--but instead of still standing strong in the end through all of the trials and heartbreaks like the Protagonist does; the Villain broke.
Every Villain needs a cause--They can't just be evil because they feel like it.
They need a deep rooted jealousy, a burning hatred. They need revenge or they need to belong.
Every Villain should have a heartbreaking story to tell, but they hide it with the anger/wickedness within.
Personally, I love creating Villains. They are such deep, meaningful, sad characters that are so lost and so tortured in their mind that they turn more monster than human in their soul.
I love this.
Your Protagonist and Villain should share similar qualities.
Now--That may sound weird, but let me explain.
It's great in books, where you realize the horrible Villain is not so different from our hero. Whether this is sharing something obvious as the same power, the same love interest, ect. or something more hidden like the same determination in their cause, whether right or wrong. The same ability to love endlessly.
The Protagonist should posses the same darkness, the same evil spirit as the Villain, but hides it through what he/she knows is right.
Like I said before, the Villain is simply the Hero that broke. The one that could have possessed great qualities, but chose to ignore them and use instead the darkness that is inside all of us.
So, WAY deep down, somewhere, the Villain and the Protagonist ARE the same, they just chose to hide their similarities in different ways; one cloaked in light and the other dark.
A Villain is the reflection of the Protagonist; All that he/she COULD have been, still COULD be. All that they fear inside themselves and the darkness they try so hard to hide fights against them.
Can I just say again? I love Villains!
From fire breathing dragons to illness, from long lost childhood friend to a raging madman; Villains are in the story to taunt and try to destroy the Protagonist, and remind them of what they themselves COULD BE.
What is your opinion on Villains? What is your Villain like?
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed!
