I’m back home from my weekend in Ottawa where I had a chance to do some writing. With the work I accomplished, I’ve arrived home with a question for all my followers who are fiction lovers. But first a little information.
I have a new villain in the sequel to my novel and I’m finding I like her. She’s as sharp and witty as she is rotten to the core. So far, 40,000 words into the novel, she has yet to show how bad she can be. My question to you is, have you ever loved a villain despite the fact that they’re cruel and horrible people? Is what I’m doing a no-no?
In the comments, please let me know if you’ve ever read (or seen in a movie) a villain you’ve liked – who you’ve been excited to see when they turned up in a scene.
P.S. I’ll be answering all the comments from the weekend and reading as many of the SoCS entries as I can after I put Alex to bed. Thanks to everyone for your contributions to both!
lindaghill.com 
August 11, 2014 at 5:49 pm
When I write my superhero novel, it’s going to be all about the villains. I love a good villain. It’s important to remember, though, that every villain is the hero in his own mind.
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August 11, 2014 at 5:50 pm
Forgot to mention: one of my favorite villain-heroes is Dr. Horrible 🙂
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August 11, 2014 at 11:27 pm
This is very true. Something else to keep in mind when I’m writing. Thanks very much! 🙂 And I love Dr. Horrible too!
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August 11, 2014 at 3:18 pm
No one is all bad (well maybe a few) liking villains is not a no-no.
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August 11, 2014 at 11:15 pm
Yep, you’re right. Some definitely can’t be redeemed even despite their positive attributes. Thanks for this, John. Good to know-know. 🙂 (sorry, couldn’t resist.)
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August 11, 2014 at 2:31 pm
I think that this absolutely works. Personally, I do not like likeable villians, only because my type A personality doesn’t allow me to see the gray areas.
If, however, you ask my husband (FoolsQuest) He will say that he loves to be able to identify with the villian. Making a villian likeable, only makes it easier to relate to him.
I can’t wait to see this novel 🙂 Your villian sounds wonderful :)… and very much like FoolsQuest 😉
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August 11, 2014 at 11:12 pm
I think what it is that I like about my villain is that she’s charming. However I don’t think anyone will really identify with her – at least not anyone I’d like to know. 😛 In the end I don’t think she’ll be likeable at all, which is what worries me – that readers will get attached to her on some level.
I saw your comment over at FoolsQuest and I thought, hey cool! I’m getting to know the whole family! 😀 It’s great you both have blogs! Great to meet you from this perspective. 🙂
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August 11, 2014 at 11:16 pm
Well now colour me intrigued! I want to know more about by this villain now 🙂
Yes, it is actually through him that I found your blog. 🙂 I must say, if you are quiet for a few days he begins to worry. 😉
And I agree… Sometimes its nice to see me through his eyes as well.
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August 11, 2014 at 11:26 pm
To be seen through the eyes of those who love us is a wonderful thing indeed. 🙂 Thanks for letting me know I’m thought about when I’m not around. 🙂
This villain is a great character if I say so myself – though I can’t take all the credit. She writes her own lines. It’s only a matter of time before she writes herself into a corner where even I’m not going to like her though. She has an evil nature under all that charm. 🙂 I certainly hope my novel sees the light of day eventually!
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August 11, 2014 at 2:02 pm
I’m all for villains. I think sometimes they’re more interesting characters because they tend to be unpredictable and multi-faceted. Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent comes to mind as a surprisingly likeable villain (they really fleshed out her back story in the movie) and Tom Hiddleston’s Loki from Thor. These are two wildly popular villains that fans seem to love. I think it’s awesome that you’re focusing on the villain.
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August 11, 2014 at 11:04 pm
Thanks! She’s a piece of work, that’s for sure. I’ve heard great things about Maleficent, but I haven’t seen it yet, nor have I seen Thor. I’ll have to look them up. Thanks for the suggestions 🙂
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August 11, 2014 at 10:17 am
In reading through the comments, I kept thinking about a line from childhood Sunday school – “Hate the sin, love the sinner” – which made me think, can anyone who actively nurtures their empathic nature still hate a villain once the storyteller shares how they came to be on the path they are? 🙂
I recently discovered the show Continuum on Netflix – it’s been intriguing to me how the character of Garza has been developed as the series progresses – – the first few shows only displayed her kick-arse ways – all done with a steely, I-have-zero-compassion stare – and yet, as the viewer is given snatches of her past (future) – as she interacts with other characters, you start to see the good points in her character – her honesty – her loyalty – her courage to follow her own path and keep her word –
And now, I like her – whether she turns out to truly be a villain or not – 🙂
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August 11, 2014 at 11:02 pm
I think there have been many tragic figures made into villains by writers, but that doesn’t always excuse their actions – at least not as long as they’re fictional and not real. I believe the balance always has to be there to make the reader MORE sympathetic to the protagonist’s plight and his or her fight against the antagonist. Otherwise things become too gray.
Thanks for this, my dear. You’ve made me think. 🙂
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August 12, 2014 at 12:40 am
🙂
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August 11, 2014 at 9:38 am
In my mind, a villain is inherently unlikable. When we respect them, it’s due course, but if I like a character, then that character can’t be a villain. Since all people have the capacity for good and bad, then all characters should as well. But villains don’t have a good side, do they?
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August 11, 2014 at 10:02 am
I think every villain needs at least one human trait to which people can relate, otherwise no one will care about him/her. The opposite of love isn’t hate, it’s indifference. I think I need to make my villain someone people love to hate.
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August 11, 2014 at 10:04 am
I can’t think of anyone I love to hate. LOL I’m sorry, I’m bad at this!
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August 11, 2014 at 10:57 pm
I was having a hard time thinking of anyone as well – that’s why I posted this. Shhh! Don’t tell anybody.
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August 11, 2014 at 11:53 pm
I even asked The Mister!
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August 13, 2014 at 2:28 pm
Harder than I thought it would be. 😛
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August 11, 2014 at 12:06 am
There is a few villains that I love on TV I like Regina from Once Upon a Time she is so perfect in her character also Javier in Gang Related is so awesome as the villain I can’t even imagine any other actor doing what he does. I like when the villain has a reason to be the way they are.
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August 11, 2014 at 10:53 pm
Mmm good point. I’m kind of lacking in a reason so far. I need to work on that. Thanks for the reminder, Margret. 🙂
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August 10, 2014 at 11:45 pm
I love villains that have their own twisted logic about the world, like Magneto from X-men or Voldemort from Harry Potter.
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August 11, 2014 at 10:51 pm
Twisted logic is a great thing to have in a villain. It makes them interesting enough to want to put them under a microscope. Thanks for this, Dominika. 🙂
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August 10, 2014 at 11:36 pm
I loved Sephiroth from Final Fantasy VII. I sort of felt like he was given the short stick, and then decided he’d run around the playground impaling everyone as revenge, while crying out, “I love my mother, and that’s why I must do this!”
It’s generally not that I like them, but that I respect them. I respect Tywin Lannister. I get what he’s doing for family, despite how he does it. Though reading the Joker advocates, I did get a thrill out of the Joker. It was a little more than respect.
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August 11, 2014 at 10:49 pm
I hope it’s possible to respect a character for her single-mindedness, because apart from that, my villain is probably the least respectable character I’ve ever known. 😛 That Sephiroth guy sounds like a keeper. 😉 Thanks for the input, Paul 🙂
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August 10, 2014 at 11:35 pm
+1 for The Joker (because of Heath Ledger).
Dolores Umbridge played by Imelda Staunton, My God, she really got on my nerves while watching the movie, even more than Voldermort .
Amy Dunne in Gone Girl from recent books
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August 11, 2014 at 10:46 pm
I really do have to read “Gone Girl.” It’s sitting beside my bed… And yeah, there were same great villains in Harry Potter! Thanks for the reminder. 🙂
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August 10, 2014 at 11:10 pm
I love a good villain. They require the hero to be that much better, and some of them ooze charisma.
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August 10, 2014 at 11:22 pm
That’s exactly it! My reason for having her the way she is – she makes my hero better! Thank you so much for making me see this. I feel so much better now! 😀
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August 10, 2014 at 9:57 pm
I have liked villains before. However, it seems that in television, villains get turned into good characters when the writers see they have a fanbase for the character. So it is hard to claim they are still a villain, after the tear jerking background comes out or the villain behaves for the greater good.
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August 10, 2014 at 10:21 pm
Agreed, television shows are known to cheat in order to please their fans. I couldn’t do that though. My characters need to stay true to their characters, no matter how disappointing. …which may end up being my downfall. 😛
Thanks for your input. 🙂
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August 10, 2014 at 10:22 pm
I would rather read it your way, than watch the character morph into someone other than the the character I initially became fond of.
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August 10, 2014 at 10:27 pm
Heh, yeah, I’m not much of a fan of cheating either. Thanks very much! 🙂
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August 10, 2014 at 9:54 pm
I think anti-heroes are great. Serge and Coleman from tim Dorsey’s series are serial killers and drug addicts, but they are hilarious and always seem to knock off the bad guys that the good guys are after.
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August 10, 2014 at 10:19 pm
There’s another story I’ll have to get caught up on. As I said to Charles though, I can see this villain ending up as an anti-hero, no matter how much I like her. She’s way too evil by nature.
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August 10, 2014 at 9:52 pm
One of the novels that I’m working on has a villain that started out as a villain in another daydream story of mine (that never made it to the page) but I found myself liking him so much that I wanted to let him show through… so the novel is actually a story about his daughter. While he is a villain to the world, (and she is not blind to that reality), she has a very different perspective on him.
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August 10, 2014 at 10:17 pm
I’ve actually got a little bit of that element going on in my story as well. Certain people see my villain for what she is, and others (her family) are a bit less wary… and a little too trusting.
Thanks for sharing your experience. 🙂
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August 10, 2014 at 9:46 pm
I don’t know whether I’ve LIKED a villain as much as I’ve been extremely intrigued by them when they have some more “human”/good traits in addition to the bad. I find that when this happens, I actually get more caught up in the villain than the story…of course, every villain needs a good story to show how bad he/she can be so……I think you’re on a good track here…….
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August 10, 2014 at 10:15 pm
That’s encouraging. She certainly shows a few human traits, though not very many nice ones. I think that may be what draws me to her, actually – she’s intriguing. You (even I) never know what she’s going to come out with next.
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August 10, 2014 at 9:36 pm
I have a few like that. It’s not unheard of to have a villain with some entertaining traits. Think of Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer who was witty and charming. He eventually became an anti-hero, so you can look at it as a possible path for the character if the readers get behind them.
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August 10, 2014 at 10:13 pm
This one’s got some truly despicable tricks up her sleeve, so I can’t see her becoming an anti-hero. If anything, anyone who really ends up liking her is going to be in for a shock, and perhaps a little mourning.
I’ve never watched Buffy… 😛
Thanks for the input, Charles. 🙂
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August 10, 2014 at 10:21 pm
You’re welcome. By anti-hero, I mean a redemption storyline. It happens a lot in comics and long-running series. Guess it depends on what she does.
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August 10, 2014 at 10:23 pm
Yeah, … no. Unless I’m reading her wrong, there will be no redemption for this villain. She’s the worst of the worst.
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August 10, 2014 at 10:24 pm
Guess you have a Joker on your hands then. People will love the character even though they’re a villain.
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August 10, 2014 at 10:26 pm
Ooh, the Joker. Good one. In fact many of Batman’s villains were likeable.
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