How to Write a Complex Villain - Jerry Jenkins

hi jerry jenkins here talking about all

things writing today about how to write

a complex villain too many novelists

create a one-dimensional villain who

does bad things simply because he's the

bad guy he might as well be an actor in

a melodrama wearing a black hat and cape

while twirling his handlebar mustache

note that i used the male pronoun

inclusively here to refer to both

genders

a melodramatic villain is a cliche by

definition predictable unrealistic and

they're just for fun

hissing and booing the bad guy when he

comes on stage may be worth a laugh but

in serious fiction such characters don't

work they're not realistic creating a

believable villain requires subtlety and

he must bear realistic genuine

motivation

your goal should be to write a character

whose actions are so shrewd readers may

not even know he's the villain until he

reveals his true colors

you want to create a worthy foe for your

protagonist

first an important distinction and

explanation of some terms you may find

confusing

villain versus anti-villain in real life

villains don't consider themselves

villainous they believe their actions

are justified

villains have reasons for what they do

and sometimes those reasons are even

good

that doesn't mean they're right but they

believe they are

many writing experts refer to such

fictitious characters as anti-villains i

don't the term anti-villain refers to a

complex character with noble goals but

nefarious ways of achieving them to me

that's not an anti-villain that's a

well-crafted villain

and the more complex you can render him

the better

i believe there are anti-heroes

a character type worth studying sometime

but i contend that simply villain is the

right term for your bad guy so forget

anti-villains make your villain

complicated even likable readers should

be able to relate to your villain he

should be believable that means his

actions though bad are at least

understandable and some of his

motivations may even be good the best

most credible villain can be a mostly

virtuous likable antagonist with

sometimes even heroic goals but whose

actions are ultimately evil his actions

sometimes fall into the morally gray

category making the reader wonder

whether he is truly well intentioned or

just a downright monster

so let's discuss how you can create a

worthy adversary for your protagonist

i'll introduce four types of complex

villains and then offer five tips for

writing a strong one

avoid caricatures and straw men by

resisting the temptation to paint your

villain as all bad often we see villains

who hold the opposite view of say a

social issue

than that of the author or the main

character fine that's a recipe for

conflict intention the mistake is to

then make the villain a disgusting human

being try making him a great spouse or

parent or both

or a helpful giving person instead

write him as someone you'd enjoy being

friends with

because he's on the other side of the

hero's issue he is indeed the villain

but the reader likes him in spite of all

that don't we often see this in real

life someone who is diametrically

opposed to our worldview fights against

our worthy cause we want to despise him

or see him in an evil light yet when we

meet him he's charming that's

complicated that's real life and that

makes for a great story the villain must

still be defeated and right must win out

not because the bad guy in the story is

repulsive but rather despite the fact

that he's not that makes your villain

complex and frankly more interesting it

also challenges you to write with more

finesse the villain's motivations are

justifiable at least in his own mind but

in the end he must be defeated by your

hero if your reader feels even somewhat

conflicted about the outcome you've done

your job

so let's look at four types of complex

villains you might choose from for your

own story

first is the noble villain he believes

duty calls and he feels compelled to do

whatever needs to be done

maybe because of his own misguided

conscience or some other outside force

he's still wrong of course but he

doesn't see it that way

some examples are draco malfoy and

regulus black from the harry potter

series

also jesse pinkman and mike ermantrout

from breaking bad

a second type of complex villain is one

who is pitiable readers feel sorry for

this character because he may not have

started out as a bad guy but he believes

desperate times call for desperate

measures so he's all in

his character arc can be dramatic

because often he's so psychologically

damaged that there's no turning back

popular examples include carrie and

stephen king's novel of the same name

frankenstein's monster

anakin skywalker who becomes darth vader

in star wars

loki from thor

the master from doctor who

all right a third complex villain type

is well-meaning

ever know someone whose intentions are

good but everything they do seems to

make things worse

he may sometimes become aware of how

wrong he is and his character arc

becomes redemptive or he might redouble

his efforts and become even more evil

examples include javert and lei mizerab

lady melisandre in a song of ice and

fire

thanos from the marvel universe raymond

reddington in the blacklist

all right one more villain type the

villain in name only this character

actually mirrors the hero in many ways

in fact they may both pursue the same

goal but with opposite motives at his

core the villain in name only doesn't

really seem like a bad guy

his intentions may be mostly good and

he's smart but dangerous mainly because

he's likable and no one suspects him of

being villainous some examples many of

the villains from arthur corn and

doyle's sherlock holmes novels

dr connors and the amazing spider-man

sergeant schultz and colonel klink from

hogan's heroes

so you can see from these four types

that your villain need not be

one-dimensional

all right i promised five tips to help

you create an effective villain

a good bad guy is foundational to

powerful fiction he can make or break

your story the more formidable your

antagonist the more compelling your hero

your villain must this is tip number one

have a realistic and sympathetic

backstory now backstory is anything that

happens before chapter one you may never

reveal any character's entire backstory

but you should know it

because it's going to inform your

writing
give your villain reasons for being who

he is and doing what he does

you and your readers may be repulsed by

his actions but you should both

understand them that requires a credible

backstory that makes your villain

realistic and believable

okay the second tip because he has a

realistic backstory your villain will

and must have strong motivations as

readers get to know him they will deduce

what drives him the why behind his deeds

some examples of what might motivate him

fear

curiosity greed hunger for power revenge

honor

love ethics pride

justice

and notice that some of these are

motives that an honorable character

might exhibit

also your villain might be attempting to

thwart potential threats

like violence abuse injury

illness

natural disaster loss

grief
combat

just be sure to give him strong

motivations

alright the third tip a worthy villain

exhibits power your villain is committed

he'll stop at nothing to get what he

wants if he doesn't care about the

outcome or if he gives up at the first

sign of resistance he won't be worth his

salt or your protagonist's time and

effort

avoid making him a fool or a bumbler

that doesn't make for a worthy opponent

for your hero

he must be smart and accomplished enough

that your readers must grant him at

least begrudging respect

okay my fourth tip is that your villain

should force your protagonist into

making difficult decisions

because it can and should sometimes be

hard to tell if your villain is good or

bad which poses a problem for your hero

remember your main character becomes

more heroic the more worthy his opponent

as i've said a truly authentic villain

often competes with your hero for the

same goal

but obviously for different reasons

writer and writing coach joanna pem says

it's important you make the conflict

specific

and the hero's adversary appear nearly

unbeatable this forces your main

character to make difficult decisions

and ultimately become heroic

which brings up my fifth and final tip

your villain should cause your

protagonist to grow

facing increasingly difficult obstacles

builds muscles in your protagonists the

ones he needs to become truly heroic in

the end which makes for the most

satisfying conclusion with a few notable

exceptions readers love happy endings

where the hero wins the day so allow

your villain to throw everything he's

got at your hero

how he responds will speak volumes about

how he's changed or hasn't the bottom

line

don't shortchange your villain invest as

much time in crafting him as you do your

main character one-dimensional villains

make stories fall flat so conjure a

villain who surprises both your hero and

your readers make him real familiar

believable credible maybe even

attractive if you're an outliner my

character arc video and worksheet can

help you get to know your villain if

you're a pantser one like me who writes

from the seat of your pants you may not

have the patience for that and prefer to

dive right into the writing do what

works best for you i can't wait to see

what you come up with

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writing and i'll see you next time