Our Round Robin topic today is villains. Right now, I feel like a villain for being so late on my blog post, but, hey, I am distracted of late and just fresh off of EPICon. Going to conferences always seems to throw me off for a few days. Of course, I was late last month as well. Time to set reminders. Or set more reminders. LOL
Are villains really necessary? It depends on the book. Obviously, if you are writing a mystery, thriller, suspense, or horror (depending on the horror), villains are definitely necessary. Science fiction and fantasy genres also seem to do well with villains. (Imagine Star Wars without it.)
In romance, I think it’s possible to get away without a villain, although you do see them a lot, but different types of villains. Most romances from the 80s that I remember (I’m dating myself, I know.), there was another woman trying to steal the hero away. Even in one of our contemporary erotic romances, Teacher’s Pet by Kenzie Michaels, there is a conniving other woman trying to break up the hero and heroine. It works creating tension and drama. And, in my own paranormal short story Hieroglyphs, I have a villain, but it’s not really romance. Without the villain, the story falls apart.
Some people love to hate good villains. I have to say, I easily hated the Elk Man in the Medicine Man series by S.R. Howen. He’s extremely evil and easy to hate. He’s so evil you can’t help but root for the good guys.
But what makes a good villain? And do I want to see the villains point of view throughout the book? Personally, I don’t care to see it. I’ve read books where it definitely enhances the story and it works (Eg. Blood on the Pen by David Huffstetler and Teresa D’Amario’s Visions of Fire and Ice), but I’ve also read books where the villain’s point of view takes all of the suspense out of the story.
So, a good bad guy needs to be intelligent and preferably Machiavellian. Having a reason for their evil deeds is helpful, but not necessary if they are suitably and consistently evil. They don’t need to be three dimensional, but they do need to serve a purpose. And, please, do not insert a scene of them explaining their reasonings for their evil deeds at the end of the book to “wrap everything up.” I hate that. If you are going to have a villain and they are going to get at least one scene, add more. Give me more. Not a drive by. Those types of scene completely ruin a book for me.
But that’s just me. Some of my favorite are:
Eddie Carter in Blood on the Pen.
Darth Vader… need I say more
The Elk Man in Medicine Man series
Sauron
The Terminator
The Great Cortado in the Wednesday’s Series by Jon Berkeley
Do you think villains are a necessary component to a good story? Does it depend on the genre? And, if so, do you like having their points of view in the book or not?
Be sure to stop and see what everyone else thinks:
Anne Graham (as Anne Stenhouse)
Aimee (as A.J. Maguire)
Diane Bator
Fiona McGier
Ginger Simpson
Geeta Kakade
Connie Vines
Beverley Bateman
Rhobin Courtright
Are villains really necessary? You say it depends on the book, and I agree. When I write, nobody is a ‘villain’ because I simply do not wish to spend my writing-time creating evil people. But there does have to be antagonism of some sort; a challenger for the protagonist to overcome. Besides, evil is a matter of perception. That is to say, one man’s freedom fighter is another man’s terrorist.
One of your favorites is Sauron? I wouldn’t have expected to see that one on a list.
I agree with what you say about wrapping-up the villain’s motives at the end of the story. I would prefer any motives to be explained ahead of time.
My two cents.
I’m enjoying reading the blogs you’ve linked to.
I am with you. A good story requires some type of conflict. Challenges work as well as evil people.
As for Sauron, it’s more that he was a good villain because he was someone for the good guys to rally against. The fellowship came together to get rid of him. So, yes, he was a good villain from that perspective. 🙂
Perhaps a better villain is Golem. He is entertaining, but definitely villainous.
A great novel demands conflict–and a villain equal to the task. I, too, found Darth Vader”s progression into Evil a case study in characterization.
Novels do demand conflict, but they don’t always demand villains. Conflict can take many forms. 🙂
Hi Marci,
Good post and I agree about the villains POV. Sometimes it works but sometimes it can take some of the suspense away.
Interesting list of favorite villains.
It depends on how it’s done, doesn’t it, Beverley. Recently, I’ve seen a lot of books that are more like an episode of CSI. While I might enjoy watching CSI, I don’t want to read a book like that. 🙂
It has been very interesting to read everyone’s opinions on villains–much alike but also significantly different. Thanks for posting.
They were thought provoking and interesting. Some I agreed with more than others. LOL
Life interrupts but better late than never Marci.
I too like the really evil villains to go unexplained…they are from the DARK side and no other explanations are needed.
For me, I’m more interested in the hero/heroine, Geeta. Often, explaining a villain ends up in a lot of back story. It can be done well, but it frequently isn’t. LOL
I agree that I don’t need to know much about what motivates the villain…but the more evil he/she is, the harder the heroine and hero have to work to overcome the evil. So in a way, the adversity creates an opportunity for the heroine and hero to grow into their strengths. And in my books, their love will develop and get stronger also.
What I find really amusing is the books that have the heroine and hero engaging in flagrant delecto WHILE they’re being chased by the villain! Nothing like some heart-pounding, adrenaline-coursing action to get you hot and ready for action, right? NOT!!
So, you wouldn’t be turned on by the danger of nearly being killed, Fiona? Really? 😀 Me either. I often wonder what they are thinking and why I am reading about or care about them when they are stupid enough to stop in the midst of a chase. I understand attraction and how strong it can be, but one would think self-preservation would be a higher priority. LOL