I
n historical fiction, everyone loves a good villain. There is a plethora of examples to choose from in the genre, many of whom have become well-known classic favorites for historical fiction fans, such as Captain Ahab or Inspector Javert. If you are passionate about a favorite villain in someone else's book, then you need to feel the same emotion for the villain in your own book. That makes sense, right?
The problem is, how do we do that without our villain becoming so cliché or stereotypical that the reader closes the book? There is a system to creating believable villains, and today's article breaks down the steps so you can examine whether you have the kind of villain that will engender the right kind of reaction from your reader.
In our last article, Four Types of Antagonists, we outlined some of the characteristics of a villain but, once again, we will show the difference between an antagonist and a villain. Is there a difference? Yes, there is. In simple terms, an antagonist is someone who creates external conflict and hinders the protagonist from reaching their goal. As shown in the previous article, this can be done in several ways and does not necessarily mean that your antagonist must be all-out evil. His or her actions or intentions may simply bar the way, even if they may share the same goal as the protagonist. This is why the villain and the antagonist are two different things in the story. Of course, the villain may be the antagonist, but the antagonist does not necessarily have to be the villain. Keep in mind, that an antagonist can be a little good and a little evil but a villain is a different kettle of fish.
Villains have outward malicious intent and actions against the protagonist. Back to the analogy of The Lord of the Rings: Sauron is pure and utter evil with no possible redemptive qualities. His every thought is placing obstacles in Frodo's way and bringing not only this little hobbit to ruin but the entire middle earth.
Recently, The Historical Fiction Company reviewed “Floats the Dark Shadow” by Yyes Fey and the story touches on the horrific Gilles de Rais, a 12th-century serial killer who showed no remorse for his murdering spree. The villain in this novel plays on the history of this serial killer to enact his own murders, all the while placing the protagonist's life in danger. This book, among others, is a great example of using villainy in a bone-chilling way that brings about the necessary emotion to the reader.
But does a book have to show sheer horror to bring about this emotion for a villain?
Just as you don't want to create a “too perfect” protagonist, you want to avoid doing the same with your villain. We've all read stories where the protagonist is exempt of flaws and fears and if you are anything like me, you'll want to close the cover on this 'syrupy' main character before you get too far into the narrative out of sheer lack of believability. Just as you want your main character to be REAL, so too with the villain. This is vital in historical fiction since you are, for the most part, dealing with possible actual historical figures and historical events. To choose this genre to write in means you must humanize every aspect of the story, especially the characters since you are in essence speaking for them to this generation of readers who have picked up your book. Their past, voice, personality, experiences, love, hate, and so on, requires that they have a rich, compelling, well-researched, and fully fleshed-out story. Make them so human that the reader KNOWS THEM and CONNECTS with them on a deep level.
Does this mean that a villain's past, personality, and experiences should tone down the evil? Absolutely not. Again, with Sauron: you know the background of him, of his nature, his experiences, his passion. Even as a vague sorcerer, a necromancer, you get the full backstory of his history which plays into his passion and greed for power. When he becomes just an 'eye', which is a brilliant move from Tolkein, you can truly see Sauron's 'focus', his one thought and vision. When you 'see' your villain through humanity's eyes, you can move your readers in ways you cannot imagine. Villains who do this for us when we read, strike chords, and ask questions about ourselves and mankind, in general, oftentimes reveal stark truths about the world in which we live.
Another aspect of being a writer, especially of historical fiction, is that it causes you to look into faces as you pass others in the street; and when you are developing a villain (and possibly watching a true crime documentary), questions swell in your mind. “Why did that person become that murderer?” “Is that person hiding a dark secret?” “When did they become so horrifying?” - these and other questions are what we should be asking when we are developing a believable villain. If that is not happening... well, then perhaps your villain is not as engaging as he/she/it needs to be.
The secret?
Make the villain the protagonist of their own story as you are building this world. This is the best advice that can be found across the internet and is well-founded in crafting believable villains. While we do, as historical fiction authors, have the advantage of a world already established, we can still go far in crafting our villain so as to be fully fleshed out. After all, you do (hopefully) do this for your protagonist, then the same should be done for your villain. If you don't know them, their dreams, goals, motivations, personality, history, views, etc., etc., then melding these details into the character, then how in the world will they hold their own against the protagonist? Believe me, your villain will fall on his or her face if you don't do this... and we've all experienced these moments in writing. This is a constant learning process but well worth it in the long run.
Intention is a vital element in developing your villain. It is not enough to know their goal. Just as it is not enough to know that Sauron wants ultimate power. Tolkein dove into the depths of world-building and character development so that not only he knew the 'ins-and-outs' of each and every character but he did this for the reader's sake, as well. If you are going to show the reader the 'who', 'what', 'where', 'how', and 'why' of a protagonist, then you better do the same for the antagonist, and/or the villain, even if your villain or antagonist leans more towards the 'internal' rather than an actual 'external' one.
When you take the time to develop this kind of craft... this fleshed-out villain... your story will be the better for it, and your readers will clamor for more stories from you, especially if you've managed to put the reader in the protagonist's shoes, face to face with an external villain or delving deep into the internal villain of the soul.
However, there is another caveat in all of this crafting. First and foremost, don't place a villain in the story just for evil's sake. While the moment might instill some heart-pounding reaction from your reader, the moment is going to pass rather quickly and the connection you wished you had created between the reader and the protagonist is going to quickly fade. In other words, there must be a concrete foundation on which to build and place not only your protagonist but your villain/antagonist. Can your villain hold their own against the protagonist? Does their story give weight to the narrative? Or is it just there to create a moment of fear for the protagonist and the reader? Some of the best stories, again, entwine the two so skillfully that the story pushes forward, onward to the goal, with both of them holding their own. Can you imagine if Tolkein only created Sauron for one scene in the book to bring fear to Frodo and the reader? No, instead, he entwined them both, so much so that even in the end Frodo still felt the effects of this villain. He gave the reader scene after scene after scene where the two externally and internally interacted with each other and separately, lending to newly acquired knowledge, changing circumstances, actions and reactions, and consequences for them both.
Is this a lot of work? Yes, and again, ensuring historical believability is even more critical, so when you take the time and develop characterization so not only your protagonist is believable but your villain/antagonist is as well, then you will see the results as more and more readers “get” you and “hear” your unique voice as an author. The side benefit? You'll give your readers a classic villain to remember, educate your readers about an actual historical meanie (or made-up one), and your fan base will grow!
Previous article: Four Types of Antagonists
Next article: Every Protagonist Needs a Supporting Character (Posting Sept 16, 2022)
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