tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post525310525854254809..comments2024-03-28T05:59:52.454-07:00Comments on TalkToYoUniverse: Develop your AntagonistJuliette Wadehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02879627074920760712noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-5018035144246488742011-08-23T08:44:25.178-07:002011-08-23T08:44:25.178-07:00Thanks for the comment, Rahima! Good luck with you...Thanks for the comment, Rahima! Good luck with your project.Juliette Wadehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02879627074920760712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-63334167630222950682011-08-16T14:04:53.313-07:002011-08-16T14:04:53.313-07:00Very helpful! I'm just at the point in Book T...Very helpful! I'm just at the point in Book Two of my fantasy trilogy (The Star-Seer's Prophecy) where I have to figure out what to do with my antagonist. He's got a vulnerability (a bad guy who is afraid of the dark!) and a story arc, but I haven't thought of how he might evolve further. Thanks!Rahima Warrenhttp://www.rahimawarren.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-56555036248710197142011-08-16T07:42:51.882-07:002011-08-16T07:42:51.882-07:00Jaleh, sometimes I have to spend a very long time ...Jaleh, sometimes I have to spend a very long time working my way into a character. Years, even. I always find it a worthwhile exercise... good luck!Juliette Wadehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02879627074920760712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-19859488548529766912011-08-16T07:15:07.880-07:002011-08-16T07:15:07.880-07:00I really struggle with my baddies. Getting into th...I really struggle with my baddies. Getting into their heads is hard, because I honestly don't understand their deeper motivations. Guess it says a lot about my world-view. But I keep working on them, hoping to eventually make them as cool as antagonists in my favorite stories.Jaleh Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04942272578488986874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-52671619466349780012011-08-15T21:23:11.730-07:002011-08-15T21:23:11.730-07:00Wow, thanks for all these great comments! I had an...Wow, thanks for all these great comments! I had an internet blip today and wasn't able to get back until now.<br /><br />Tiyana, thanks for sharing your favorite bad guys.<br /><br />Carol and linda, you're welcome.<br /><br />Hayley, thanks for the comment.<br /><br />Theresa, sounds interesting!<br /><br />Justine, that's very interesting. I don't have precisely that alignment pattern, but I do love a good antagonist.Juliette Wadehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02879627074920760712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-70058736997987872372011-08-15T11:55:11.180-07:002011-08-15T11:55:11.180-07:00You've nailed precisely the reason why, in so ...You've nailed precisely the reason why, in so many stories, when the antagonist is done well, I like him better than the hero. After all, most of us fall short of being heroes. Maybe the flawed vulnerability of anguished evil makes the villain easier to identify with.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-80092416606260744822011-08-15T11:48:09.186-07:002011-08-15T11:48:09.186-07:00My antagonist took over my last novel. It turned i...My antagonist took over my last novel. It turned into his story arc. I kind of liked it, too.Theresa Craterhttp://theresacrater.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-36275508638093962952011-08-15T10:57:43.092-07:002011-08-15T10:57:43.092-07:00This post made me smile, Juliette. I love to see g...This post made me smile, Juliette. I love to see good, thoroughly developed villains, and especially villains who do so much more than just show up to hinder and react. I think I blogged about that a little while ago, but I lose track when it comes to villains. Either way, if they have depth of character, they'll make their own plans and start affecting the plot on their own.Hayley E. Lavikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09896649083961644485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-80533052435840500372011-08-15T10:48:51.605-07:002011-08-15T10:48:51.605-07:00Great points! I love reading posts about antagonis...Great points! I love reading posts about antagonists because I'm terrible at writing them. For me as a reader, I think I care most that the antagonist has a plausible motivation behind his or her actions. Interesting point about letting the antagonist grow, too! Need to work on my antag's arc. Thanks for the food for thought. :)lindahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16524291742541007382noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-74834112281935884892011-08-15T10:42:37.155-07:002011-08-15T10:42:37.155-07:00Wow, great point, and one I haven't ever thoug...Wow, great point, and one I haven't ever thought about, tho it should be a no-brainer. A character arc for the villain, duh! I give mine motivation and try to make 'em well-rounded, but never thought about their growth throughout the novel. Thanks for the idea!!Carol Riggshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14092209912983783974noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6320269312957801390.post-57741527008899265352011-08-15T09:28:59.540-07:002011-08-15T09:28:59.540-07:00Ooo! These are great questions to consider, Julie...Ooo! These are great questions to consider, Juliette! Thank you. :)<br /><br />I have an antagonist now I'm not 100% satisfied with. He has a developed backstory and logical reasons for doing the evil that he does, but...it's not enough. Kind of like the way Nero was portrayed in the latest Star Trek movie. Having a sob story, looking scary and yelling while charging at people all the time with dangerous objects in his hands just wasn't enough for me. He still came across as flat.<br /><br />I look at movie baddies like the Operative in <i>Serenity</i>, or Joker in <i>The Dark Knight</i>, or Agent Smith in <i>The Matrix</i>....and these are like the best villains I've ever seen. It's like they've got some kind of special sauce that makes them awesome. It's not just their outrageously incongruent personalities and the crazy evil things they do; it's the combination of these things that contributes to their unique brand of evil.<br /><br />The Operative lives by a warped personal code of honor and he also kills by that same honor (I mean the paralysis/sword combo in a futuristic setting; how cool was that?); his personality directly influences his methods of evildoing. The same can be said for the Joker and his sense of humor, or Agent Smith and his articulate reasons for his perpetual loathing towards the Matrix and everyone in it.<br /><br />I think one of the problems with my antagonist is that his personality isn't jumping off the page like these other guys would. I haven't figured out a way to use his personality so that it uniquely and dramatically augments the horror of the evil he conducts. There isn’t a strong resonance between the two just yet.Tiyana Mariehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11022663279469468201noreply@blogger.com