How do you write the bad guy?
The villain. The antagonist. The one who makes life difficult for your protagonist?
How do you make this person believable and fascinating? Not just a cartoon character?
One of the biggest pitfalls when writing antagonists is over simplifying them.
But your most troublesome character is just as important to develop as your protagonist. So you’ve got to get to know him or her as intimately as you know your protagonist.
That means you know your antagonist’s deepest desires, fears, worldview, and motives.
You want to explore who this person is as a human being.
In this episode, we’re exploring 5 secrets about your antagonist you should know. So that you can bring more texture, complexity and humanity to him or her. This will make even the most evil villain fascinating to your reader.
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Episode at a glance:
[03:16] What makes an antagonist antagonistic?
The obvious answer is that the antagonist opposes your protagonist in some way. But your antagonist isn’t necessarily evil. He’s real, complex, and smart.
[10:28] Secret 2: Your antagonist believes passionately in something.
This speaks to your antagonist’s worldview and motive.
[12:58] Secret 3: Your antagonist can represent the real problem your protagonist has internally.
Learn how your antagonist triggers your protagonist’s deepest fears.
[13:47] Secret 4: Your antagonist and protagonist have a lot in common.
Think of your antagonist as the shadow side of your protagonist.
[19:59] Secret 5: Your antagonist is complex.
Learn how to build contrasts in your antagonist, even if they’re small things.
Free resource mentioned in this episode:
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