Tales From Orin Nodd

A good story needs a good villain. But what is a villain? In real life, people who go against the norms of decency society sets and causes harm to the innocent, are considered villains. In some cases, those are the individuals who were defeated in a war. There is a reason villains never win. As the adage goes: history is written by the victor.

In storytelling, there are several tropes that writers follow. But villains always work against the hero for one reason or another. Sometimes that reason is as complicated as they, the villain, see what they are doing as necessary and their victims are worth the sacrifice if it means reaching their goal of a better world. 

There are also the less complicated villains who do what they do simply because they are evil. As a writer, I always want to add as much depth to a character as is reasonable. Of course, not every unnamed character who makes an appearance needs a lengthy written and complicated backstory. But in my opinion, the villain, especially if they are the main antagonist, needs to have solid motivation for what they do, even if it is as simple as fulfilling a primal desire. 

It seems to me that in recent years, the “likable” villain is on the rise. It does not matter how many people they kill, or how many horrible things they do, people will idolize them. I’m sure it would be an interesting psychological case study to know why people react to them in such a way. However, I do think it is because, in many cases, the villain is a better, and more well-thought-out character than the hero of the story. The ordinary person might even feel a sort of connection because of this realism in spite of the evil they do.

In my writing, I try not to think of the villain as simply a tool the hero must defeat. As I write these characters, I think of them as people who are acting in a way they see as right and good. Now, whatever their motivations, how they go about achieving their goals can be cruel or otherwise immoral. Their actions may embody the ends justify the means mentality. 

Likewise, my main character, Haydn, is only one poor choice away from being a villain in his own story. Villains are often defined by the choices they make. Their decision process needs to be well thought out and defined by the writer.

What kind of villain do you think makes for the best story?