The Art of Antagonism
Aye, every good book has the good guys (girls, things, animals....) vs. the ever-present evil. When writing, the antagonist (the ever-present evil) is just as important as the protagonist (the good one).
When you invent an antagonist, there are many ways you can have the evil working in the book. You can have them be quickly crushed by the hero with absolutely not chance of ever coming back. If you went with that option, it'd be a good idea to actually have this evil return as a plot twist later in the book, series, whatever. Another way you could have the evil work, is to have it simply battling the good guy during the whole thing. Showing up when the hero leasts expects/wants and doing an entire situation flip. The good guys winning? Well now Mr. Bad has arrived and the tables are turned! Option #3: Evil could win. Aye, most of us don't like seeing sad endings, but sometimes if evil triumphs over good, it could be a very interesting take on the story. If you went with the third option, you cannot squash all hope for the hero. It's just a fact that people like it if the underdog still has a squick of hope left in that big messy pile of Mr. Bad and his bad buddies. If you make it seem like the evil will never be able to be conquered, well then it's just a matter of time before the books are burned in boiling vats of jello. By me, of course.
Now, your antagonist's personalities can be anything from dopey to extremely intelligent. I really like it actually when the bad guy's really smart and actually outsmarts the hero. If you make the hero win ever single time, again and again, no one's going to like it. It's too happy, if you know what I'm saying. You gotta make sure that the antagonist's evil plan is reasonable. Unless you're doing some insane fantasy story, of course. But if it's too unrealistic, such as levitating the entire city and transporting them to the villain's moon base, no one's going to like it; it's much too predictable. The hero will stop the bad guy, they'll all live happily ever after, yada yada yada. Sometimes you can make the villain's plans very subtle, and by the time the book's almost finished, zap! The villain's evil mice that have been working underground, unnoticed by the workers, have now captured city hall! Bwa ha ha! The art of surprise is excellent for villains.
And now, I'm not quite sure where to go with this, so I shall end it off here. Humor me with a comment if you've got some ideas for the Art of Antagonism.
COMING SOON: The Art of Protagonism
<3 Seana
When you invent an antagonist, there are many ways you can have the evil working in the book. You can have them be quickly crushed by the hero with absolutely not chance of ever coming back. If you went with that option, it'd be a good idea to actually have this evil return as a plot twist later in the book, series, whatever. Another way you could have the evil work, is to have it simply battling the good guy during the whole thing. Showing up when the hero leasts expects/wants and doing an entire situation flip. The good guys winning? Well now Mr. Bad has arrived and the tables are turned! Option #3: Evil could win. Aye, most of us don't like seeing sad endings, but sometimes if evil triumphs over good, it could be a very interesting take on the story. If you went with the third option, you cannot squash all hope for the hero. It's just a fact that people like it if the underdog still has a squick of hope left in that big messy pile of Mr. Bad and his bad buddies. If you make it seem like the evil will never be able to be conquered, well then it's just a matter of time before the books are burned in boiling vats of jello. By me, of course.
Now, your antagonist's personalities can be anything from dopey to extremely intelligent. I really like it actually when the bad guy's really smart and actually outsmarts the hero. If you make the hero win ever single time, again and again, no one's going to like it. It's too happy, if you know what I'm saying. You gotta make sure that the antagonist's evil plan is reasonable. Unless you're doing some insane fantasy story, of course. But if it's too unrealistic, such as levitating the entire city and transporting them to the villain's moon base, no one's going to like it; it's much too predictable. The hero will stop the bad guy, they'll all live happily ever after, yada yada yada. Sometimes you can make the villain's plans very subtle, and by the time the book's almost finished, zap! The villain's evil mice that have been working underground, unnoticed by the workers, have now captured city hall! Bwa ha ha! The art of surprise is excellent for villains.
And now, I'm not quite sure where to go with this, so I shall end it off here. Humor me with a comment if you've got some ideas for the Art of Antagonism.
COMING SOON: The Art of Protagonism
<3 Seana
That's pretty good! Yeah, when you want the villain to win, you have to show more of it. Like the hero winning in the beginning but then the villain begins to rise till the end. Those are my two cents. ;)
ReplyDeleteAye, and I thank you for those two cents. (:
DeleteYou're very welcome :D
DeleteYou must have heard this from me at one point or another-- I've never made a real antagonist. I've made a few people who may have turned evil under the right circumstances, but never a full-blown Darth Vader style evil Gothic dude. Thus, your opening line "Every good book has the good guys... vs. the ever-present evil" cut me to the quick. It automatically claims that nothing I wrote is good. *sulks* But of course it's no fault of yours, it's completely mine for not making those two guys in Wise have bad intentions when they stole that ladder.
ReplyDeleteBut... I am planning on remedying my dearth of antagonists soon. I've got an idea or two forming-- one that includes a magical land in the sewer system (don't seem many of those, do you?) and another that includes a gigantic cataclysmic event that the protagonist may or may not have been able to avert. I'll look like Armageddon until the chappie in the sky starts laughing.
I've read a lot of what you write, and I thoroughly like it. But I've seen some of your villianish characters.
DeleteAnd the magical sewer system? That sounds weird, yet very intriguing somehow, and no I don't see that very often at all. Aye, sounds suspenseful, all these plans of yours. I shall indeed enjoy reading those if you post them.
I know I just dumped a great deal of what should have been in my mythical sewer system on your virtual head, and I apologize.
DeleteBut still... It's good to hash out my story problems. And speaking of problems, I've got a total of 11 parts to the Phil Phorce, and expect at least another ten. Question is, should I start posting them twice a week or so, and write more as I go? (By the way, you're my main consultant on all things Phil. Hope you don't mind.)
My virtual head? I suppose it's better than my real head, but I digress.
DeleteAnd no, I don't mind at all being the main Phil Phorce consultant. It's quite the honor. Hmm...perhaps. Twice a week would be fine, but you might want to consider breaking some of the weeks with a random post to ease the monotony. As much as I enjoy reading on the Phils' adventures, I can only read so much before I explode. It also depends on how much time you have. If you have enough time to be writing Phil Phorce episodes while each week you post two, by all means go right ahead. If you're short on time, it might not be the wisest choice.
Heh... I've got all the time in the world. At the moment I'm at a standstill because I'm not so motivated to write it. I feel better about Gooplebury. Anyway, posting these would give me the incentive to get the thing done before I begin looking like a half-wit. And of course I'd keep the regular blog schedule running-- every other day, except twice a week is designated for Phils.
DeleteAha. Sounds like a good plan.
DeleteI'll start it soon, then-- once I feel the need for some just-add-water posts.
DeleteHehehe, I sometimes find myself drawn to my villains. In fact, I sometimes kill off my protagonists because I like them less. Bad, Emily, very bad! ~whacks self on head with cricket bat~
ReplyDeleteAye, that sounds painful. Cricket bats...
Delete