Anyway I am working on my first story that I will post here in due course (I totally agree with those of you who said that a writers forum mod, should post some of their work too) I have realised that the majority of my characters end up not being very nice, I wouldn't exactly say I choose them to be this way, it always feels like they just get a life of their own, but there always seems to be more of a scope for interesting things to happen when there are characters around that aren't nice, because they just become more unpredictable. any thoughts? S
you see this is where I have a problem with spelling, that didn't even look wrong until you pointed it out, however ive changed it seeing as its a pretty important word to this thread, I am less concerned about spelling in threads than I am in works. anyway nasty characters do we love to hate them? S
We don't love to hate nasty characters. In the fictional setting, we love them, period. The bad guy is shooting down the good guys (sheriffs, police, landlords, you name it) that we're not allowed to shoot down. He's also abducting and sometimes raping the poor innocent girl he's captured. We pretend to hate him, but our subconscious mind is sending a different message. It gets more complicated then that, but that's my basic point for now.
They are a bit more flexible since they're so unpredictable. Plus if you run out of ideas you can always make em "see the light" to add a positive spin.
it's more interesting to write about "bad" characters. I once wrote a story where one of the "heroes" was mean't to be an average guy (IQ 100, kinda nice, but a bit lazy), only with a drinking problem, but he turned out to be an ass who had sex with prostitutes, taking advantage of poor people and putting his friends in danger. still, I don't think of him like a "villain", because there already are one or two of does in the story, and I'm happy with how he portrays a fragile human who does everything to save his skin and have a bit fun on the way.
have to have bad characters to kill off and bad characters make good characters better ... also readers luv to hate the bad guys.
Bad guys seem more normal than goody two shoes, plus they help the reader to feel good about their own imperfect characters. There's nothing that helps a person feel good about thamselves more than seeing somebody worse than them. Peace, Aidan
Conflict is the spice of fiction, be it in a book or newspaper or on television. No conflict, and the reader falls asleep or shuts the book. (Please don't tell me that newspapers deal in facts.) So, we have to have bad guys to keep us interested. Last time I checked, they were not in short supply.
Yeah, I like having a bad guy or two. Though sometimes, the bad guys remind me of Lord Voldemort from Harry Potter lol. Of course, there's always the good guy, whom we all like but at the same time we're liking the villian as well. There's many fanfics out there from the bad guys point of view, those are interesting. One of my favourite Baddies is Severus Snape (sorry for another Harry Potter referemce), who, when i read the book, i didn't like and never really like him for he was greasy and mean to Harry for no obvious reason. Then you get to the last couple of books, where you find out more about his past and how it is interlocked with Harry's and also why he hates Harry so. You feel more sympathy for him by the end, once you realise his background.
Bad guys seem more human then the good guys to me. Their motive seem more selfish which is generally what most human motives are. People can relate to bad guys more easily, especially bad guys who don't give excuses for being evil. Someone who is pure good isn't a believable character and therefore generally isn't a good character.
In all my work there are cruel characters, (even the 'hero/s' are villians) they seem nicer and more human to me, I can relate to their darkness, like the Joker or The Phantom of the Opera, both are good souls in my eyes and all my characters I've made I have made some material item to honour them and to always remember know they are apart of me.
most persons are good in general and there is bad in the depths of most persons that can come out in a desperate situation (holocaust). a nasty person/character in many cases is "drawn" by the author as simply bad. I'm sure there are persons who are simply "nasty" or "evil" but the reality is that we are all moving along a range of behaviour, thoughts and actions that is more complex but pretty middle of the road of good/bad and dependent on environment, interactions with others, passions about something/someone, etc. The most amazing stories that keep our attention include wonderful or average people with a fatal flaw (Lolita) or maybe just a handful of minor flaws that have a heavy impact. Even the popular T.V. shows (Dexter) provide complex characters. The complexity and ability to show the contrast inherent in all of us connects with us and keeps our interest. All good characters should be flawed in some way - cheat on taxes or on their wives/husbands, have a fear, etc. All bad/evil protaganists should open doors for old ladies and give ten bucks to the homeless guy on the corner. That's real.
