Forgive the drama. I have a headache.
Can I blame it on the subject of today's post?
No?
Oh well. I tried.
I'd have to say my least favorite is the aforementioned Arlon the Blade. Can anyone say Stereotypical Sadistic Villain? Arlon is completely driven by mad revenge. That in itself isn't too bad. Making him insane was kind of cool. But really. One does not become the leader of one's own private army by killing anyone who looks askance at you.
Arlon obviously suffered from having never read the Evil Overlord List.
When I finally laid my book aside in favor of other pursuits, he had begun to have the makings of a good villain. I gave him a more believable backstory and drive- still a bit wonky, but it was closer to something acceptable.
I wish I could bring myself to finish the story. I have it all outlined, I just never got past part 1 (It is either a 4-part long novel or 4 small ones. I've yet to decide). Once it's been written and edited I think I'll have something to be proud of, but the monumental overhaul necessary is daunting.
Still, these days I feel sorry for Arlon. He was just getting his feet under him when I abandoned the project. Maybe someday I'll take another crack at it.
Would any of you care to read it if I did? (Be honest. I won't mind negatives).
EDIT: Just remembered I have an awesome drawing of him, went to get it, and remembered it's in storage. >.<
Ah well. Perhaps there will be a gallery when I've moved and have all my treasures back.
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OH Please! When you do go back to edit it, tell me! I want to read it! As a author of a Stereotypical and cliché Psycho? Villain, it is my hope that I could learn something. If all fails, I can at least sympathize.
ReplyDeleteIt is very difficult to write a decent villain. Tim and I were talking just last night about the word "Hitler." Do you ever have a faint, involuntary revulsion when someone say something like "hell" before you remember that they are using the word properly? I do, sometimes. I don't mean to, but it happens. On a stronger scale, that's how I am with the word "Hitler." It means so much evil, I feel an instinctive revulsion at the word, as if whoever has spoken has just uttered an obscenity. Rowling captured that with Voldemort. The characters were not to name him, partially because it was considered unchancy, partially because he was just so evil. That is a good character: the very name of which inspires spine-tingling, formless terror.
ReplyDeleteI'm having an interesting time crafting my idle-scribble villain. There is just enough perfectly understandable method to his deeply depraved madness to keep me on edge. A madman we can understand: he will be mad, and we can lock him up. A madman who is sane, we will never know what to do with him: we can't predict him, we can't anticipate him, everything he does is driven by an almost primal sensibleness that manifests itself so wickedly that it is almost inconceivable.
That is fun to write.
I'd LOVE to read it and give you my thoughts on it!! I know how you feel about lack of 'umph' for a story, I've done that, felt that, before.
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