Please join me in welcoming back Addison Brae to Discover... She always has a good take on subjects, and she's tackled one of my favorites--villains. Villain DNA...read on!
Who
are your most hated villains? My most recent favorites are Walter White from
Breaking Bad, Gus Fring from Better Call Saul, Serena Joy from The Handmaid’s
Tale, Kilgrave from Marvel’s Jessica Jones, and Marlo Stansfield of The Wire.
All of these characters have three things in common. They’re authentic. They’re
interesting and unique. And they’re evil to the point of having no soul, even
though they may earn your sympathy on occasion.
Authentic,
interesting and evil make up the DNA of an effective villain. Then match the
villains’ traits with what scares the main character most. The combination has
the effect of oil and water or two like ends of magnets and hopefully makes it
hard for readers to put the book down.
Developing
villains is fun. Think about all the bad bosses you’ve had mashed together.
Combine characteristics, traits, and wicked things they did. That’s very
similar to how Kim, Gillian’s boss at her first real job at an accounting firm,
came about in Becker Circle. Gillian has a horrible fear of controlling people
and how they belittle her. Here’s how her fear plays out during a staff meeting.
It’s after Gillian tells her boss she suspects embezzlement after auditing a
client’s records.
“I
know, Gillian, you’re doing your job.” Kim turns back to the table. “But
someone with more experience needs to handle this one.” She pauses and scans
the faces around the conference table. Everyone’s looking somewhere else but at
her. “Get with Bryan this afternoon. He’ll take it from here.”
What?
My body goes hotter than a raging bonfire. I found the problem but I’m not
smart enough to finish? She’s just like Connor—controlling and always cutting
me down. And Bryan? He’s about a minute more experienced than I am. My face
must be as red as it feels because everyone’s looking at me. Sara’s expression
reaches across the table like a warm hug. I take a few slow deep breaths and
force a smile. “Okay. Bryan, come by and I’ll explain everything to you.”
He
does. And I do. And whatever.
Kim is one of the kinder wicked characters
that show up in different parts of Gillian’s life in Becker Circle. She also
has a love interest with multiple personalities and few other evil people she
encounters while trying to solve the murder she witnessed. The most fun part of
writing great scenes for mean characters is how the author can write the ending
they want. This is especially satisfying in scenes based on truth—events that
you always wish you had that second chance for a different outcome.
Today’s Wicked Wednesday and a perfect day to
change a bad outcome to something fantastic. I challenge you to chase down
something wicked and turn it into good.
Connect
with Addison Brae on her website, Tirgearr Publishing, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube.
You can find Becker Circle on Amazon, B&N,
iTunes, Kobo, Smashwords.
About Becker Circle
My first and only boyfriend believed I was too gutless to leave. He was dead wrong. My name’s Gillian, and I graduated Harvard early and left his hot temper and everyone else behind for Dallas. Determined to make it on my own, I land a second job bartending at the neighborhood pub smack in drama central where most every jerk in the neighborhood hits on me—at a huge price.
My first and only boyfriend believed I was too gutless to leave. He was dead wrong. My name’s Gillian, and I graduated Harvard early and left his hot temper and everyone else behind for Dallas. Determined to make it on my own, I land a second job bartending at the neighborhood pub smack in drama central where most every jerk in the neighborhood hits on me—at a huge price.
A week into the job, the neighborhood’s very popular drug
dealer falls to his death a few feet from the table I’m serving. The cops say
suicide, but the hot guitar player in the house band and I suspect foul play,
and I intend to prove it. We dig deeper, grow closer, and make a shocking discovery.
We know the murderer. Watch the trailer.
