My Favorite Types of Villains

Villains are among my favorite types of characters to read and write about. Some villains are so easily hated that you feel very little remorse if they bite it in the end. Others are sympathetic—some so easy to relate to that you almost wish they’d get away with their crimes. I love villains of both these types. I also love:

The Crazy-Ass Bad Guy

The crazy bad guy is a character I find super fun to read and write about, especially when you can see some of the bits of why he is so unbalanced smattered throughout the story.

You may not feel for them the same way you do a truly sympathetic villain, but you can sometimes catch a glimpse of their painful past, and gain a bit of understanding about what pushed them over the edge. They can also be really unpredictable, which makes for a character that has a lot of fun potential.

Is He a Villain?

This is the bad guy who you are not 100 percent certain you can even categorize him as such. Maybe he’s so charming that he’s about ready to seduce the pants off the heroine. Maybe he saves the hero’s life when there doesn’t seem to be a reason for it. Regardless, you catch a glimmer of good in him. It gives you hope—hope that may or may not be dashed later.

What kind of villains do you most enjoy? Do you prefer a villain that makes it easy to root entirely for the hero, or one that makes you kind of hope the bad guy wins?

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