Here's to unlikable characters!

[RowanWrites]

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[Blind_Justice]

That pretty much describes Carver from my "Mud&Magic" series. A complete delusional bastard who does horrible things believing his tyrannical rule is preferable to the slow decline the kingdom is in. I LOVE to write him.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

I absolutely adore those dark twisted nasty characters that make the plot jolt and dip and swing.

It's like some people get so damned judgmental that they can't enjoy a good nasty fictional story. Yes I know such people. Fine. Our hero and heroine go for tea on a windless sunny day and enjoy each other's company under parasols. Since there are no bad people in this world, there is no villain, no strife and no plot. The end. Get fucking real.

 

[Rustyoznail]

I've only written one arsehole character, and it gave me great satisfaction for my female MC to punch him in the face and break his nose. Entitled shit deserved it.

I enjoyed writing him...

 

[EarlyMorningLight]

I love the murky middle ground of flawed characters. It's much more fun and interesting than playing at either extreme, where things tend towards caricature.

 

[gunhilltrain]

I've had one female character whose behavior might be explained by her psychological problems. Of course, that assumes that human beings are naturally good-natured and thoughtful in their dealings with other people and that some mental disorder can explain any aberration from that norm. I think that reality is more complex than that. As George Carlin said, "Human beings are capable of anything."

In any case, this woman is not physically violent but she certainly messes up the life of the guy who inadvertently crosses her path. And, no, it's not about false accusations.

 

[Bramblethorn]

I love the murky middle ground of flawed characters. It's much more fun and interesting than playing at either extreme, where things tend towards caricature.

Yep. Saccharine is dull, but some authors overcorrect and make the mistake of thinking that shitty people are inherently interesting for being shitty.

Dealing with caricature villains isn't necessarily easy, but it's simple: you fight them or you try to avoid them, according to your situation. Dealing with "I love this person and mostly they're good to me but sometimes they mistreat me"? That's a much more interesting zone where the answers are far less clear-cut.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Yep. Saccharine is dull, but some authors overcorrect and make the mistake of thinking that shitty people are inherently interesting for being shitty.

Dealing with caricature villains isn't necessarily easy, but it's simple: you fight them or you try to avoid them, according to your situation. Dealing with "I love this person and mostly they're good to me but sometimes they mistreat me"? That's a much more interesting zone where the answers are far less clear-cut.

Absolutely. The classic honorable villain or the flawed hero always add depth and nuance. If a villain can draw some sympathy it's usually a plus, as is if a hero(ine) can have some complicity in his or her own predicament. The lack of this leads to cardboard cutout characters that always drive shitty HEA pulp romances and their far-too-predictable plots.

However, once in a while a completely unredeemable bad guy does work. Although it may be easier to conjure him up, it makes the plot that much more difficult to pull of convincingly.

 

[SimonDoom]

Absolutely. There are plenty of examples. Pick a Martin Scorcese movie. Wolf of Wall Street -- Jordan Belfort was a d-bag con-man but incredibly entertaining to watch, partly because DeCaprio did a nice job with his character.

 

[Emilymcplugger]

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Dr Doom is a great character that almost never gets his true comeuppance…but most comic book fans wouldn’t have it any other way.

Likewise Thanos in the marvel universe was a great character and in Infinity War in spite of his awfulness, probably deserved to win.