Episode 122: Redeeming a Villain
Everyone loves a villain.
Villains: Page 3
Episode 115: Surprise Villains
Which one of the hosts will turn out to be evil this week?
How to Realistically Depict Evil
Before we can portray evil, we must first define it.
Creating Your Villain’s Journey
How to choose which arc is right for your antagonist—and how to make it convincing to the audience.
Transform a Hero Into a Villain in Seven Steps
How to make your hero fall in with Team Bad in a way the audience will believe and sympathize with.
Episode 72: Escalation
It’s a basic rule of storytelling: the stakes get higher as the story goes forward.
Six Ways to Make Your Villain Likable
How to get your audience rooting a bit for Team Bad.
Five Disappointing Villains
These big bads fell flat from a lack of menace or motivation.
Episode 65: Antagonistic and Evil Organizations
Mike, Chris, and Oren discuss what makes an antagonistic organization shine in fiction.
Six Unrealistic Tropes and How to Avoid Them
These narrative clichés will drag down your story—here's what to do instead.
Episode 60: Making Your Villains Sympathetic
Chris, Oren, and Mike discuss how to craft villains that the audience can relate to.
How to Make Your Villain Threatening
How to make your big bad send shivers down readers' spines.
How to Use Undead in Your Stories
How to make your monsters stand out in a world already packed with horrors.
Creating a Fresh Vampire Antagonist
These features will make your bloodsucking baddie stick in readers' minds.
Weaving Great Campaign Plotlines
How to work out the story outline for your RPG masterstroke.
Five Villains Who Follow the Heroine’s Journey
These baddies transformed themselves throughout their stories—and made it believable.
Designing a Central Villain for Your Campaign
How to craft your RPG story's big bad.
How Team Rocket Villains Ruin Stories
Why your baddies should do more than just blast off again (and again and again).
Nat