How Bad Should the Bad Guys Be?

As I plug along, writing tale after tale for Innocents, Book 2 of the Heaven's Wait! Tales from Vowella series, I realize that more than one type of bad guy is emerging from the stories and that each type has its unique value. Bad guys are good for stories because they promote tension and make story lines interesting. Before I started writing, I had never had reason to examine the many ways one can be bad. I now find I need to explore those options in order to make the stories work in an authentic way.

I clearly understand that a solid dose of fear stands at the core of most bad behavior. Except in rare cases, we all come into this world as innocent, trusting, authentic individuals. But our life experiences and choices chip away at that authenticity and give birth to fears. And we, in our bare humanness, must find ways to deal with our fears as best we can. For some individuals, being bad provides a solution to their dilemma.

As I write, I can make a story's characters show their bad sides by making them annoying, mean, or conniving. I can also step it up by making them evil, vicious, brutal, or without conscience. I can make a character's struggle with his fears an internal one, or I can make it external, which in turn affects the behaviors of others. If I choose to give a character a dark side, I need to identify the underlying fear that drives his behavior and work that fear into the overall story line.

I've realized that as long as the Vowellans live in their isolated valley of Vowella, the resident bad guys will know how to be bad only to a certain degree. But once they step beyond Vowella, and they will at some point, my options for introducing new characters with dark sides will increase dramatically. My job will be to figure out who they are as well as the depth to which they will carry out their badness. In the meantime, I must remember that Heaven's Wait lies between here and heaven, so there are barriers I will not cross when I determine how such characters should behave.

I must say I've been fortunate that my own personal experiences have not taught me a whole lot about being bad. But a wealth of examples abounds wherever I turn: in the news, books, movies, and TV. Those examples give birth to delicious ideas for characters' bad behaviors and ways to weave them into the Tales from Vowella. Who knew that this writer's unexpected journey would lead me to such exploration?