Villains

I had a lovely plotting day in Richmond with three other Romance writers.

Without exactly pointing out that my villain was a bit stereotyped, their questions made me ask myself this question.

Thinkthinkthinkthink ... what is my villain like?

OK. If the big V is unpleasant and snotty and arrogant – how can he get secrets out of the aristocracy? How does he negotiate with his minions? Isn't it more likely he'd be like that honey the bees make from azaleas .... poisoned honey?

So ... not highnosed, proud and nasty. Something more subtle. Something that pretends to be nicer. Sly. Snide. Sneaky. Maybe he smiles and smiles and is a villain ...?

Eunice and Sebastian would know this but be reluctant to just come out and say it. Jess might sense something wrong ... might catch a shrewd glimpse ...

Or does Jess know from the beginning and that's how she gets a bead on Sebastian?

Oh the hell with this bloody bland, dull, breakfast meeting that is so horribly blah I want to rip it to pieces.

M --- was kind enough to read a rough draft of the first 40K words of Jess. She gave me a lovely reaction when we were in Richmond. I was saying ... "I have two villains -- YYY and XXXy ...' and M-- went, 'Oh no! Not XXXX!'

ETA in 2010:  This was Pitney, being a villain.      

She cared. This is so great. When XXX is exposed in the end as a villain, the reader should care. It should hurt.

Heck, it hurts me and I'm the one writing it.