crying while reading the day i picked up dazai ;;; (side b never existed)
Ahem-
i hate when ppl act like the only reason to not like a "sad" ending is because you can't take it or whatever. personally as a tragedy enjoyer, i hate a poorly written ending. i hate an ending that is just kind of a bummer. i hate an ending that feels mean-spirited to the audience. i hate an ending that's redundant. i love a sad ending that is thematically consistent, poignant, and bespoke to the rest of its narrative.
East Of Eden, John Steinbeck // Bungou Stray Dogs, Asagiri Kafka
Actually funny. Not making jokes at other people's expense, not the butt of the joke, just villains that have absurd senses of humour and top-notch intentional comedic timing,
CHARISMA!!! Please, can we have more charming villains, villains that can sway a crowd, villains that get away with things because their too polite, too well-spoken, too funny to possibly to evil.
Respected. Villains whose villainous deeds have led them to success and made them widely respected members of society. To be clear, this isn't respected person who is secretly evil. No. I mean, the bad things they've done are the reason they're respected.
Let them win. Let them win because their plan succeeded. Not because the protagonists fucked up, not by pure luck. Let them earn their victories.
Supporters! Lots of them. The more powerful your villain is, the more supporters they are going to need. If the evil king is unpopular with everyone he's not going to stay king for long. He needs allies, lots of them, especially if he's a tyrant.
Knows how to play the game. Manipulative villains who say whatever they have to to get their way, chose their allies and enemies carefully, bribe and blackmail, play the victim, the hero, or even the innocent when it suits them. Make it hard for your protagonists to convince anyone they are a villain at all.
Cold Steel. Give me villains that don't get angry easy, that laugh things off, that kill because it's efficient and for no other reason.
Clever and creative. Strategists who always have a trick up their sleeve and problem solvers with personal flare.
Show other characters reacting with fear. Nothing rams home how terrifying a villain is quite like watching other powerful characters fall to their knees--fast--when they walk in the room.
Irredeemable despite their tragic backstories. For the love of god people, tragic backstories do not justify a villain's actions. You can have empathy for what they've endured while still expecting them to take responsibility for what they've become.
Unconventionally attractive. Take this however you want. I, for one, would like to see more tortured bad boys who aren't white and shredded. But also, villains whose attractiveness lies in how they talk, their body language and facial expressions, and their outfits. Why do y'all think smirking is such a popular word??
Love. Let them love their spouses, their children, their friends. Not in an abusive way either. Let them have healthy relationships with their still living wives, daughters, sons, comrades in arms etc.
Kind. Give me villains who tip well, who put their own garbage away even though the servants could do it, who remember their henchmen's names, who are good with kids, who donate to charity and not just for the tax incentives
They should invent a room where I have to write a certain amount of words every day (on my fanfics, book I’m working on, poems, etc) and I’m not allowed out of the room until I’ve done that certain amount each day.
Also I get paid a livable wage for it.
Also I have a person there to give me feedback anytime I ask.
Also I have a person there to correct all my typos.
I really think everyone needs to truly internalize this:
Fictional characters are objects.
They are not people. You cannot "objectify" them, because they have no personhood to be deprived of. They have no humanity to be erased. You cannot "disrespect" them, because they are not real.
Yusef Komunyakaa, from "Jasmine", Pleasure Dome: New and Collected Poems [ID in ALT]
I love reading my own writing like wow this story has everything I want in it it’s almost like it was written for me or something damn that’s so crazy
as the request stated, that ‘i am trying really hard to keep hating you‘ phase, or what i like to call the reluctant friend stage. feel free to use :)
“i think we’re friends now.” “God, don’t say that.”
“everything is just a competition for you… isn’t it?” “isn’t it for you, too?”
“h—” “don’t talk to me.”
“i’d pay good money for you to admit you tolerate me.” “tolerate being the operative word.”
“why can’t you open up to me?” “why do you want me to?”
they’re so used to hating each other sometimes the snide remarks just slip out LMAO
like “should i get you something too?” “you can get out of my fa— woah, hehe. sorry.”
“you’re still on that?” “still on that..??? STILL ON THAT?????? I CANT STAND YOU???!!!(!;!”
a whispered moment between them ; “i’m trying so hard to hate you.” “why?”
they’re trying hard to hate each other then something happens (plot) and they’re stuck together which makes it ten times harder
“be honest with me.” “but why? why would i do that?”
“stop.” “stop what?” “being so kind to me.”
remember… they hated each other a couple chapters back. what changed? why did it change? who did it start to change in first?
the moment where your character asks themselves; “when did this nuisance become so important to me?”
writer | character analysis| poems | opinion ✮ digital brain dumpster ✮
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