justabout-atlas

Latest Posts by justabout-atlas

just when i thought my comics couldn't get dumber... i surprise myself 👭

let's get ✨vulnerable✨

dunmeshi meme texts pt. ???

To be honest, their characters in the manga are my Roman Empire, now I can’t accept that in the anime they are completely different😭😭

How to Write Better Villains (Because Your Story Deserves One)

There’s nothing worse than a forgettable villain. You know the type: cartoonishly evil for no reason, monologuing their master plan to no one in particular, and vanishing from memory the second you finish the book. A great villain, though? They haunt your thoughts, challenge your hero, and—sometimes—you catch yourself *agreeing with them*. If you want to level up your storytelling, here’s how to craft villains that stick.

1. Give them a reason to be bad (and make it make sense)

Nobody wakes up one day and just decides to be evil (unless they’re in a Saturday morning cartoon). Real people are shaped by their pasts, fears, and desires—and your villains should be, too. Maybe they believe they’re saving the world, just in a way that costs too much. Maybe they were betrayed and now trust no one. Whatever the case, give them a *why*. Even better? Make your readers *understand* that why, even if they don’t agree with it.

2. Avoid the evil-for-evil’s-sake trope  

Mustache twirling is out. Complexity is in. A villain who kicks puppies just to prove they’re the bad guy is boring. But a villain who feeds stray dogs while orchestrating a political coup? *That’s* compelling. The best antagonists aren’t evil—they’re driven. And when their goals put them in direct conflict with the hero, *that’s* where the tension comes from. Let them think they’re the hero of their own story.

3. Let your villain challenge the protagonist in meaningful ways  

Your villain shouldn’t just be a physical threat—they should challenge your hero’s beliefs, force them to make hard choices, and maybe even make them question themselves. When the antagonist represents a deeper, thematic opposite to the protagonist, you’ve got literary gold. Think of how The Joker unravels Batman’s moral code, or how Killmonger forces T’Challa to reconsider Wakanda’s isolationism. Conflict isn’t just punches—it’s philosophy.

4. Make them unforgettable

Whether it’s a chilling line of dialogue, an eerie calmness, or a twisted sense of humor, give your villain something *distinct*. Personality matters. A unique voice, a specific mannerism, or an unexpected vulnerability can elevate your villain from “meh” to “iconic.” Think about what makes them tick—and what makes them *memorable*.

5. Don’t be afraid to make them right

The scariest villains are the ones who are *almost* right. When a reader can see where they’re coming from—or even agree with some of their points—that’s powerful. It creates tension not just in the story, but in the reader’s own mind. And that’s exactly what a good villain should do: make you question, make you uncomfortable, and make the story impossible to forget.

What are some of your favorite villains in fiction? Drop your favs (or your own villain WIPs) in the tags or replies—I’d love to see them!

Thoughts came to me.

Original:

Pros of re-reading your own fic

a good time;

Has exactly the tropes you like and the characterization you want to read;

Gratification: yes you did finish a thing and yes you did do good;

just a very fun time all around.

Cons of re-reading your own fic:

Is that another TYpO

shipping characters who are just friends in canon is more than okay but what’s annoying is when people take screenshots of them touching and say “friends don’t do that!”. i hate to break it to you but friends do hug and hold hands and cuddle. saying ‘friends don’t do that’ is reenforcing the idea that physical touch is reserved for lovers

JADE WINGLET ARTDUMP!!

*i chuck these at u and scramble away*

Last Tribe A Day run cycle was today so I decided to combine them all to show the differences!

ID under the cut

[ID: Seven sketchy animated run cycles, all of the original dragon tribes from Wings of Fire. They alternate sides as they go down, starting with the top one on the left and the second on the right, and so on. The background is a blank white. Each dragon has shaded limbs to help see the differences while in movement. The right wing is the darkest shade, followed by the left wing (closest to the screen), the the right legs are the lightest shaded. Descriptions are in order from top to bottom:

Mudwing: Drawn in a dark red. The thickest dragon by far, opening is mouth in a smile as its front legs hit the ground. Its large wings have four toes as if they were a third set of talons, which is used as another set of legs while running. The wings lift off after the back legs. The entire body bobs with its weight while it runs, lunging with its back legs. One of its back legs disappears while it runs (oopsies) and its large tail flicks with the run.

Skywing: Drawn in a darker red. Much skinnier dragon with longer limbs and larger wings. Its large wings remain slight open above its border, slightly bobbing as it moves. The body itself doesn’t move up and down, instead just twisting with movement of its limbs. Its tail is a little stiff, again just moving up and down. As it runs, one foot touches and leaves the ground at a time.

Icewing: Drawn in a dark blue. Its body and shape is ridgid, its head swooping up and down like it lunges with every time its front talons land. Again, its wings are used as a third pair of legs, however they are mostly used after the other limbs are mid-air. Its talons are visibly sharper, as well as its wings. Sharp spines on the back of its neck and end of its tail are visible as well, which bobs with the movement.

Seawing: Drawn in a dark blue. A thicker, long dragon with short but thick limbs and webbed frills along its spine and sternum. It’s thick tail continues the up and down curve it’s body makes with every move, flicking the end of the frills as it does. Its wings are semi open above its body, bobbing with the running movement and tilting up and down as its spine curves.

Sandwing: Drawn in a warm brown. Long limbs but thicker than skywing. All four feet lift of the air when they’re closest during the run, each foot hitting the ground one at a time. It’s barbed scorpion-like tail bobs up and down at the end. Its wings are folded and stuff near its shoulders, tilted diagonally. A solid frill lines its spine, biggest at the back of its neck and above the back legs.

Nightwing: Drawn in a dark purple grey, and by far the stiffest run cycle. Thick body with short but thinner legs than mudwings or seawings. Spikes line the spine all along its body, longest at the back of the neck and back of the body. Its wings are held stiffly and slightly folded over its body. Other than the legs and tail, most of the nightwing barely moves as it runs, and its legs hit the ground in pairs, front legs then back legs. They don’t even cross between each other at the closest part in the run. Its mouth opens and closes as it runs, not in any particular expression, I was just bored.

Rainwing: Drawn in a muted dark green. By far the bounciest run. It has a thin body and a head I accidentally drew a little big. It’s three-toed wings are used as a third pair of legs, used most right before it’s front legs hit the ground. Its front legs hit the ground at different time, however the back legs hit and leave together. Its tail is by far the longest, curled at the end and slightly unraveling as it flicks up and down. Beneath the curved horns is a frill with two connections that slight opens and closes with the movement. It’s grin also opens and closes with the movement.

END ID]

Been re-reading wings of fire and thought why not draw them as humans. The first image is at the beginning and the second is the after it all.

what if

violent birth

I just know 98 vash could finesse the shit out of stampede knives

characters have to be a little bit awful in ways that you cant defend. its good for the ecosystem. your honor he did do that. He did in fact do that

Him?? That can't be right. He couldn't destroy an entire city and put a hole in the moon. I mean look at him- he's just a little guy

You know, I think this ending would have been slightly less of a fucking disappointment if the heroes hadn't been so unfairly favored by Horikoshi compared to the villains. I mean, seriously

Deku destroys every bone in his body multiple times throughout the story and is warned that if he continues, he'll permanently lose the use of his limbs ? Everything's fine, his body's just got used to being reduced to a bloody pulp somehow so there's no consequences for him. In fact even when he literally loses his arms to Shigaraki, he gets them back two minutes later thanks to Eri because guess what ? Her horn still works even when cut off from her body. How convenient.

Gran Torino gets his ribcage obliterated by Shigaraki ? Don't worry guys, he'll survive that despite his old age and injuries, and this to have no particular role in the plot afterwards.

Bakugo dies heroically trying to buy time before Deku arrives ? Lmao, did you really believe it ?? No of course not, Edgeshot just uses his last-minute Deus Ex Machina to save his life at the cost of his own and- Oops nope he's fine too, my bad !

Hawks murders a criminal fleeing for his life in cold-blood ? The best Hori has to offer is him completely free and in charge of the HSPC.

And no, losing his quirk isn't a real consequence for him because not only it literally played a major part in saving the world with Vestige!Hawks raising an insurrection among AFO's quirks, but also because his quirk has always been the element through which people exploited him.

Endeavor abused his family for years and completely destroyed his eldest son ? No jail time and no media backlash for that, the only blame he received was due to the heroes' failure to stop the League during the Raid Arc.

And don't even get me started on this bs about facing hell or whatever for what he's done : He's literally free and wealthy ; he has Rei, Fuyumi, Shoto, his sidekicks and Hawks on his side ; and all the difficulties he's apparently going to suffer are off-screened.

Deku had to sacrifice OFA and his future hero career to save the world ? Guess what, Bakugo invested all his time and money to make him an Iron-Man suit and now he can still be a hero with everyone else.

There are plenty more examples of this but I think you get the idea. Now let's take a look at the villains' ending :

Toya is now a piece of charcoal kept artificially alive for the few years he has left, unable to move a finger, and whose few minutes a day during which he can stay awake will be spent talking to his father who abused him as a child.

Toga, a literal teenager, killed herself to save Ochako and because she knew it's still better than rotting at Tartarus her whole life.

And not only did she die but she did by bleding to death. Let me repeat for those who have trouble grasping what I've just said : In a manga where the heroes can survive having their heart blown to bits, being impaled Kakyoin-style or smashed against buildings like a fly on a windshield, one of the main antagonists died of a fucking hemorrhage…

As for Shigaraki, after learning that his very birth and all the tragedies of his life have been orchestrated by AFO, after all this development and narrative promises about him being saved in the end... Deku just kills him.

Because despite all his speeches about saving him, it seems like the best our MC could do was beating him both physically and mentally until he crumbles to dust…

Compress on his side is apparently locked up for life and kept alive by machines too.

A begging Kurogiri tried in a desperate attempt to save Shigaraki, only to be unceremoniously blown up by Bakugo and dying off-screen without anyone giving a shit, including Aizawa and Mic.

And Spinner will now spend the rest of his life struggling with the extra quirks inside him that affect his body and mind, while having to cope with the thought that his boyfriend best friend and companions have either died alone or are locked away for life in horrifying circumstances.

Clearly not the same as with the heroes...

Now don't get me wrong, even if they suffered just as much from the consequences of their actions or the plot as the League, this ending would still be a disaster in terms of writing but AT LEAST it wouldn't reek that much of hypocrisy.

a take on the reincarnation trope...

had a fascinating english class that resulted in the notes header “the forcefeminization of victor frankenstein”

O brother mine

Honestly, I love it when characters relapse. When someone who’s gotten over their anger issues falls into a situation so out of their depth they fall back on their old habits. When someone who’s learned to open up becomes a recluse again in order to cope with something outside their control.

There’s just something so horrible, so toxic, about watching a character grow and then slip back into their old selves in order to cope, bc you know they still care, that they’re the same inside, but watching them hurt so hard they don’t know what else to do brings a sense of catharsis.

“this character should kill their abuser” i agree. unfortunately they wouldn’t do that.

reblog if you’ve read fanfictions that are more professional, better written than some actual novels. I’m trying to see something

I can imagine this scenario in my Trigun Modern Au happening a couple of times.

Wolfwood and Vash get into a fight. Like not a shouting match kind of fight. Like a full on knock down, drag out, fists and teeth and full on violence type of fight. The kind where knuckles split and noses bleed and all that.

Adelha doesn't stop them. No she does not. She herds her puppies and kitten into her bedroom to shut them in. Then she just sits and watches these two duke it out. No words from the Irish lass as she waits for them to get it all out and do the macho fistitcuffs.

Both men end up laying on the ground and huffing for air. Wolfwood is cussing in between pants and growls. Vash is doing his best to get more air as he silently seethes. But then both men have Adelha kneel over them to just lightly tap each of them on the forehead. Her way of saying their fight is over. She gathers her adopted family and current dumb men to the bathroom. Packs of ice on black eyes. Her first aide kit is out and she is tending to scrapes and split skin. While she gently talks to both men. She doesn't scold them for fighting. She doesn't lecture them about the idea that violence isn't the answer. She instead talks them through what started the fight. She reminds them both they are unconditionally loved. That they are friends and family to each other and to her.

Adelha acts as the calm soul to get them to sort their emotions and thoughts after the anger and ferocity has worked out of their systems with healing and love. She gives them a balm to their aching spirits and their aching bodies. Vash asks why she didn't stop them. To which she states a simple truth. "Sweetheart. You both needed to let it all out and act on the rage and tension. It's not the first fight I have seen where two people duked it out over a conflict. It will not be the last one either. I've gotten into a scuffle or four, myself." Wolfwood and Vash looked shocked to hear that.

Wolfwood and Vash find out later from Adelha's guardians that she has gotten into bar fights before. Eugene and Claude smiling like proud parents as they recall the time a braggart got too drunk to keep his hands to himself. He'd decided to take a swing at a terrified bus boy for no good reason. Next thing the bastard knew, he was on his ass and sporting a broken nose from Adelha getting involved. He then got his ass handed to him the next night when he came back looking for trouble slash revenge on the bus boy. How Adelha had hauled him into the back alley and gave him a pummeling. Eugene grinning wide as he noted he'd never been happier to pay bail for anyone than when Adelha had gotten arrested along with the drunk.

Welcome, Mr. Stampede

it's over for him