Being Bad

One of my favorite parts of writing is creating and sustaining bad guys.  Sure; everyone likes the good guy or protagonist but from a writing perspective nothing beats a well thought out antagonist.  With the good guys you always have a moral code they choose to live by.  That’s great…on second thought, that’s boring.  Bad guys have no rules.  You can write whatever you want about them.  In creating Lord Mandrean and Necromancer in my books.  I had a blast.  Mandrean is simpleminded yet twisted and evil to the core.  While easily manipulated he takes great pleasure in making his subordinates suffer.  He is insulting and self-indulgent.  Mandrean is surrounded by people with good ideas but he never takes their advice.  He is a child who has been placed in a position of authority.  Necromancer is even more fun to write.  He is the personification of evil.  Every move has a hidden agenda; especially when he is counseling Mandrean.  It is much like a puppeteer and his marionette.  He pulls the right strings and Mandrean normally does what Necromancer wants.  There are other villains in the books as well but the point is clear.  Being bad is just more fun than being good.