From the Backlist: "Writing the Story -- Just a Trip on the Open Road" by Pamela Palmer

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"Plotter or pantser" is one of the vital decisions all writers must make --- and also a question our Supernatural Underground authors get asked a lot. 

Here's Pamela Palmer's take in terms of her own writing. Enjoy!

Writing the Story -- Just a Trip on the Open Road

by Pamela Palmer

I used to think I was a plotter. Or maybe I just wanted to be a plotter since it appealed to my control freak side. The idea of sitting down to write with a thoroughly plotted outline at my fingertips enthralled me. I imagined that marvelous document, each chapter broken down into detailed scene-by-scene action, emotion, and descriptions, with character goals and conflicts spelled out in perfect clarity. Writing would be a snap, I thought. 

Then I tried it. And failed. Miserably.

I spent months creating that brilliant outline for one of my early books (a Scottish historical that will never see the light of day). But at the first critical turning point in the story, all that meticulous planning fell apart. The hero, who had come roaring to life in the first few chapters, simply refused to react to that pivotal moment the way I (and my beautiful outline) required him to. I could have forced him, of course. And he and anyone who read the book would have hated me for it. So I didn't. I let him react the way he needed to, which sent the story spinning in a direction I'd never foreseen. And all the meticulous planning I'd done from that point forward had to be scrapped.

So, I tried again, carefully plotting the rest of the story from that point on, convinced it would work now that I understood the hero better. Wrong. Within a few chapters, he was glaring at me, arms crossed, a mulish set to his chiseled jaw. No way in hell was he doing what I'd intended. Again.

I'd love to say that after two failures I'd learned my lesson. Nope. To paraphrase one of my favorite fictional characters (Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum), I try never to make the same mistake more than two or three times. Eventually, I figured it out. For me, traveling through a story is a lot like traveling by car along roads I've never visited before. Yes, I can grab a map and plan the route ahead of time, in detail, but all I'm doing is guessing the best way to go. We've all done it--chosen a route that appears to be quick, or short, or interesting, only to find the reality anything but. That 'straight shot' through the city has us caught in traffic so thick we haven't moved for an hour or that 'short cut' between two highways turns out to be little more than a track through the mountains where we can hardly tell the roads from the driveways.

Planning the trip ahead of time is all well and fine, but it's not until I get into the middle of it that I'm able to see where I really want to go.

I still plot, because my stories are too complicated to simply dive into without any plan. But my plotting these days looks more like a trip itinerary that reads: Atlanta to Cincinnati to Denver to Albuquerque. The highlights only. I refuse to plan the details of how I'll get from Cincinnati to Denver until I reach Cincinnati. At that point, I'll look at the situation (how much time I have, how much money, what the weather looks like, and how the traffic reports are stacking up), and make my decisions based on up-to-the-minute data. And even then, I'm okay with things changing. If a road looks good, I'll take it. If not, I won't. No commitments. No meticulous pre-planning. And if it starts to make more sense to switch Albuquerque with Denver, that's okay, too.

...

To read the full post, click here

Pamela's website is here

A Year of Heroines in Fantasy: Karou, Rose Marshall, and Yorindesarinen

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The thing I love about this month's trio of heroines is that one of them is resurrected and two of them are dead, Yep, I'm talking heroines with a distinctly supernatural vibe. ;-)

Another thing I love about this otherworldly troika is how they hail from distinct Fantasy subgenres. Karou is from Laini Taylor's wonderful romantic fantasy, Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Rose Marshall stars in Seanan McGuire's paranormal urban fantasy/ horror Sparrow Hill Road (Ghost Roads #1) and Yorindesarinen is a 'best supporting heroine' in my own The Wall of Night series, which is epic-heroic fantasy all the way. 

On the surface, Karou, Rose, and Yorindesarinen are as different as their Fantasy subgenres, but there is one more element that ties them together. All three have died under traumatic circumstances in their past lives.

Rose and Yorindesarinen are both easy to talk about in this respect without fear of spoilers, because Rose is already a ghost when introduced, and Yorindesarinen a spirit being living in a between-realm called the Gate of Dreams.

 

In the Ghost Road series, Rose was murdered in a hit-and-run. Her murderer, Bobby Cross, has sold his soul for immortality and Rose's murder was intended to seal the deal. Fifty-two years later, Bobby is still hunting Rose's ghost to finish what he started. In a tale spun between diners and highways--some real, some ghosts themselves--and constant tension between the living and dead, Rose must elude pursuit, deal with crossroads spirits and old gods, and find a way to finish Bobby before he ends her, once and for all. 

She's brave and determined, ruthless in her dealings with the road's many predators, but also kind to those in need -- and when the supernatural chips are down, you definitely want Rose on your side.

Yorindesarinen is a spirit guide and mentor to Malian, the main character in The Wall of Night series. And yes, you're right -- she does have a really long name. :D That's because in her clan, the more magically gifted an individual, the longer their name -- and Yorindesarinen was the greatest hero and champion of her people, the Derai. 

Like Malian, Yorindesarinen was a Chosen hero named in prophecy, but when the Derai fled a monstrous, demonic, and apparently unstoppable opponent, she died battling it alone. She also slew the monster, and has survived in spirit form to guide Malian and ensure that when she faces similar demonic forces, she won't do so alone. Yet her chief role, as Malian grows in strength, is to provide a moral compass in dealing with allies and enemies -- and like Rose, she is kindly disposed.

Ghost, check; spirit guide, check -- and then there's Karou. Initially, despite distinctive blue hair, Karou presents as a fairly standard young woman, having fun and open to adventure as she makes her way in the world. The reader quickly learns, though, that there's far more to Karou than meets the eye, starting with living in two realms. One is our world, the other is Elsewhere, where she serves the magician, Brimstone, who uses teeth to transfer souls into new bodies. 

When Karou's path crosses that of an angel called Akiva, she discovers that Elsewhere is a city of monsters and devils besieged by angels. She also learns of the star-crossed love of Akiva and Madrigal, a devil who gathered battlefield souls for Brimstone to reincarnate, but was executed for treachery and her soul forbidden reincarnation. The more Karou learns of Brimstone's work and Akiva's war, the more she comes to suspect that she, too, is one of the reincarnated... 

Past lives and present, Karou, Rose, and Yorindesarinen, are all brave and resourceful, resolute and daring -- and in addition to being kind, all three have a sense of fun. All great reasons to have them in my fantasy hall of fame. :-)

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Prior Posts: A Year of Heroines in Fantasy

February: Aerin, Elfrid, & Malian of Night
March: Yeine Darr & Rowan Birchmoon
May: Brienne of Tarth, Adjunct Tavore, & Asantir, Commander of Night
June: Shallan, Jehane Mor, & Aidris of the Chameln

July: Amat Kyaan, Rachael Boucher, & Nhairin

 

~*~

About Helen Lowe

Helen Lowe is the award-winning author of Thornspell and The Wall Of Night fantasy series, as well as a poet, blogger, and lover of story. She has recently completed writing the final book in The Wall of Night series, which is now with publisher, Harper Voyager.

Helen posts regularly on her “…on Anything, Really” blog, monthly on the Supernatural Underground, and tweets @helenl0we.

From The Backlist: "Halloween Cometh" by Merrie Destefano

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We're into that month -- so we can think of no better way to herald Halloween than with a backlist post on that very topic. And from the wonderful Merrie Destefano, no less!

Enjoy!

Halloween Cometh

~ by Merrie Destefano

When I was a kid, Halloween was always my favorite holiday. Autumn came with brisk winds and falling leaves and carved pumpkins that lined everyone’s porches. Days grew shorter and shorter, as if soon it would be one continuous night. My neighborhood was filled with old, Victorian homes, tall houses with wrap-around porches and too many windows. It always seemed like some creepy person was watching me from behind the curtains, so that made trick-or-treating seem all the more dangerous.

For years, all of these elements stayed with me, through my teenage years and adulthood. Whenever Halloween approaches, my skin shivers and I expect something—insert sound of creaky old door opening here—unexpected, but slightly magical, to happen.

That was why I wrote FEAST: HARVEST OF DREAMS, and why I set it in a quiet mountain village, during Halloween. I wanted to share those emotions and expectations I had as a child. My main character, Ash—who is more than a little bit magical and possibly quite dangerous—even lives in a creepy, old Victorian house...

To read the original post, click here.

To check in on Merrie, who's written plenty more books since Feast, click on Merrie Destefano Home

From The Backlist: "What If? Folklore As A Source" by Melissa Marr

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We love this post by the great Melissa Marr on where her stories come from, specifically their folklore origins. We're sure you'll love it, too, so read on and enjoy!

"What If?" Folklore As A Source

 by Melissa Marr

One of the questions every writer hears regularly is “where do you get your ideas?” Answers to this one range from quips to “everything” to very specific “this story came from ___.” All of these are true answers (or, they can be. . . writers being writers, there are inevitably truth-bendings going on sometime. ...) Every story I have started begins with a “what if” or a “what next.” Moreover, every one of those is connected to folklore or/and fairy tales in some way.

Life and Lore in My Texts

My first novel, Wicked Lovely, utilizes a few fairy tale tropes--in part for the purpose of defying them. There's a curse that can only be broken by finding the "fated love"...of course, the fated love doesn't quite want to be found, and the cursed faery is already in love with someone he hoped was his fated love, but wasn't...sorta, maybe. I had good fun playing with questions of volition and power here, the idea of what happily-ever-after means, and other fairy tale tidbits like a "woken with a kiss" scene wherein being "woken" is an awakening (i.e. epiphany rather than literally awakening). That novel is also very rooted in a folklore, specifically tales of Cailleach Bheur and of the King of Summer.

I used some of the same lore and fairy tale tropes in a short story in Cricket in 2007. It derives, in part, from my on-going love of Cailleach Bheur, but in it the protag is a girl who carries "Winter's Kiss" and feels it a burden rather than a joy. I added this to a world in which global warming is a problem, and threw in my childhood dream of traveling with an ice-bear (polar bear) that is a result of a fairy tale, & well, it became a story about a girl who carries winter and boy who is also a bear. ...

Why Write From Folklore

I didn’t intend to write these things. In many ways, writing is a bit of an accident for me. I grew up with these sorts of stories, the supernatural wasn’t just the stuff in my books, it was/is real in my family. I’ve been told not to go places because of the various creatures lurking out there; I’ve also been sent out to “catch” a faery that was lurking around the woodpile. I’m passing that tradition on to my children as best I can.

 ...

How Do I Learn This Stuff?

It’s really a case of write what I know. After a folklore saturated childhood, I grew up and became a lit major and after that a lit teacher at university. My focus areas were Romantic, Victorians, & the American South. Mmmm. Ghosts, Byronic heroes, Frankenstein, Dracula, the “Mortal Immortal,” Southern Gothic! Oh yes, literature is riddled with some weird stuff. Delicious, macabre, and addictive. Stir the lit into the lore, and I was on my way to being where I am now. Somewhere in there, I also discovered scholarly journals . . . FOLKLORE and THE LION AND THE UNICORN and MARVELS AND TALES (among others). ...

*pauses*

Yeah, I get to read what interests me, drown in it, and I know that somewhere along the line, I’ll get that moment where I say, “oooooh, what if . . .”

What a fabulous post! It's a lovely indepth one, too, so we've only given you the abridged version here. To absorb the complete goodness, just click on through to the original, here.

To read more about Melissa and her writing, go here.

From The Backlist: "Sex, Gore, and @!*&%! " by Dakota Banks

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Here on Supernatural Underground we love us a backlist post -- and we think you'll love a reprise on "Sex, Gore, and @!*&%! " by Dakota Banks. 

In it, Dakota takes 'a step to the right' (or maybe it's 'a jump to the left', he-he) on our core speculative fiction fare (SciFi, Fantasy, Horror, with more than a little Paranormal and Romance thrown in ;-) ) and hones in on the Mystery genre.

The "ratings" classifications of Mystery fiction, that is, based on their violence, sex, and bad/gory language content. Let's go check it out!
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Sex, Gore, and @!*&%!

by Dakota Banks

"In the mystery genre, there are general classifications that readers assign to books based on their use of violence, sex, and language--just like rating movies. Some readers are comfortable only within the classification that appeals to them and rarely read beyond it. Others, like me, sample from all parts of the buffet table. Let's take a look at these classifications and see if they apply to paranormal books, too.

• Fluffies. These books drip wholesomeness, except for the fact that someone is murdered. Otherwise, they couldn't be considered murder mysteries at all. But the murder is sanitized and happens off-stage. For example, someone might get a phone call from the police informing them that Aunt Helen is (gasp!) dead. There is not even a hint of foul language and the only blood in the book will be there from the paper cut you got turning the pages. Fluffies are a fairly recent invention, created as a backlash when readers of the next classification of books started noticing language creeping in that made them uncomfortable. Thus, the fluffy was born. Guaranteed no encounters of the sex, violence, and foul-mouthed varieties. G-rated movies.
  
  

• Cozies. Light on all three aspects. These stories frequently take place in small towns, or if not, within an extended family. The emphasis on character development and especially relationships among a group of people are the controlling aspects of the story. Again, the murder usually happens off-stage and the mystery may involve something like keeping family secrets or falsifying the will. PG movies.
  
  

• Traditional. Now we get to mysteries with real meat on their bones, literally. While the murder might or might not still happen off-stage, the reader gets to see the dead body or bodies through the eyes of the lead character. The reader may see other characters in the book killed on-stage besides the initial murder. There may be couples having sex, but in a "fadeout" manner where the door closes or the blankets are pulled up just when things are getting really interesting. No lengthy specific descriptions of what's going on under those blankets. Language has slipped into usage of common curse words, and only the f-word is off limits. Or is it? Some of these books use the f-word in non-sexual ways as a strong expletive or something that is consistent with a particular character's manner of speech. These are generally the amateur sleuth books, where a character outside law enforcement becomes involved in a murder investigation, possibly to prove herself innocent of the murder. PG-13 movies.
  
  

• Hard-boiled. Language, violence, and sex are explicit but according the author's standards, not used for sensationalism. Subject matter such as serial killers, rape, pedophilia, human trafficking, gangs, kinkiness, drugs, the whole range of the human condition--anything goes. Language can be coarse, bloody violence is shown to the reader, and hot sex is usually part of the story. The protagonists are usually people within law enforcement in some capacity, or private investigators--in other words, a small segment of society that fights to keep the rest of us safe. R movies.
  
  

• Splatter books or erotica--Language has no restriction in either of these books. Splatter books detail scenes of bloody violence and torture that amount to wallowing in blood, which is the purpose of the book. Erotica emphasizes explicit, frequent, unusual, whatever, sex to the point that other story elements exist to support the portrayal of sex. X-rated movies or soft porn.

As I mentioned earlier, some mystery readers are loyal to one classification. Some will read only cozies, some hard-boiled readers think cozies are a waste of time and not real mysteries. You get the idea.

... "

To read the original post, click here.

To check in on Dakota, go here.

She also writes as Shirley Kennett, here.

From the Backlist - Feathers, Fur, Fangs, and Snakes

Shapeshifter fro, Diablo 4 Icy Veins Build

 Hello Sup Readers and Writers!

It's time again to explore our awesome Backlist!

Today we are sharing a post by the author of the bestselling Mortal Path series, Dakota Banks. Her thoughts on shape-shifting from June 28, 2010 are just as relevant in 2024. 

Read along to discover how, and why, this magic works so well!

* * *

Huge Jackman is Wolverine

Hi, I'm Dakota Banks. If I were to die and come back as something, it would be as a Dove extra dark chocolate bar in the hands of the man to the left...

... Now that you've learned everything there is to know about my personality... eyes over here, please...

... Werewolves also have a long history of stories behind them. Ancient Greek gods turned a king with an appetite for human flesh into a werewolf. There is a famous story from the 1600s involving a she-wolf. A French king saw a hunter in his woods and asked him to report on the success of the hunt. The hunter encountered a vicious wolf who was too strong for him to kill, but he managed to cut off the wolf's forepaw. He wrapped it up and took it to the king. When the king heard the story, he unwrapped the bundle and found a woman's hand with a gold ring on her finger. Horrified, he recognized the ring as belonging to his wife. Searching her out, he found her injured, with her hand missing. She admitted being the she-wolf and was burned to death...

... People tend to develop their myths and folklore using animals that are local to where they live. That gives us werehorses from Europe, weredolphins from Brazil's Amazon River basin, wereseals from island communities, werehyenas from Africa, and weremers (okay, mermaids) from countries that sailed the oceans...

... For my writing, I wanted to see what I could do outside the vamp and werewolf norm. I found the myths of ancient Sumeria fascinating, so I built a story around the idea that some of their gods, goddesses, and demons are still around today. Only a few humans know about them, and are aligned for or against. I was lured in by shapeshifting, though, so there are demons who transform into various horrid forms. I have a lot of fun writing the Mortal Path series! The second book is Sacrifice - READ THE WHOLE POST HERE.

 Thanks for joining us in exploring the backlist!

See you next time! 

The Sup

 

Choose Your Weapon - Ranged

 

Archery in Anime

Ranged Weapons

In today's issue of Choose Your Weapon, we will consider 'ranged' weapons, a category that includes the bow, crossbow, repeating crossbow, slingshot and blow gun. As you can see, the main focus is on the archer.

Archery has been with us from the start of humankind,  with arrowheads found in South Africa dating back 60,000 years. Think of this weapon as 'archetypal' in that it has been found in all places, all cultures and all times, from neolithic beginnings to contemporary Olympic games. 

It's as pervasive in pictorial form and literature too, from cave paintings in Spain from 20,000 years ago to Homer's account of Prince Paris who slays Achilles. Of course, he also told stories about the huntress, the goddess Artemis and Eros, the god of love whose dart would cause his victims to fall in love.

Writing characters who use archery is often intricate, centering and poetic. There is something about the moments before, during and after the shot that defies time, creating the opportunity for an inner journey that no other weapon can, at least to me.

Whether to feed the tribe, slay the enemy or seduce the lover, archery holds a powerful position in storytelling. 

Subgenres with Archery

Fantasy Books - examples are LOTR by JRR Tolkien, Fire by Kristin Kashor, Heir of Fire by Sarah J Mass and The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black.

Anime - Ashitaka in Princess Momonoke, Tigreurmud Vorn, Lord Marksman and Vanadis.

Superhero Comics - Marvel's Hawkeye and DC Comic's Green Arrow.

Urban Fantasy Books- Katniss Everdeen in the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Percy Jackson Series by Rick Riordan.

Film and Gaming

Disney - Merida in Brave, Cassandra in Tangled and of course Hercules ... in Hercules.

Adventure - Lara Croft in Tomb Raider!

Ledgen - Robin Hood!

Ancient Myths - Psyche and Eros, Apollo, Artemis, Ullr (Norse god of the hunt).

Gaming - Diablo, Elder Scrolls, Witcher, Path of Exile, Baldur's Gate, Minecraft Dungeons, Chop-Chop, Divinity, Magic the Gathering...

What are your favorite archers in the Fantasy genre? I'd love to hear about them.

See you in the comments.

xxKim

Choose Your Weapon Series 2024

Poison

The Perfect Storm

The Sword

Firearms

Ranged

Spells

Unarmed

Curses

Time Travel

Invisibility

***

About Kim Falconer

Kim Falconer, currently writing as AK Wilder, has released Crown of Bones, a YA Epic Fantasy with Curse of Shadows as book 2 in the series. Currently, she is working on the third book, out in 2024.

Kim can be found on  AKWilder Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

Throw the bones, read your horoscopes or Raise Your Phantom on the AKWilder.com site

From The Backlist: "Unhealthy Obsession?" by Jocelynn Drake

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We love our awesome Supernatural Underground backlist -- and this post, where Jocelynn Drake poses the Unhealthy Obsession? question is an excellent example!

Jocelynn Drake

Unhealthy Obsession? 

by Jocelynn Drake

It’s just after midnight and I should be heading to bed, or at the very least settling in with a book to relax.

Instead, I’m surfing the net and obsessing about all the little things that I love. And I’m wondering if it’s unhealthy. I mean, everyone needs a little distraction in life. A little escape. Most of the time, I escape into the worlds of my own creation, but sometimes I need someone else’s world.

Obsession #1: Batman

My long-time love affair with Bruce Wayne started when I was young, watching the Adam West/Burt Ward Batman and Robin show. At that time, I loved Robin, but then I was very young and foolish; not realizing the wonderfulness that is the complexity of Bruce Wayne. My love cooled over the years until the early ‘90s when the Adventures of Batman and Robin cartoon was released. The art was beautiful and the stories were surprisingly rich for a 30-minute afternoon cartoon show. I fell in love all over again. Batman had taken on a gritty, darker feel. He had finally become the tortured soul that most of us have come to equate with Batman.

I love Bruce Wayne/Batman because he doesn’t have any super powers. He’s just a man. Every night he pushes himself to the absolute limit while walking a fine line between good and evil. Handsome, strong, confident, determined, dedicated, brilliant, loyal, and secretly, very compassionate, Bruce Wayne makes my little heart stammer in my chest. The new DC Universe reboot, which will launch in September, has me concerned about what they will do to the Batman canon, but I know they will not change the soul of Batman.

I own a large collection of comics, graphic novels, movies, figures, and cartoons. One dream would be to publish my own Batman story.

..."

To read all about Obsession #2 and the full post, including comments, click here. 

To find out more about Jocelynn and her writing you can visit her blog.

From The Backlist: "Tall, dark, and handsome isn't going to cut it" by Margaret Ronald

Margaret Ronald

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It’s 'from the backlist' time again – and we love this post on writing heroes / romantic others from Margaret Ronald. 

Tall, dark, and handsome isn't going to cut it

by Margaret Ronald

 

"Let's face it: tastes differ. Especially when it comes to romantic leads.

I know my tastes when it comes to fictional men are a little . . . off. I'm more likely to crush on the hero's sidekick rather than the hero himself, I'll skim through thirty pages of stuff blowing up (okay, maybe I'll slow down for the explosions) to reach two pages of awkward infatuation, and I'd ditch Neo in a heartbeat for some quality time with Agent Smith. I imprinted on Tom Baker's Doctor early on, and so I've got a weakness for expressive eyes and a goofy grin. (And long coats and scarves, but that's another matter entirely.) Ten minutes with Miles Vorkosigan would probably drive me insane, though it would undoubtedly be an interesting madness.

In short, my fictional crushes are usually not the sort that would look good in a photo shoot -- or, at the very least, wouldn't express what I find so endearing about them. And that's okay.

What it means for writing is that I've learned to separate out what qualities get me interested and see where they overlap with what interests my heroine. Sure, I like a tall, skinny guy with glasses, but would Evie? What's more likely to sweep her off her feet? (Does she want to be swept off her feet?) And, more importantly, does that aspect of his character fit with everything else I've envisioned for him?

Still, I'm slowly learning that there are some common factors that I really like in romantic leads: wit without cynicism, the ability to be stoic in the face of overwhelming odds, a habit of introspection even if those thoughts are not shared. (And, for some reason, cyborgs. I just really like cyborgs. Go figure.) I don't know yet that I can adequately turn these loose associations into a character, but examining my reactions and understanding them makes it easier for me to figure out how to provoke a similar reaction.

Granted, tastes in fictional romantic leads don't necessarily translate to the outside world, nor the other way around. The darkly brooding type might be quite a draw while he's safely between the covers of a book, but off the page he's more likely to be the Darth Vader Boyfriend. (And, as Captain Awkward so succinctly states, you do not want to date this man.) Or, as Kate Beaton shows, dude watching with the Brontes has its limits. But this is fantasy -- as is, in a way, all fiction -- and so we're free to dream up a few things that can stay safely on the page.

..."

To read the full post and the comments, click here.

To find out more about Margaret and her writing you can visit her blog or search on "Margaret Ronald author" -- you'll get some hits. :-)

From The Backlist: “Inspired by Evil” by Amanda Arista

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It’s backlist time – and what better feature, since Helen Lowe’s post theme for 2024 is the Year of the Villain, than the great Amanda Arista’s “Inspired by Evil”, in which she lists some of her favorite villains!

Amanda Arista

Not all are drawn from the ranks of Fantasy, but they’re all suitably evile and/or villainous – so rock on up, folks, and read on!

Inspired by Evil

by Amanda Arista

...I have to admit. I’m pro-villain. My favorite characters in literature seem to the antagonists, because they usually get the best lines. Good villains are strong, driven, have their own moral codes and usually more motivated than the heroes at the beginning of the stories. They are on their own journeys and, frankly, sometimes I’m routing for them because the heroes just can’t seem to get their acts together faster enough.

So some of my favorites are:

1. Maleficent. Probably the first villain to really institute the adage “If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.” Powerful woman and sexy as hell. She is the reigning queen of villains in my book, because she almost got exactly what she wanted. In the end, remember, she was just out-manned, not out smarted (those three meddling fairies). Really looking forward to Angelina Jolie’s portrayal of her next summer.

2. Hannibal Lector- I don’t know if you guys have been watching NBC’s Hannibal, but there is something both eerie and alluring about Mads Mikkelsen’s portrayal of the psychiatrist. You know that he’s eating people, but somehow, you’re a little okay with that because you just want to know what he’s going to say next.  

3. The Nothing from The Neverending Story by Michael Ende. Though the Nothing is really a phenomenon that is happening to Fantastica, is still was a powerful source of fear for the main characters, Atreyu and Bastian. And it was creepy, because there was no getting away from it and it drove creatures insane by just looking into it. And, it had the best emissary in the world!

4. Tyler Durden from Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk. Now, technically I don’t know if you can count Tyler Durden as a villain, but I was routing for Project Mayhem the entire time. And I tote a lot of Tyler-isms in my life. There was a surprising amount of truth spoken by that character and yet, he is still the antagonistic force for the narrator.

5. The Joker, all his incarnations ever. Probably the best villain and hero relationship that has ever hit the page or the screen. The perfect juxtaposition of Joker’s love of chaos and Batman’s need for logic defines how heroes and villains are supposed to work together, their harmony are what make the stories good and tension-filled and keep us watching and turning the page.

There are so many more..."

~*~

To read the full post and the comments, click here.

And to discover more about Amanda and her writing, visit her on: AmandaArista