How to Write Morally Gray Characters That Readers Love—and Hate
When we talk about morally gray characters, we’re talking about the ones who don’t fit neatly into categories of hero or villain. They are complex, flawed, sometimes ruthless, and often capable of both great harm and great good. Readers are drawn to them not because they are perfect, but because they feel real—and let’s be honest, we’re all a little morally gray ourselves.
But here’s something I’ve noticed: gender plays a huge role in how morally gray characters are perceived.
Pushing Past Gender Norms in Morally Gray Characters
A male antihero is often seen as a brooding, tormented figure—think Walter White (Breaking Bad), Dexter Morgan (Dexter), or Jax Teller (Sons of Anarchy). They can be killers, criminals, or deeply flawed individuals, yet they are still idolized, dissected, and even rooted for.
Meanwhile, a female antihero often faces a different reaction. When women are ruthless or morally ambiguous, they’re more likely to be labeled as “cold,” “calculating,” or just plain “bitchy.” Think of Villanelle from Killing Eve, Amy Dunne from Gone Girl, or even Von Schlange in The Serpent Woman—they don’t get the same leeway as their male counterparts.
But here’s the truth: antiheroes are not limited by gender. Neither are weaknesses. A man can be the more emotional, vulnerable character while a woman can be the ruthless, brutal one—and neither choice is wrong. The best morally gray characters push past these outdated roles and exist as full, contradictory, three-dimensional humans.
The Core of Morally Gray Characters: Contradictions Make Us Human
If you want to write a compelling morally gray character, you have to dig deep and acknowledge something uncomfortable: we are all morally gray.
• A person can go to church every Sunday and live a double life full of sin.
• Someone can be deeply compassionate but capable of extreme violence when pushed.
• We might believe in justice while bending the law to get it.
• A devoted parent could also struggle with addiction.
• A person can despise liars yet lie to protect someone they love.
Contradictions are what make people real, and they are what make characters compelling.
The best antiheroes (and villains) wrestle with their own darkness. It’s not just about making them “do bad things”—it’s about why they do them. Are they driven by revenge? Survival? A warped sense of justice? Is their weakness their humanity or their lack of it?
How to Write a Morally Gray Character Readers Can’t Ignore
1. Give them a moral code—even if it’s twisted.
• Morally gray characters aren’t villains without purpose. They believe in something—even if that “something” is deeply flawed.
• Example: Von Schlange in The Serpent Woman delivers her own form of justice. It may be brutal, but in her eyes, it is righteous.
2. Make them contradictory—but consistent.
• Readers should see them struggle with their choices. If they kill without hesitation in one scene but hesitate in another, there should be a reason.
• Example: Maybe your assassin spares a child because they see themselves in them—but kills a witness without blinking.
3. Push past gender roles.
• Let women be ruthless and unrepentant.
• Let men be emotionally vulnerable or even the "weaker" character.
• Let characters be fluid—morality, gender, and roles don’t have to be confined to boxes.
4. Make their darkness understandable.
• Readers don’t have to agree with them, but they should understand them.
• Show their past, their struggles, and the reasons behind their choices.
5. Let them evolve—or self-destruct.
• Will they become darker over time?
• Will they try (and fail) to redeem themselves?
• Will they embrace their darkness completely?
Final Thought: We’re All Morally Gray
If you really think about it, even the saintliest humans have contradictions. We all make selfish choices, we all justify things in our own heads, we all have moments of cruelty, weakness, and moral compromise. That’s why morally gray characters resonate—because they mirror us.
So, when you write your next morally gray character, ask yourself:
💭 What contradictions define them?
💭 What battles do they fight within themselves?
💭 What will make readers love—and hate—them?
The best characters aren’t black and white. They live in the messy, complicated, morally gray middle. And that’s exactly what makes them unforgettable.
But here’s something I’ve noticed: gender plays a huge role in how morally gray characters are perceived.
Pushing Past Gender Norms in Morally Gray Characters
A male antihero is often seen as a brooding, tormented figure—think Walter White (Breaking Bad), Dexter Morgan (Dexter), or Jax Teller (Sons of Anarchy). They can be killers, criminals, or deeply flawed individuals, yet they are still idolized, dissected, and even rooted for.
Meanwhile, a female antihero often faces a different reaction. When women are ruthless or morally ambiguous, they’re more likely to be labeled as “cold,” “calculating,” or just plain “bitchy.” Think of Villanelle from Killing Eve, Amy Dunne from Gone Girl, or even Von Schlange in The Serpent Woman—they don’t get the same leeway as their male counterparts.
But here’s the truth: antiheroes are not limited by gender. Neither are weaknesses. A man can be the more emotional, vulnerable character while a woman can be the ruthless, brutal one—and neither choice is wrong. The best morally gray characters push past these outdated roles and exist as full, contradictory, three-dimensional humans.
The Core of Morally Gray Characters: Contradictions Make Us Human
If you want to write a compelling morally gray character, you have to dig deep and acknowledge something uncomfortable: we are all morally gray.
• A person can go to church every Sunday and live a double life full of sin.
• Someone can be deeply compassionate but capable of extreme violence when pushed.
• We might believe in justice while bending the law to get it.
• A devoted parent could also struggle with addiction.
• A person can despise liars yet lie to protect someone they love.
Contradictions are what make people real, and they are what make characters compelling.
The best antiheroes (and villains) wrestle with their own darkness. It’s not just about making them “do bad things”—it’s about why they do them. Are they driven by revenge? Survival? A warped sense of justice? Is their weakness their humanity or their lack of it?
How to Write a Morally Gray Character Readers Can’t Ignore
1. Give them a moral code—even if it’s twisted.
• Morally gray characters aren’t villains without purpose. They believe in something—even if that “something” is deeply flawed.
• Example: Von Schlange in The Serpent Woman delivers her own form of justice. It may be brutal, but in her eyes, it is righteous.
2. Make them contradictory—but consistent.
• Readers should see them struggle with their choices. If they kill without hesitation in one scene but hesitate in another, there should be a reason.
• Example: Maybe your assassin spares a child because they see themselves in them—but kills a witness without blinking.
3. Push past gender roles.
• Let women be ruthless and unrepentant.
• Let men be emotionally vulnerable or even the "weaker" character.
• Let characters be fluid—morality, gender, and roles don’t have to be confined to boxes.
4. Make their darkness understandable.
• Readers don’t have to agree with them, but they should understand them.
• Show their past, their struggles, and the reasons behind their choices.
5. Let them evolve—or self-destruct.
• Will they become darker over time?
• Will they try (and fail) to redeem themselves?
• Will they embrace their darkness completely?
Final Thought: We’re All Morally Gray
If you really think about it, even the saintliest humans have contradictions. We all make selfish choices, we all justify things in our own heads, we all have moments of cruelty, weakness, and moral compromise. That’s why morally gray characters resonate—because they mirror us.
So, when you write your next morally gray character, ask yourself:
💭 What contradictions define them?
💭 What battles do they fight within themselves?
💭 What will make readers love—and hate—them?
The best characters aren’t black and white. They live in the messy, complicated, morally gray middle. And that’s exactly what makes them unforgettable.
No comments have been added yet.
