Behind the Story: Wicked Characters

So, here's something I never knew I would enjoy--writing "bad guys." When I started writing my fairy tale, I knew it had the EVIL stepmother and stepsister. Well, some retellings soften those characters, but most don't. So, I started down the road of having them be evil in my story too.
And y'all, I actually liked having those "scapegoats" to cause mischief and problems for my character. And to blame. In all my other books, my characters don't really have something like that. So, it was nice to have someone to point a finger at and make the bad guy.
​That being said, I didn't leave it that way.
What do I mean?
Well, my characters are still pretty bad at the end. But, I didn't want my main character looking at them only as if they were evil. It's something she struggles with through the whole book. They're all the family she has left and she wants to love them. They simply don't make it easy.
Also, Ella is a Christian. And let's be honest, the whole "love your enemies" thing is much harder than it sounds. But I wanted her to struggle to be able to do it. She wants to have the love God wants her to have toward Angela (stepmom) and Bellamy (stepsister). If only they would cooperate!
So, get ready to be angry at these characters. But also try to remember that people we get angry at are people God loves and made in His image too. And don't worry. We'll get to see them again in Beauty School and the Beast, when Bellamy gets her own story. ;)
Do you love to have characters you can hate? 
Rendersella

​Ella dreams of her artwork on display in the famous Prince Gallery, but working for her stepmother leaves her eking out sporadic minutes to draw or paint. When her stepsister steals her drawing and claims it as her own, Ella fears she’s lost her chance.
Chaz Prince wants more responsibility at his family’s gallery, but first he must prove he can handle it. Chaz talks his dad into a contest to bring in some new artists, sure this will be exactly what the gallery needs. When he stumbles across Ella’s piece, he not only wants the artwork, but wishes to know the artist.
At the gala to celebrate the contest winners, Ella is determined to let them know the artwork is hers, but time is against her. And where did her shoe end up?