The Evil that Men Do – My Deadly Valentine

Happy Friday, everyone! Hope you are looking forward to a wonderful weekend. Today, I've got another one of my very talented Brava author sisters with me. It's my pleasure to introduce Bronwen Evans to you–Bronwen writes sexy and dark regency romances, and you'll be able to purchase her upcoming release, INVITATION TO RUIN, on February 22! Welcome, Bronwen!

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Hello from New Zealand!

When Cynthia kindly invited me to blog with her, using the premise of My Deadly Valentine, I was thrilled. I love a good villain.

I write Regency historicals, and while the genre is different from a dark romantic suspense, I always have a disturbing villain in my books.  There is just something so engaging about a villain. Take Eric Northman in True Blood, a villain you love to hate, or is it simply lust to hate.  Or the villain you can't wait to see get their comeuppance, like the White Witch in the Narnia series.

I started thinking about how, as a writer, I come up with villains and how I get into their heads. I asked my friend and critique partner, Gracie O'Neil (www.romanceshewrote.com) who writes romantic suspense, for help. And she prepared some villainous questions for me to answer.

1. In your opinion, what makes a terrifying villain?

Intelligence. A villain who's intelligent is a most dangerous beast. In my debut book, Invitation to Ruin, due for release on 1 March 2011, the villain is so clever that no one would believe the evil he has planned. He doesn't do the obvious. He's unpredictable. That is what I find terrify. A villain you can't understand or anticipate.

2. When you're creating your villain, do you start from the premise that most people are basically good, or from another hypothesis? How does you premise help you in his construction?

My premise always drives the type of villain I write. For instance, in Invitation to Ruin, the hero's father was a slave trader. Therefore, it seemed obvious to have a villain who came from that environment. Once the idea was there, I simply thought about what sort of characteristics a villain who dealt in trading human beings would have. I developed his family background. What would his childhood have been like to have set him down this path, and why could Anthony (my hero) rise above it, but Philip (the villain) not? The good and bad within a person is often a trait of their upbringing, but something inside gives them the courage to overcome.  Once I'd drafted out Philip's background, I knew how evil he would be.

3. What aspect of "being evil" offends you most in a villain?

A complete lack of humanity. A person who picks on people unable to protect themselves.  I hate cruelty of any kind. I was totally unsympathetic to Philip because he was a psychopath. He enjoyed other's pain, and lived to hurt and destroy.

4. Do you ever feel sorry for your villains?

I think it's only human to feel sorry for them when the end comes, especially if they've had a terrible upbringing.  That's why I wanted Anthony and Phillip to have had the same horrendous childhood.  They both had sadistic fathers. It really demonstrated how Anthony was inherently good. His heart still had the capacity to love, while Phillip didn't even try to be good. Phillip chose the easy path and embraced evil.

5. How important is it for a villain to have at least one heroic quality?

That depends on the story. In Invitation to Ruin, I couldn't find anything redeeming in Phillip, so I didn't even try to give him any heroic qualities. It's not very heroic to trade in human flesh.

6. What is one personality trait you would NEVER give your villain?

I don't think I'd ever say never. A premise, character background and a story's  plot usually dictate the villain's personality; so I'd never say I wouldn't give him or her – ooooh , don't you find female villains scarier – I think I'll put one in my next book – a certain trait.

I think villain's are some of the most enjoyable character's to write and read. Don't you?

To win a copy of Invitation to Ruin, leave a comment below, telling me your favourite villain and why?

Thanks for having me, Cynthia. I can't wait to find the villain in DEADLY HEAT.

To find out more about my upcoming release, Invitation to Ruin, (RT Book Review 4.5 Star rating) and me, please visit my website www.bronwenevans.com or my blog Regency Seductions

Happy reading everyone

Bron