whoa hey look it's me needing help
the antagonist of songbird elegies is actually starting to talk, and i'm a little worried that it's being characterized a little to stereotypical anime villain or whatever. i don't want to post the full scene because i feel silly posting so much of my writing in one day, but can anyone hop in my dms and look at it and tell me if it feels cool or whack?
i don't usually write actual antagonists. like villain-y types. i don't know i'm out of my comfort zone. also you'll get a peek at some actual tension and not just scott and edgar cuddling and eating snacks.
Unsolicited but accurate advice: It doesn't matter.
If the antagonist is just now starting to talk, you're in the first draft. (It doesn't matter how much/how many times you've written other parts -- it's the first draft of your antagonist's character.) First drafts are for feeling things out, just like you're doing; they are not for getting it nailed down and finalized.
Bringing in committee opinions too early is one of the fastest ways to wreck a draft and stifle your actual creative productivity.
There is more than one way to write, of course, but I never really know my characters until I've written them for a while. This mirrors real life, right? We don't understand people except by watching what they do in various situations and listening to them talk and seeing how sometimes their words and actions might align or conflict. Why should fictional people be any different?
So you're going to want to write that antagonist for a while to discover what they really sound like.
Go ahead and write the stereotypical anime villain; you can smooth off the excess later. Go ahead and put [evil threat] in brackets and come back when you know how he'll actually phrase it because you know more about him. Go ahead and write the scene knowing it's too weak because you can always crank up the stakes and tension in the next pass.
Above all, don't succumb to the pressure to get public approval on your first draft. First drafts are not for public approval. First drafts are not for the public or for approval. First drafts are assembling the pieces.
If you're out of your comfort zone because you're doing something new -- congratulations! -- then give yourself space to practice and experiment. You wouldn't call in a panel of judges to score a kid's first time on a bike, right? Why would you do that to yourself and your writing?
Have so much fun doing a new-to-you thing. :D
