Publishing your first book is like a Fourth-of-July fireworks finale fired from a starter’s pistol: a huge celebration of an enormous accomplishment that is just the start of the race. That’s how it was with my debut book, Urban Legend: Orphan. It was unreal and amazing; every step was uphill, but the view is worth it. I’ve learned a lot along the way and I want to share some of it along with what’s planned for attacking the next summit. But first some context for the biggest decision:

There has never been a better time to become a self-published author. It is incredible the amount of resources and opportunity available that weren’t around even two years ago, and who knows what this next year might bring. The options for distributing platforms are robust and numerous; however, there is one I’ll be unsubscribing from: KDP Select.

This is my personal choice. There is nothing inherently wrong with the platform, and I’d encourage new and aspiring authors to absolutely jump on board. At least at first.

KDP Select (Kindle Direct Publishing Select) is the same as the standard KDP with an added exclusivity clause: you’re not allowed to publish a title enrolled in KDP Select anywhere else. Again, this is fantastic for a new author because it streamlines the distribution with a few fun little bonuses, including Kindle Unlimited (KU) where readers can read your book for free and you get paid based on the page count.

But there is a risk. As of now, if someone else pirates your book and makes it available on another platform, or someone artificially inflates your page counts on KU (”nuking” is alarmingly cheap), then it’s possible you’ll get a notice from Amazon saying that you are in breach of contract and Amazon will be pulling your books. Just like that, no evidence that the author was at fault, just shut down.

This happened to Adam Dreece. (You can read his story here.) Recently, Amazon took his books down without warning and the appeals process was a mess leading to no satisfaction and possible loss of business. Sure, there are ways to game the system and authors have abused it. But the majority of authors, obviously, want to earn money legitimately. This is the equivalent of a product being stolen at a store and the manufacturer was held responsible for it. No, Amazon is the distributor and it is their responsibility to take care of it, and anything else is unacceptable.

Again, this is not really an issue for new authors. But it is something to consider for authors as they gain heat with their books. No system is perfect and what is a warm incubator for a budding author might strangle someone more established in the field.

So that’s where that puts me now. My KDP Select expires in less than a couple of weeks and I want to go out with a bang and get a running start up the next hill.

Because I’m hopping off KDP select, I’ll be putting the gears into motion to go wide. There are several markets to tap into, either directly or through a distribution service like Draft2Digital or Smashwords.

But the big thing happening is a sorta, semi-relaunch next week from February 13th though the 17th where my book Urban Legend will be free, the print version will be available, and I am doing a newsletter giveaway. Sign up here and you are automatically entered into a drawing for a bunch of fun stuffs! Find out the full details on my blog here.

Lastly, it is true what they say: you learn the most from your failures, and lemme tell ya I’ve failed SO many times. But I’d like to share some fruits of those failures. While the world of Urban Legend is an urban fantasy and incredibly fun to write, my focus is the characters. Over the five books of first cycle of Urban Legend, I’ll be building a large cast around the main character who will all eventually carry their own stories and it’s difficult making them unique. So in the process, I’ve been developing ways to bolster archetypes to make them stand out in my story, and hopefully against other works as well. Look for them over the next few months!

Every story needs a central character. Sure it can branch out, encompass dozens of characters, but there needs to be one identifiable person at the heart of the story, the reader's guide into the new world. They don’t have to be that for long, you might even kill them off early into the story (George R.R. Martin would be proud), but that singular perspective to orient the reader is essential. To keep the reader interested, it’s more than just being the “protagonist” because the plot demands it.

I think I've mentioned it before, but it is worth mentioning again that my preferred style of writing is multi-POV (point of view). While I don't get as hardcore as George R. R. Martin, in my series Urban Legend, I've got three distinct POVs going. Each subsequent installment will have three POVs, but switching out a few so by the end of Rylee's first school year at Artemis Academy there will have been six POV characters with varied levels of alliance and antagonism (not mutually exclusive in at least a couple cases). Writing each POV character requires me to fully flesh out those characters as I would any protagonist. While not all writing styles match mine, I think it is very important for writers to consider minor characters as assets and not afterthoughts.

From Uni-dimensional...
During my brief but not insignificant foray into screenwriting, I was taught to think about the major characters as "round" characters and minor characters as "flat" characters. The reason being, in screenplays there is limited real estate on the page so the focus needs to be the characters that matter. In the years since developing my writing, I can say with absolutely conviction that this unequivocally false; every character needs to be as "round" as the next. Viewers and readers have become more sophisticated in recent decades and uni-dimensional characters aren't going to cut it. The talking heads, linear love-interests, and the sycophant sidekicks now spark irritation and outrage as demand for realism is at an all time high. Dragons and cyborgs are fine, but the princess better be more than a "basic DiD" (Damsel in Distress). Even if the reader never actually sees the full complexity of a character, like the tavern owner in two pages with six lines of dialogue, they need to feel as if he was a real person, otherwise the whole sequence will be indeed "flat."

The “Plot-point” Character
One of the most pointless characters is the one who serves a single plot driving purpose and then becomes irrelevant. This is the "talking heads" whose sole purpose to to drive the Exposition Express right down the readers gullet, full steam ahead. Or the deus ex machina character who was maybe hanging around like loose garbage than at the end helps save the day in some small way. And of course there is the comic relief: the funny person who, at best, offers a few quips; or at worse, hinders the protagonist in contrived comedy to pad the conflict (nobody likes that guy). These kinds of characters pop up in all genres, and if poorly done enough can throw the reader out of the story with caricatures and not characters. A litmus test to see if such a character plays such a role, pluck them out entirely and see how intact the story remains. If the plot only needs a few minor plot holes to fill, you might want to consider dropping them OR perhaps spend some time around upping their significance by making them multi-dimensional.

The “Character-point” Character
These serve a bit more useful purpose, if nonetheless still limited in function. Character point characters tend to evoke or amplify certain emotions or traits in the protagonist to help them on their way. The love interest might only be there to be pretty and co-dependent (both guys and gals) and ultimately serve no ground-breaking plot-purpose. Or they could be that teacher who shows them the "Ways of the Whatever" and then either hangs around or drifts away because they got nothing else to do. Or, it could be that lovable scamp who ends up dying and drives the protagonist to go Super Saiyan or something and drives home the finale (or the next installment). While these roles have a bit more depth, they are still merely roles, a box the minor character is packaged in and shipped off. Instead of dropping these characters though, they sill have the framework to be potentially integral characters. To lift themselves off the page as a simple "LOL" to a "BFF".

While having a strong protagonist is the start of a good story, a powerful antagonist leads to the end of a great story. The hero or heroes can only be as effective as the villain they fight against; if the antagonist is lukewarm, a one-and-done sort of enemy, then it didn’t take much to defeat and the heroes didn’t stress their limits. Boring.

But a hero that comes across a seemingly indomitable force, faces insurmountable odds, and clashes with strength and power previously unknown, well that would be one hell of a read.

As of this writing, I don’t have a set up for the overall villain for Urban Legend. Darius is the antagonist, but he’s just a tip of the iceberg. There is a whole chain of command within the Vampirum, and they aren’t the only enemies out there.

Heroes and Villains are separated with only the thinnest of lines. Some are vague and disappear entirely. Let’s explore what those similar differences might be.

Hero in Their Own Mind
A “villain” rarely ever sees themselves as the bad guy in a situation. Normally they claim to be the victim, therefore justified in their actions. They think of themselves as working for the greater good so horrendous actions justify an overall positive result. Or maybe they don’t even really think about it, setting aside ethics and morals to justify the logic of their actions. And maybe, just maybe, the antagonist knows exactly what’s going on, and doesn’t need any justification.

That’s where the antagonist’s head is at, the justification. Everyone knows the difference between right and wrong, and everyone’s got a reason why something at the “wrong” end of the spectrum is okay given the right circumstances. Most of them are harmless and inconsequential, like eating that bit of cake when on a diet because it’s been a hard week. When running pyramid schemes to bilk people out of their hard-earned cash or hacking an ex’s computer to spy on them, that’s when it gets a bit unacceptable.

The following three sections outline potentially the most complex and engaging villain archetypes, each more nefarious than the last.

Fallen Angel
The most tragic expression is arguably “what might have been.” Wasted potential or opportunity, we’ve all been there in one way or another. And how much more tragic is it when a good man goes bad?

Let’s consider the baddie to end all baddies: Lucifer. He was once God’s right hand man, His Riker, his Hamilton, the best and first among angels. Then Lucifer decided that wasn’t enough, he wanted to call the shots, God disagreed, one thing led to another, and Lucifer with a third of the angels fell were cast out of heaven. It’s heartbreaking in that context, in a way.

Think of a character that you would NEVER in a million years consider corruptible or selfish enough to fall into evil. Imagine if Captain America went not rogue, but straight up evil. Or maybe Harry Potter, throwing in with the Dark Lord. Not all at once, because that’s not how it starts: First it’s a little bit of pride, then a little bit of self-righteousness, then a little rebellion. Then at last, there is that point of no return, that line in the sand, and they cross it. They are committed, no regrets, no wavering of their position, all their justifications are lined up and they are set to take action.

While tragic, these are perhaps the most destructive. Their path is borne of conflict and possibly they see themselves as the tragic hero, fighting against the establishment that has fallen. While pity for this kind of antagonist is expected, mercy is not an option. They will use whatever tools they can to survive, including preying on the sympathies of others.

Do not bargain with a Fallen Angel. Shoot on sight; Shoot to kill.

Anti-Villain
Who doesn’t love and anti-hero? That roguish scoundrel who plays outsides the rules of convention, but still has a heart of gold. Robin Hood is such a figure, fighting a corrupt false king and willing to live in the outskirts of society with his merry men if it means he can rob the rich and give to the poor.

Now let’s reverse that: Instead of a hero operating a bit like a villain, how about a villain who operates like a hero?

Imagine a mob boss, running the crime of a major metropolis. He runs guns, drugs, hookers, is ruthless with those whom cross him, and has major government and law enforcement officials on payroll. Scary right? It gets worse:

He defends the children; anyone caught abusing kids in any way just disappears. He doesn’t run a sex slave ring, prostitutes are well cared for with health benefits (one of his brothels even fronts as a fitness center). He doesn’t like collateral damage, he finds it a waste and unprofessional. Anyone can run any scam they want, as long as they register with him and it doesn’t conflict with his existing policies. Hell, he might even have a legit retirement plan for his people, the white-picket-fence kind not the cement-overcoat kind. This kind of antagonist would be really complex to get at.

John Marcone, a character from Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files, is such an antagonist. Ruthless and merciful, he is the best example of this kind of villain, the “civilized criminal”. How would a hero depose him without collapsing the whole thing and bring down chaos? The antagonist could even work more with the law than the protagonist might. And since the antagonist would fight to protect their interests, there could come a time the hero and the villain must team up to fight an even eviler evil.

The Anti-Villain is arguable the most insidious: bulletproof without even needing any kevlar. Proceed with caution.

The Greatest of These…
What is the most powerful emotion, the one that most changes the world? Hate and anger might lead to momentary action and conviction, but it is love that sustains a revolution. Love is what unifies us as a species, what lets us thrive, what drives us to explore our world and reach out to ones beyond it. It forges civilizations, builds communities, and binds together family. It is an extraordinary power and it's horrifying when it becomes a weapon.

Imagine someone grieves for the fate of a loved one, but that grief turns rancid and compels that person to do unspeakable deeds. Maybe the person loves from afar, but it wasn’t meant to be, so that twists into an obsession and that leads them down a dark path. Perhaps it isn’t even a person, but an idea like freedom, where they become so hyper-focused on that one specific outcome that they are blind to all the chaos that rains around them.

There is a quite a bit of overlap with this type of antagonist, the Fallen Angel, and Anti-Villain; they aren’t even mutually exclusive. But the main difference here is that the Antagonist is motivated by love. From that love there is purpose, and from that purpose comes that resolve. An antagonist who loves will be the last to break, the first to rise again, and is the absolute hardest to end.

When dealing with an antagonist who loves, be prepared to sacrifice all to defeat.

Final Legacy
Many more antagonist types float around than those mentioned above. The flavors of antagonism are a buffet, each can be tailored to the protagonist and readers taste (or distaste). But two things must remain true for an antagonist: the first is that they are the hero in their own story, and second, their legacy rings out beyond that story.

No hero or villain seeks to cast a modest shadow, they work to change the world as they think it should be. Just as the legends of heroes are remembered, so are the villains.

This element is the least identifiable: what makes a person, hero or otherwise, ring out beyond the pages and develop a mythos of their own? Fear is a good place to start, the fear so great they can’t even say the name aloud. Or perhaps the antagonist was a devastatingly brilliant tactician and was brought down only after hope was lost and at a ruinous price. Maybe the antagonist had a power that transcended the laws of physics, possibly he could simply speak and others would do his will without question. And it could be the antagonist believed so much, so fiercely, that the peoples of the worlds he lit afire felt compassion and loved him, even as they threw his body to the flames he had wrought.

I hope you found an applicable idea or two from this! Antagonists are people too, with their flaws and virtues, though the flaws tend to stand out a bit in comparison. Next time, I’ll tackle how to Bolster the Minor Characters to expand the story cast and give it a richer texture.

The character is what readers want to read about. The plot and setting are absolute essentials as well; just a story where just two people talk and nothing really happens was done by Plato and he ran that into the ground hard. Characters are what people relate to, their values and struggles, a voyeuristic and vicarious journey into another world through their eyes or by their side. This is why this series has to heavily focus on characters, they are what is remembered after the book is put back on the shelf. My own book, Urban Legend was born from characters and I hope resonates through the story.

Every character goes through a journey, the wills of nature, society, their fellows, and their own demons twist their path into near impassibility. Do they die, survive, or thrive? Do they break, bend, or bunker down to remain true to themselves? So many possibilities and the potential for heart-shattering and mind-blowing stories just on this. Both the Antagonist and Protagonist must find their own path, usually at the expense of the other.

Character Arcs - Dynamic
The typical arc for a character is Dynamic, where they change to adapt to the pressures of their path, for better or worse. This is the Luke Skywalker, whiny farm boy to Jedi Knight. Or Anakin Skywalker: from a slave with a heart of gold, to conflicted Jedi, to corrupted Sith. Both started out near to same, but experience and personal motivation drove them to make choices and become something different than they started out as. Except not really: better to say they became more of themselves than was required. Luke’s stubbornness became determination and will to end the emperor and save his father. Anakin's desire to save his loved ones from death became a thirst for vengeance at those who he deemed the cause of such deaths. People can change, though that is a longer journey than most might realize, and will usually do so in such a way that emphasizes their base temperament. Anyone familiar with Myers-Briggs understands no one really changes in the long run but instead becomes more balanced with their other traits. Or unbalanced as the case may be.

Character Arc - Static
The other type of arc for characters is to remain true to themselves through the whole ordeal. This is the Harry Potter/Lord Voldemort dynamic; despite the various trials and pains and schemes they both contrived and endured, the core of who they were remained largely untouched. Harry begins the series as a kind, caring, and brave child living under a cupboard and becomes a kind, caring, and brave young man who ends the most evil wizard of the modern age. In comparison, the Dark Lord starts as a cold, calculating and a friendless boy from the orphanage and dies a cold, calculating, and a friendless man with a barely a sliver of a soul left. While static development seems to be an oxymoron, theirs is an example of how it works. Granted, there are plenty more examples, especially with antagonists, where this is less ‘static’ and more ‘stagnant’ and the character fails to engage in a meaningful connection with the reader. But how much more compelling does that make Captain America or Forrest Gump?

Character Arcs - Minor Character
As mentioned in my last post, minor characters fill a secondary position in the story, but that is no excuse for them not to grow and develop. Consider Ygritte from A Clash of Kings (Game of Thrones series): she was a nothing wildling prisoner who ended up becoming a major catalyst for Jon Snow by being a damned powerful female character in her own right. While only hints of her past are revealed, she absolutely had a history and her influence in both the character and reader’s mind echo through the rest of the story. Now, not every author or reader wants to balance 17,912 character stories, but no matter how many or how few they are, each deserve significance. They might just start off as a well-meaning, but lacking sidekick/minion, but then grow as a character and become the next best thing to a protagonist themselves.

Character Arcs - Series
Within a well-crafted story, the character, no matter the hierarchy, has a clear journey: beginning, middle, and end. But that end might lead to another beginning, another story. Now, this is where things can get interesting, a character that not only grows from chapter to chapter but also book to book. A ‘static’ development might be a more episodic series, where the main protagonist remains resolutely the same even after each adventure. Crime, thriller, and the like are perfect mediums for this. While more dynamic development might require the character to become more and more: a shepherd, to a spy-in-training, to a captain of an army, to a fugitive, to heir of the realm, to leader of the realm; each book having that protagonist get caught up in more and more intrigue and more and more powerful enemies on a larger and larger scale. There would naturally have to be a stopping point, but that's where highly developed minor characters can take up the standard and forge their own stories.

Character Arcs - Relationships and Allegiances
Enemies and friends can potentially shift over time, or a dime. A solid ally can become a rival or worse over the course of a series, a single book, a single chapter, or even a single line of dialogue. Relationships between two complex characters bring the possibilities to exponentially complex results. There would be no real way to explore the minutia of this specific topic of character interconnections in any meaningful depth that wouldn’t involve a 400-page master’s thesis, except to say this: don’t skimp on relationships. Readers will be interested in a character, but they will be invested in their relationships. More than anything else, people respond to other people’s relationships. That’s why we care about who is dating who in school, at work, or in the celebrity magazines. We ‘ship’ characters, sometimes in odd or bizarre combinations, but we always want to see what’s next. Will the two lovebirds get together? Will the two siblings drift apart? Will two friends’ relationship be strained when one is promoted or elected over the other? Will the two people trying their darnedest to kill the other find a different way? Only you can tell that story, and we want to hear about it.