What Makes a Character Dangerous and How I Use It in The Puppet King
Hello, dear readers,
One of my favorite things to write has always been dangerous characters. There is something incredibly fascinating about exploring all the layers of human nature and asking the question: what makes a person cross the line?
But a dangerous character isn't necessarily a villain.
In fact, in my novel The Puppet King, I wanted to explore different kinds of danger and the many ways a person can become frightening.
The villain of my story, Harold, is dangerous not because he is the strongest person in the room. In fact, he is probably the furthest thing from physically powerful. The danger surrounding him comes from the power he holds.
Power and a lack of morality.
That combination created some of the darkest, coldest, and most brutal scenes I have ever written. Sometimes I genuinely scare myself with my own imagination. Harold was built around one simple question:
How far would a person go to hold on to power?
At first glance, it seems like a simple ambition, but it reveals itself in countless different ways.
I dressed him in white. Always white. So that any blood would be visible on his clothes. And often there wasn't any.
Why?
Because Harold always had other people willing to dirty their hands for him. That's what made him frightening. Not physical strength. But his willingness to do whatever was necessary to secure his position, and the way he was using other people like pawns.
My protagonist, Alistair, is dangerous in a completely different way. The power I gave him is something he was never prepared for. Something he cannot control. Something he doesn't even want. His magic is destruction.
And no matter how sarcastic, carefree, and rebellious he appears on the surface, every loss wounds him deeply. Every broken thing feels personal. The lack of control terrifies him more than anything else. And when it becomes too late to stop the consequences of his own actions, he destroys things that will haunt him for the rest of his life. In his attempt to save everyone else, he slowly begins to destroy himself.
And then there is Tamara, my female protagonist and Alistair's love interest. Tamara is dangerous for an entirely different reason. She is cold-headed. Rational. And driven entirely by love. Which becomes a surprisingly dangerous combination when that love stands in the way of kingdoms, armies, and political interests. People die because of her decisions. People suffer. But in her mind, the cost is justified.
And the power she possesses makes her even more terrifying. She can break the human mind and leave behind nothing but an empty shell. The combination of a person with a clear mission and immense power is one of the most dangerous combinations I can imagine.
And of course, we can't talk about danger without mentioning the world of the novel itself. Because it is dangerous too. It is a world where people trade power the same way they trade bread.A world where trust is rare. A world where a single mistake can cost you everything. And if you let your guard down for even a moment, someone will be ready to take advantage of it.
In the end, my book explores many different forms of danger, but they all have one thing in common.
Motivation. For me, that is the foundation of every dangerous character. Give someone a strong enough reason. Give them the means to achieve their goal. And suddenly you no longer have just a character. You have a person who is willing to do anything to protect what they believe matters most.
And that will always be far more frightening than any monster.
If you’d like to follow the journey of the book I am writing and see how it’s coming together, you can find more here:
But if you want to, you can see more about my work as a ghostwriter here:
Comments