Michael K. Eidson
Archmage
I just received feedback from a beta reader who has read my full ms for "The Dreams of Unborn Gods." In the feedback was a comment about there being so many twists and turns, it wasn't clear who the bad guy was until the end. I had to think about this for a moment. From my vantage point as a writer who has gone through three revisions of the story, and written several drafts of each revision, I of course knew exactly who the "bad guy" was the whole time. And because of that vantage point, it wasn't easy to see why the identity of the "bad guy" might be a mystery to a fresh reader of the tale.
But after some thought, maybe I see why. The story is told from the POVs of multiple characters, some of which aren't exactly friends with each other early on, but I consider them all protagonists. These POV characters early on have friends amongst the other characters, some of whom I consider antagonists. One of the POV characters considers a certain one of the antagonists as a friend all the way through the end of the story.
So I guess because of all the relationships between the cast of characters, some friendly and some not-so-friendly -- and some having love/hate relationships -- none of them clearly stood out as "the bad guy," until one of them did something at the end that the reader could look at and say, now that's the action of a "bad guy."
I've not read all of this beta reader's feedback yet. I'll consider asking a follow-up question. But I'm wondering what forum members here think. Do you think it would enhance or detract from the reader experience if it's not clear to the reader who the "bad guy" is until the end of the story? Might the story be even better if there's a clear "bad guy"? Or might the suspense of not being sure who the "bad guy" is during the story help pull the reader along? Have you ever had this kind of experience with a story you've written or read, and if so, how did it work for you?
But after some thought, maybe I see why. The story is told from the POVs of multiple characters, some of which aren't exactly friends with each other early on, but I consider them all protagonists. These POV characters early on have friends amongst the other characters, some of whom I consider antagonists. One of the POV characters considers a certain one of the antagonists as a friend all the way through the end of the story.
So I guess because of all the relationships between the cast of characters, some friendly and some not-so-friendly -- and some having love/hate relationships -- none of them clearly stood out as "the bad guy," until one of them did something at the end that the reader could look at and say, now that's the action of a "bad guy."
I've not read all of this beta reader's feedback yet. I'll consider asking a follow-up question. But I'm wondering what forum members here think. Do you think it would enhance or detract from the reader experience if it's not clear to the reader who the "bad guy" is until the end of the story? Might the story be even better if there's a clear "bad guy"? Or might the suspense of not being sure who the "bad guy" is during the story help pull the reader along? Have you ever had this kind of experience with a story you've written or read, and if so, how did it work for you?