What are real names that are good for villains? I can't seem to find any type of pattern in books and movies that make the name good. I've read stories where the villain is named Valentine, and he was memorable and well written. On the other hand, I've seen a show where the villain is named Garcia Flynn, which is just a normal name, but is so villainous. Then, somehow there a criminal names like Al Capone. I have no idea why that one is so good, it is, but the guy's name is just Al. Basically, I have no idea what to do here.
I think that a well-written, memorable villain makes the name, not vice versa. Any name will do. It's not that important.
I would say Benjamin Linus, but that is already taken from the tv show lost. My favorite bad guy of all time, he always had a plan and he never monologues. He was ruthless only by necessity or personal gain. Otherwise he was always a charming fellow with nice things to say. I would say personally that a villains name doesn't need to be iconic to be good. If in your story you dive deep and let the bad guys character shine through then any name could eventually become, infamous. To the flip side of that I would say from the many authors I have read, that if you create an original character name that leaps off the page in epic fashion. By merit of the characters name alone, then you my friend. Are golden. For instance one of my favorite writers Simon r. Green's "From the Nightside series" his character names have always been inspiring to me. If I had his skill at naming convention, my oh my the possibilities. To name a few of his characters names, Razor Eddie punk god of the straight razor, Shotgun Suzie "my personal favorite", Dead Boy, Count Video, Jessica Sorrow, Larry Oblivion, Sandra Chance... the list goes on and on. I hope this helps, good luck in your quest.
Villains are the funnest to name, in my opinion. I don't think you need to overthink the name too much, though. A character defines their name, not the other way around. For example, a fantasy canon I'm co-writing has two main villains. One, a king, is named Volagio. The second guy's name is Kin. Two pretty different styles of names but they both fit the bad guys. So you can have a longer, complex name or a short simple one. Just keep mindstorming and looking at names. If you really want a long, elegant name try a "Royal Name" generator on Google or something and shift through results for inspiration? That'd be my general advice
I agree with @izzybot . The name itself is relatively unimportant. How you write the character, the dialogue, and of course the plot are far more important. Personally, I dislike being distracted by unusual names in stories. Make sure names of both villains and “good guys” fit the era and culture they represent. Write the story first. You can easilychange names later using find and replace (in Word).
"Hello, I am Richard. My friends call me Dick. Anywho, I will be the psychotic SOB that will be bending your mind, torturing your friends, and being an overall pain in the ass for you. My hobbies include brooding, scheming, yelling at my minions, and making shrinky dinks. I have 5 goldfish all named Simon, and I am looking at getting into a relationship with that vixen who is waiting to be interveiwed for the position of evil villain. (Whispers) Between you and me, I hope she is a freak in the sack. Gotta have a bit of fun you know."
I know its hard in this day and age, but I think it would be best if we tried to keep politics out of questions like these. They tend to more often than not spark pointless arguments.
I think that unless you're designing a retro comic book, the name of your 'villain' is neither here nor there. It's the way you portray him or her that makes him or her a villain/antagonist. Just pick a name, and get the story written. When you look at people in history who are considered 'bad' ...how many of them had 'villain' names from birth? Names like Hitler, Vlad the Impaler, Judas, etc, have 'bad' connotations today because of what they did then. Even Vlad the Impaler wasn't born with that name. If you choose a cartoon-y villain name for your antagonist, it's going to be difficult to see the story as anything but a cartoon.
As aforementioned, what you call your character is rather irrelevant (to some extent - see end of line), instead it is the how and the why. Mind you, there are such things as ridiculous names, for instance: "Ignatius Villainous Heinous the IV" will never be taken seriously and it makes me laugh whenever I read it. So, I think it does matter what you call your character - to some extent. Personnally, I use meanings behind the names - and the general 'feel' of the name to come up with character (or base names thereof). Ivan Kharkarov, for instance, to me sound more like a former soviet criminal or serial killer. However, Charles Babbington, sounds either like some nerdy kid at school or a pretentious snob. But that's just me though. If i am really out of ideas, I resort to some name-generators. Then sometimes spark ideas or make you think. There's plenty available online and a quick google search will reveal them.
I agree that names don't matter too much as long as you're happy with whatever it is. If it sounds a little sinister too, great, but too much and your villain will be too obvious. One trick used sometimes is including the word "Mal" in an evil character's name - so sometimes if there's a character called Malcolm or (a little less subtle) Maleficent (okay, a LOT less subtle) then you're apparently onto a winner. However this could also be one of those tricks that you should probably steer clear of, who knows? And the prize for least helpful comment goes to...
Or Hillary Clinton Edit: Uh, there is a thread for this sort of toxicity, you can take it over there and leave the rest of the forum Political and Religion free.
I got it! Combination: Nancy Clinton or Hillary Pelosi. LOL Or if you really want to piss everybody off! Donald Clinton or Hillary Trump! Edit: actually, I'm going to keep Hillary Trump as my own character! I'm using for satire LOL
I just remembered Sarah Palin. Nothing says evil like an Alaskan that talks like a Minnesotan, doncha ya know.
Lol, what she be one of those ironic villains that don't know their villain? Or the type of villain that looks like a complete moron but in actuality is the Evil Genius!
