Writing Challenge: Villains to Vanquish

Summary

Microcosm is hosting a writing challenge focused on creating compelling villain characters, inviting the community to submit their most intriguing antagonists for a collaborative and interactive storytelling experience.

Abstract

The "Writing Challenge: Villains to Vanquish" is an initiative by Microcosm that calls upon writers to craft well-rounded and complex villains. Participants are encouraged to submit a backstory and character sketch of 100-500 words, detailing their villain's motivations, strengths, and flaws. The challenge emphasizes the importance of creating a character with depth, capable of being a memorable antagonist throughout the year, not just for Halloween. The most popular or well-crafted submissions, as determined by community engagement, will be selected by October 6th and used as prompts for subsequent writing exercises. This interactive approach builds on previous challenges like "Heroes for Hire" and "Empty Worlds," which have fostered collaboration and even launched the career of authors such as Paul Mansfield. The villains created will be immortalized in an Official Microcosm Villains List and contribute to a ladder of challenges for new writers, particularly those participating in the "100 Story Challenge."

Opinions

Villains should be multifaceted, with a mix of prose and narrative points to give writers a solid foundation to expand upon.
A good villain is one who is not just evil but has a story arc with potential for growth or transformation, making them relatable or understandable.
The challenge encourages a broad interpretation of what makes a villain, from master manipulators to those who are simply in over their heads.
Interaction and collaboration within the writing community are key components of this challenge, with the best villains being determined by reader engagement.
The challenge is designed to be accessible and inspiring, with the potential for new writers to engage with the community and develop their skills.
The inclusion of a special offer for an AI service suggests a blend of traditional storytelling with modern technology to enhance the creative process.

Maybe your villain is a master manipulator.

Always two steps ahead, playing a long game that nobody else knows about. Patient, calculating and ready to take advantage of any situation.

A person who may enjoy watching others suffer. Or be just a hero from another perspective. Or perhaps from another culture.

Maybe they’ll do whatever it takes to get what they want. Because they're a person of action.

Your villain may be power hungry, charming, and charismatic, easily gaining the trust of those around them.

They could be intelligent and strategic, always one step ahead of their opponents. Or cold, calculating and utterly ruthless.

Or they're just a guy, standing in front of a girl, pissing their pants because he's not that confident hero.

And in 22 years, they'll have all the power and then you'll see.

You'll see!

Your villain could be anybody.

But make them someone of substance. Give them a story, flaws and strengths, give them an implied arc with a story waiting to happen.

Leave the possibilities there but open.

Write a damn good, bad guy.

We've offered challenges like this before, getting the community to collaborate by sharing their protagonists as Heroes for Hire or creating provocative settings to use as Empty Worlds.

That last one is where Paul Mansfield first shot to fame, so these challenges have a rich history.

But this time we want to make it more interactive. Even more collaborative. Because Villains are taking over next month.

Rules (updated 27th Sept)

Enter your villain by September 30th

You can do later entries, but you risk not getting enough claps to rank well.*

100–500 words of backstory, character sketch, texture and motivation. Enough to inspire any worthy writer to pull pen from a stone and rise to vanquish them.

Doesn't have to be all prose, can be a mix of points and prose. Give enough that a writer can take it and run with it. Although them asking questions if they're unsure will be encouraged with each prompt.*

We will select the most popular or infamous or genius by October 6th.

Use the tag "Villains to Vanquish"

Next month is Halloween. So you know, think about that, but also remember your villains gotta work the rest of the year, too.

Writing Challenge: Villains to Vanquish

Another challenge from your friends at Microcosm

Maybe your villain is a master manipulator.

Write a damn good, bad guy.

The very best four of your villains will be our prompts next month.

Rules (updated 27th Sept)

Each week in October

After October

Microcosm: Write With Us

A publication for readers and writers who love tiny stories with big hearts.

Updates Credits