It’s a question philosophers have been asking since philosophizing became a thing: why does evil exist? And maybe more importantly, why do humans seem to love a good villain so much? Later this spring, BookCon plans to get us one step closer to answering these questions with a panel featuring some of our favorite authors!
“The Big Bad Theory: Tropes and Archetypes of Evil in Science Fiction and Fantasy” will be exploring the relationship between heroes and villains in SFF:
Any author can tell you that conflict is key to a good story, and there’s no one readers love to hate more than a compelling antagonist. But in Sci-Fi and Fantasy, the “big bad” character can go to all new levels of evilness and depravity—they can be a monstrous zombie, a power-mad tyrant with magical powers, etc. etc. The interesting bit is how authors make a fantastic take on an antagonist feel real—and scary. Let’s face it, Frodo wouldn’t be a hero if it weren’t for Sauron, and Luke Skywalker is nothing without Darth Vader.
The panel will feature Ilana Myer, author of Last Song Before Night; Michael Buckley, author of The Sisters Grimm; David Wellington, author of Positive; Scott Westerfeld, author of Afterworlds; and Tor.com contributor Charlie Jane Anders, whose book All the Birds in the Sky will be forthcoming later this year.
If you’re going to BookCon, you can check out the panel on Sunday, May 31, 2015 from 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM in Panel Room 1A06.
