Villains and Scoundrels

[justine_currie]

Libby Drew wrote recently about villains, and whether or not they have to have a redeeming quality. Here's a related (and timely) article on the subject of villains and how to craft a better one.

From Writers' Digest - 3 Techniques For Crafting a Better Villain:

CREATE A VILLAIN WORTH PURSUING
You can’t just throw all your suspects’ names into a bowl and pick one to be your villain. For your novel to work, the villain must be special.

So ... what do you think makes a good villain?