Anyone who has attended any of my Story Godmother workshops will know I am ever-soslightly excited about antagonists. Ever since I was small, I have been fascinated with ‘baddies’ and found them significantly more interesting than the ‘heroes’ that everyone else wanted to be in our playground games. I adored being the Wicked Witch of the West, or Mrs Hannigan. They were gifts of characters to explore. As the submission window for the Writing Magazine Children’s Book Prize is open, it’s the perfect time to consider chapter book antagonists. They are tremendously good fun to explore. Here are five top tips to creating an outstanding baddie for young readers:
1 CHOOSE WISELY
Why does this particular antagonist appear in this particular story? What is it about this character which pits them perfectly against the protagonist? How do their values, attitudes, experiences and approaches perfectly conflict with those of the protagonist? How
