From attending various writing workshops, I’ve picked up the following tips in regards to creating villains:

1. Give the villain his own GMC, i.e. goal, motivation, & conflict.

2. Allow him to care about something to show his humanity.

3. Have a "good" villain as well as a "bad" villain, i.e. an official who obstructs the hero’s efforts.

4. The stronger the villain, the more stalwart the hero must be to defeat him.

5. The villain may have a twisted view of the universe. In other words, he doesn’t see himself as being evil.

It’s not easy following these dictates. As with anything we learn, a writer can pick and choose what to use during each endeavor.

How does this apply to my current WIP? This brilliant idea came to me while I was walking my dog: Why not get the Feds on my hero’s tail? That would up the ante. I’d already written a scene that would be cause for police involvement. Let’s drag the heroine into it and have the cops put the heat on her. As for the real bad guy, the villainous female in the story keeps nagging me to share her viewpoint. "Let me talk," she whispers into my ear.

It would be handy to know what the bad guys are thinking. That means inserting extra scenes into the first two hundred pages I’ve already completed. Okay, I’ll work on it.  But my daily page grind comes first. The story must move forward before I’ll move back.

What will I say in those additional scenes? First, I have to figure out the political hierarchy of the evildoer’s organization. This involves more world building and more research into Norse mythology on which my story is based. As for my most pressing question–What’s the difference between trolls, elves, and dwarves/dwarfs?--I’ll let you read about it when the time comes.

Hmmm.. mixed feelings about the bad guys' POV. That changes it from a 'mystery' for me. I hate to know anything my protagonists don't know. Of course, the market's all about suspense these days, which makes the more than 2 POV approach (romance requiring that h/h POV convention) a necessity. Doesn't mean I'm going to do it unless I'm dragged, kicking and screaming into the fray. I've been reading Daphne contest entries, and some of them have one or two short scenes -- maybe a page or two -- from the villain's POV and it doesn't add anything for me.

I want to see the detectives or whoever solve the case like in 'real life' where they can't know what's going on unless someone tells them or they're on the spot.

Terry, I agree with you if it's a mystery. Suspense novels often have the villain's VP. Mine is urban fantasy so anything goes. I've decided to complete the story without adding this in for now and see what my word count is at that point.