The Clearing author commentary continues this week with a look at Gregory Sullivan. SPOILER WARNING is in effect, starting right now! Ready? Excellent. Let’s take a look at one of the main baddies in Season One. (see how important that spoiler warning was?)
Conception of a villain
I’m big on plotting these days. I like to map things out pretty far in advance because I feel like it makes for a much better story in the end. That wasn’t always the case.
Did I outline DSA Season One? Absolutely.
Did I do it ahead of time before diving into The Clearing? Nope. Definitely not.
The truth was, I wasn’t sure DSA would work as a series. My confidence in the premise and the longevity of the tale didn’t measure up until after The Clearing was written and I was deep into Promethean. This was another reason why the opening installment required so many rewrites after the fact. (SO MANY!)
Greg Sullivan was one particular spot of trouble for me.
In the initial draft, Sullivan was barely even mentioned. He showed up in a meeting with Metcalf, which is still in the book but totally different than it was, and that was it. One scene, talking about the need for more field agents and how Metcalf hates bureaucracy, and then the sweater vest man was gone for the rest of the book.
What changed?
As the rest of the season came together, I realized Sullivan was a focal point for the series. Here was a man looking to create his own legacy in life, and will do anything to make sure the world remembers his name.
The initial drafts for Season One don’t put Sullivan in the spotlight until Book 4 as anything other than the standard manipulative bureaucrat. That didn’t work when looking at the season as a whole. There was a suddenness to the shift that felt disingenuous and unearned.
So I went back to the drawing board. Knowing what was to come helped, so I took my time to weave in Sullivan’s manipulations throughout the season. From the very start there is no question of who this man is.
The second he calls in General Adams during the Bellbrook affair, it is clear Sullivan is a threat to our heroes.
The rise of Greg Sullivan
Every time Sullivan showed up was an opportunity to build his motivation. I didn’t want a one-note villain. Sullivan needed some pathos, and a reason to completely undermine Metcalf’s efforts.
The legacy aspect was there from the start. It just came too late in the season to mean anything. So by layering in his actions helped establish him better so that when the turn comes in Broken Loyalties, readers know exactly who this guy has always been.
Up Next: The Climax
