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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/47704
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/47704
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

It's certainly possible, but it's not always easy to do in a way that doesn't feel forced. If you look at it from the perspective that "evil" is more of an attitude than a specific act you can show that the character might possess that attitude in various ways:

**Their reactions**

Have something happen that they react to in a way that an "evil" character would rather than a "good" one:

> Pete slipped, crying out in pain as he hit the ice hard, the snap of bone breaking sounded like a gunshot. Megan and Rob rushed immediately to the fallen boy. Sue, who had been walking a few steps behind Pete simply stepped around the small throng, "Enjoy your trip fatty?" she sneered. Then immediately let out a braying laugh at her own joke.

At this point Sue hasn't _done_ anything evil, she didn't push Pete over or anything - but most people are probably going to identify that not only not stopping to help someone in the group who is obviously hurt but actually mocking them means that Sue is probably **not** a good person. Later on you could have Sue actively do something "evil" and it would feel natural to the reader - you've already established that she isn't a hero.

**Their thoughts**

Evil people are going to _think_ about their evil deeds before they do them, so if your structure supports having them as a POV character, even if only for a brief glimpse you can show this:

> Steve felt the bile rise in his throat. They sickened him, _all_ of them, with their incessant chattering, and giggling. He slipped his hand into his satchel, feeling the cold, hard steel of the pistol, caressing it. _Soon_ he thought, _Soon_.

Again, our "evil" character hasn't actually done anything yet. But you can see that he's not only thinking about it but that he _intends_ to do it. You could now cut away from Steve's POV and have the plot do other things for a while _before_ having Evil Steve do his thing.

Original score: 0