Do you agonise over the ending?

[dontcallme82]

I started my series a few months ago and unfortunately had to take a break. I am back now so looking to finish my series soon.

This is my first story and it's likely to be my only one. Mostly because I am a limited writer and don't really have follow up story ideas.

I started my series with a general plan and thought I knew how it would end. But now I feel my original ending plan is a bit too mean-spirited.

I kind of want my characters to have a level of a happy ending, which definitely wasn't the original plan.

I haven't decided yet exactly how the story will end.

Does anyone else here start a story then agonise over the direction to go with it?

 

[NotWise]

Does anyone else here start a story then agonise over the direction to go with it?

I'm sure some people do. I try to keep the ending in mind, and write to that end.

Your story will probably be received better if it has a happy ending, or at least a sentimental ending.

 

[MColton84]

Happy ending.

I tend to agonize over most of my endings. I have a plan, I create a detailed outline, and then I grow attached to my characters or become overly involved with the story. More often than not, with the intended conclusion. However, you have got to trust your instincts when writing. You end it how ever you see fit. Happy ending or kill them all in a freak gasoline fighting accident, it's your story.

 

[KeithD]

I don't start writing until there's a possible ending in my mind. That may not be the ending that results, but it's one of the elements that has to be there before I consider it a story to be written. The upside is that I don't start writing stories that don't get finished.

 

[AlexBailey]

Happy ending or kill them all in a freak gasoline fighting accident, it's your story.

Zoolander reference?


I've been agonizing over a series ending that I've already written but haven't posted yet. My problem is having lots of small story arcs that I want to tidy up, but I'm having trouble including them all without making the end drag on too long. I've got a tidy erotic epilogue but it's taking me a while to sort out what is necessary from what is fluff in the last few pages.

I once followed an ambitious 12 book epic series only to find that the final book seemed rushed and left enormous holes in the plot. I was very disappointed and went online to find a forum to vent, only to find that the author was on his death bed. I later found a very touching story of how he had spent his last months working on the final book and took great pains to finish as well as he had. God I felt like a dick.

I was also very disappointed with the final books of Jean M Auel's series that began with 'The Clan Of The Cave Bear'. General reader opinion is that she must have lost her marbles before publishing the last book. Each chapter restates huge swaths of backstory, making it the most tedious read ever.

...and then there's Christopher Paoloini's 'Eragon' trilogy -- in four parts. Part one and two were good, three became annoying and four pissed me off. The author could have easily cut it down and ended it in a much more enjoyable way, but it seemed like he was doing everything he could to avoid anything satisfying.

 

[SimonDoom]

This doesn't really happen with me because I figure out the ending very early in the process. I write my story with an ending in mind. I don't ever write 90% of the story and then think "How am I going to end this?" Most of the time I fast forward and write the ending before I've written more than 20% of my story.

 

[dontcallme82]

I'm sure some people do. I try to keep the ending in mind, and write to that end.

Your story will probably be received better if it has a happy ending, or at least a sentimental ending.

This is it really. It's my first story and I ended up getting a little attached to the characters.

One character in particular was supposed to be much more dominant, bordering on sadistic but I have actually changed her character as I started writing her rather than thinking about her.

Given this character change the depressing ending won't work as well.

 

[AlinaX]

1. A good ending is more important than a happy ending.
2. Some form of resolution is good, but don't feel you need to tie off all the loose ends.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

This doesn't really happen with me because I figure out the ending very early in the process. I write my story with an ending in mind. I don't ever write 90% of the story and then think "How am I going to end this?" Most of the time I fast forward and write the ending before I've written more than 20% of my story.

I’m with Simon. Half the time, the ending has already written itself and the main problem is how to join it to the rest.

 

[dontcallme82]

1. A good ending is more important than a happy ending.
2. Some form of resolution is good, but don't feel you need to tie off all the loose ends.

Completely agree with point 1. My story has turned out to be less sadistic than I thought. As a result my original planned ending won't work.

I plan to end the story with unanswered questions. Definitely won't be making it a completely clean ending.

 

[yibala2]

I started my series a few months ago and unfortunately had to take a break. I am back now so looking to finish my series soon.

This is my first story and it's likely to be my only one. Mostly because I am a limited writer and don't really have follow up story ideas.

I started my series with a general plan and thought I knew how it would end. But now I feel my original ending plan is a bit too mean-spirited.

I kind of want my characters to have a level of a happy ending, which definitely wasn't the original plan.

I haven't decided yet exactly how the story will end.

Does anyone else here start a story then agonise over the direction to go with it?

Yes, but usually my agonizing comes about because of the distance between the ending I first intended and the ending that seems appropriate once much of the story is written. That sounds like your experience as well.

I would suggest being true to your characters as you've written them. If it doesn't make sense for them to act a certain way (like your character who turned out less sadistic than planned) then don't force it to get a prescribed ending. Readers notice when characters act in unbelievable ways, or endings seem contrived.

Similarly, you probably have a better sense of the tone of your story now than when you started. If the ending doesn't match the tone you've created, it might end up shocking or disappointing readers who thought you were building up to something different.

-Yib

 

[dontcallme82]

Yes, but usually my agonizing comes about because of the distance between the ending I first intended and the ending that seems appropriate once much of the story is written. That sounds like your experience as well.

I would suggest being true to your characters as you've written them. If it doesn't make sense for them to act a certain way (like your character who turned out less sadistic than planned) then don't force it to get a prescribed ending. Readers notice when characters act in unbelievable ways, or endings seem contrived.

Similarly, you probably have a better sense of the tone of your story now than when you started. If the ending doesn't match the tone you've created, it might end up shocking or disappointing readers who thought you were building up to something different.

-Yib

Thanks Yib.

Agree with every point.

 

[Rustyoznail]

To Yib's point about tone.

You're not the first person to have this issue in any medium. Ever watched the original "Bladerunner"? Dark, brooding, constantly raining. Then Decker and Rachel drove off into a glorious sunset for their HEA. I was "WTF?" It didn't make sense.

Don't change your ending if it doesn't fit the story.

 

[Voboy]

No.

Occasionally, I start out with an ending in mind. If not, the characters ALWAYS tell me how the story should end, normally before I'm much more than halfway through writing it.

 

[BarracudaSwordfish]

I usually have the beginning and the end pretty well nailed when I start.

The middle bit?

Erm, well...

 

[MetaBob]

I kind of want my characters to have a level of a happy ending, which definitely wasn't the original plan.

I haven't decided yet exactly how the story will end.

Does anyone else here start a story then agonise over the direction to go with it?

I responded to a similar question three days ago. Honestly, once I get to a certain point I let my characters write their own ending, which is often better than the one I started with in mind. In my most recent piece the group I'd originally thought of as the evil military-corporate antagonists are now somehow morphing into a vehicle for good, which to me seems much more sustainable and still leads to an ending that's relatively happy while also better accommodating the piece's mythological/historical basis.

 

[mfan2112]

I responded to a similar question three days ago. Honestly, once I get to a certain point I let my characters write their own ending, which is often better than the one I started with in mind. In my most recent piece the group I'd originally thought of as the evil military-corporate antagonists are now somehow morphing into a vehicle for good, which to me seems much more sustainable and still leads to an ending that's relatively happy while also better accommodating the piece's mythological/historical basis.

I have had a character tell me "mfan you stupid wanker, that is not what I would do." And then I have to go do a rewrite....

 

[ElectricBlue]

To Yib's point about tone.

You're not the first person to have this issue in any medium. Ever watched the original "Bladerunner"? Dark, brooding, constantly raining. Then Decker and Rachel drove off into a glorious sunset for their HEA. I was "WTF?" It didn't make sense.

Don't change your ending if it doesn't fit the story.

You need to see The Director's Cut - Ridley Scott got rid of that ending and got rid of the voice over narration. Makes the ending much more ambiguous - was Deckard a replicant?

The HEA footage, by the way, was courtesy of Stanley Kubrick - 17,000 feet of film from the opening scenes of The Shining (but with Jack, Wendy and Danny in the VW not shown, obviously) given to Scott when the studio said, "Give us a happy ending."

 

[Rustyoznail]

You need to see The Director's Cut - Ridley Scott got rid of that ending and got rid of the voice over narration. Makes the ending much more ambiguous - was Deckard a replicant?

The HEA footage, by the way, was courtesy of Stanley Kubrick - 17,000 feet of film from the opening scenes of The Shining (but with Jack, Wendy and Danny in the VW not shown, obviously) given to Scott when the studio said, "Give us a happy ending."

Yeah, that's the point. Don't force a HEA. People will notice. The director's cut made much more sense in the context of the entire movie.

 

[vanmyers86]

For me, it depends on the story. For my novella, So Many Kinds of Love, I agonized like crazy, as my original concept called for Layla to die and by the end of the piece, I was so fond of her that I really didn't want to kill her off. I even spent a couple of weeks avoiding that story because I knew it was coming and I didn't want to do it. And when I finally buckled down to write that scene, it refused to come, so I wrote a different ending. Still logical, I think, but different. And I am glad I wrote it the way I did.

Generally, though, I write HEAs, so endings are not such an issue. With that story, though, I wanted to get out of my comfort zone and stretch my wings.

 

[SamScribble]

You need to see The Director's Cut - Ridley Scott got rid of that ending and got rid of the voice over narration. Makes the ending much more ambiguous - was Deckard a replicant?

My memory is not what it once was. I don't really remember the original Blade Runner, just The Director's Cut.

 

[NotWise]

Generally, though, I write HEAs, so endings are not such an issue. With that story, though, I wanted to get out of my comfort zone and stretch my wings.

Write a tragedy. Don't make it a bad ending. Make it an epic ending.

A tragedy can have an emotional impact that's more complex than any HEA, and just as big. If it's going to be a tragedy then you have to know it from the beginning. A tacked-on ending isn't going to make anyone happy.

I've spent a lot of time here promoting The Third Ring. Tragedies don't have to be downers. They can be affirmations.

 

[mletrout]

I usually write the ending, at least mentally, the same time I’m writing the beginning. I mean, I’m always looking to make a circle. I want the ending to payoff whatever the hook is that I use to start the story. A lot of times I have a “punchline”, for lack of a better word, that I intend to end the story with and that informs the beginning.

Other times, with the more stream of consciousness stories that I love, I’ll find during the end of day proof that I wrote through the ending. I’ll be rereading what I wrote, editing and proofing as I go, and all of a sudden see the proper ending, even though I might have another two or three thousand words that I end up tossing because they’re superfluous.

But agonize over the ending, no. Never done that. If I ever get stuck in a scene, my favorite trick is to make a telephone ring. I don’t know why it’s ringing, but I’m glad it is.

 

[ElectricBlue]

My memory is not what it once was. I don't really remember the original Blade Runner, just The Director's Cut.

Possibly because I'm a sci-fi movie nut and you're considerably more sensible than I .

 

[ChasPHX]

I usually write the ending, at least mentally, the same time I’m writing the beginning. I mean, I’m always looking to make a circle. I want the ending to payoff whatever the hook is that I use to start the story. A lot of times I have a “punchline”, for lack of a better word, that I intend to end the story with and that informs the beginning.

Yes. I need to read your stories! I find that with short stories in particular, the circular format where the ending is hinted at or even blatantly pointed to at the beginning are very satisfying to read (and write!). I also use the word "punchline," but hesitantly.

Someone might point out, "But isn't that just traditional story structure, where the hero starts with a goal, hits a few obstacles, then overcomes those obstacles to achieve the goal in the end?" The fact that the story starts and ends with the hero's goal makes it circular.

That's strue, but I would say that short stories can get away without that traditional goal/obstacle/goal structure and still be excellent, and they can be most excellent if they "punch" in the circular fashion you described.

Having said that, for me, I'm not usually aware of how my stories will end when I'm writing the beginning. I tend to get close to the end before discovering how it should play out, and then I go back and revise the beginning to make sure the story is appropriately "set up" to deliver such an ending.