Does it always have to have a happy ending?

[wws_wws]

When two characters with all the conflicts in the world suddenly come together in the end, there's an element of satisfaction for the reader. Yet, the most beloved lovers in literature often do not get their happy ending. And works of fiction ought to, at times, reflect life. No?

 

[oggbashan]

It is up to the author to choose how the story ends.

Fiction is under no compulsion to reflect real life. It should be believable in context, but most readers are capable of suppressing disbelief if the story is good enough.

The standard answer to your question is: "If it works, it's good.".

 

[Edward Teach]

Generally, if a story doesn't have a happy ending, the scores will be low.

 

[sr71plt]

No, it doesn't have to have a happy ending.

 

[glynndah]

No. *%

 

[GriffyD_Boy]

No, but you always want to be careful with unhappy endings. The goal is still, no matter the ending, to have the reader walk away feeling satisfied with the experience. A bad unhappy ending that doesn't fit the story can often times be worse than a bad happy ending that doesn't fit the story.

 

[PTWaters1]

For me, if is it truly an ending to a story (be that a one-off or a series), then I will use a sad ending only if there is a positive context with which it can be placed. Stories that end with a death that as part of a redemption or as an act of love are common approaches to "a bad ending".

I've used this in other things I've written and while it does evoke quite a bit of emotion, it leaves the reader drained and often unwilling to read the story again unless it is downright epic. Because of this, I tend to stick with happy endings or at least endings that leave the reader wanting more.

 

[sr71plt]

The goal is still, no matter the ending, to have the reader walk away feeling satisfied with the experience.

Sorry, that's just your opinion, not an axiom of writing--and an unnecessarily limiting one on the creativity of writer and reader alike. Try telling that to Shirley Jackson ("The Lottery") and her readers.

Yes, if you want to score well at Lit., as has already been noted, then you are best with happy endings, but if that goes against your grain for what you are writing in a story, you are making yourself a prostitute.

 

[PennLady]

No, it does not have to be a happy ending. I think that the *correct* ending for the characters/plot is more important than whether it's a happy one. The ending should make sense given what's come before.

 

[SikFuk]

The only time you really need a happy ending is when it's a massage.

 

[FantasyXY]

I generally despise writing happy endings. I prefer my stories to end with an oddity that shows how life goes on.

For example, I wrote a story about a woman that had an exceptionally intense sexual experience, even though having this experience put the final nail in the coffin on her already troubled marriage. Throughout the story this woman was emphatic about not masturbating. The oddity at the end was that even though she was now divorced, her life went on, and the intensity of her sexual experience made her masturbate wildly every time she thought of what had happened.

My attitude is pretty much the same when reading stories. Whenever I read a story that ends in sunshine and butterflies I feel cheated and lied to. I guess I like my endings to be a little bit more profound, or at least a bit of a surprise.

Someone on this thread noted that happy endings get votes, and I have also noticed this. It's a good thing I don't write for votes.

 

[nicecthulhu]

No, happy endings are not mandatory.
Just as with life, sometimes things just go to Hell in a handbasket. And sometimes beloved characters end up dead, or fighting, or with the wrong person, or kidnapped by aliens, or...
Besides, you have to mix it up a little for your readers. Do you want to read or watch fiction where you know every time there's going to be a happily ever after? I'm guessing sometimes yes, sometimes no.
Then again, some want predictable fiction...

 

[GriffyD_Boy]

Sorry, that's just your opinion, not an axiom of writing--and an unnecessarily limiting one on the creativity of writer and reader alike. Try telling that to Shirley Jackson ("The Lottery") and her readers.

Yes, if you want to score well at Lit., as has already been noted, then you are best with happy endings, but if that goes against your grain for what you are writing in a story, you are making yourself a prostitute.

You don't want people to feel like they've wasted their time reading what you've written.

That's what my point was. Whether they liked it or not, you do want people to feel like there was a point in taking the time to read what you've put out there.

 

[GriffyD_Boy]

No, it does not have to be a happy ending. I think that the *correct* ending for the characters/plot is more important than whether it's a happy one. The ending should make sense given what's come before.

Exactly.

 

[SikFuk]

I think the goal of art is to move the viewer - inspire an emotional reaction. Did Romeo and Juliet have a happy ending? Titanic? Personally, I like a twist ending ala old Seinfeld shows where all the seemingly loose ends get tied up in the last scene. That's why stroke stories don't interest me at all. Where's the tension? Where's the payoff if you know they're going to screw? If they screw and then part forever, that's interesting. I want to think about a story long after I've read it. Happy or sad, if there's no payoff, there's no story.

 

[sr71plt]

You don't want people to feel like they've wasted their time reading what you've written.

That's what my point was. Whether they liked it or not, you do want people to feel like there was a point in taking the time to read what you've put out there.

Well, no, I don't even think about that. I do think that I don't want to waste my time having written it--that it doesn't work for me.

Are you going to keep coming up with "have tos" like this? Because there really aren't any such have tos like you're tossing out on what an author chooses to do in writing--or in submitting here.

 

[sr71plt]

I think the goal of art is to move the viewer - inspire an emotional reaction.

Not really. For many the goal of moving themselves, the artist, is quite enough. (Or even, as Pollack once said to clean out all the cans piling up with just a little bit of paint in them).

You people keep asserting goals for other people. It just doesn't happen.

 

[lovecraft68]

Depends on your motive. If you are writing the story you truly want to write and its not a happy ending then go for it, some will like it, some won't, but if its what you wanted, that should be enough.

Now if you are motivated by score of comments or overall reader happiness then a happy ending will be less approved of than a happy one.

In "Every Dog Has its Day." MY ending was going to be pretty bad for both main male characters, then I listened to my wife who was very vested in the story and caved and only took it half way and left one of them alive to look like he was going to live happily ever after with the twisted killer he was in love with.

The story did pretty well here, but every time I see it I get annoyed, its the only time I have ever backed off my vision and I am not happy I did. The print version will have the true ending.

 

[DirtyAllie]

If the ending is sad, but fitting I still enjoy the story, maybe I would have liked happier better, but if it moves me then it was a success.

The unhappy endings I don't like are the ones where it seems contrived, as if the author is saying "look how cruel I can be to you" if I get that vibe, like its a deliberate effort to be sad or dark, then I won't enjoy it. It's why I grew weary of Game of Thrones, sure it was shocking and refreshing for awhile that "no one is safe" attitude, but it has now devolved into "okay, we need to upset people again who can we torture, rape kill," and I've now lost interest.

 

[Katiecat]

For me, it kind of depends on the genre, and my mood. Like with movies, if I'm feeling down, I don't want to watch or read something depressing or tragic; I'm more likely to choose a comedy or a romance that i know has a happy ending. Sometimes a romance is better if there is a tragic ending (like Romeo and Juliet, as SikFuk mentioned). It's not uncommon for some stories to have uncertain or open endings, especially in sci-fi or horror. I love short stories with a twist at the end, whether on film or in print: Twilight Zone, Outer Limits, Night Gallery, although that one was sometimes too intense for me. One of my favorite short story collections is Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected. Can't say that any of those stories really have happy endings, but all of the endings are satisfying.

 

[GriffyD_Boy]

Well, no, I don't even think about that. I do think that I don't want to waste my time having written it--that it doesn't work for me.

Are you going to keep coming up with "have tos" like this? Because there really aren't any such have tos like you're tossing out on what an author chooses to do in writing--or in submitting here.

In the end it's just my opinion, I've never once said that any has to follow it. If that's what you're taking from it, I apologize for the misunderstanding, but you've completely misread my intentions.

 

[sr71plt]

In the end it's just my opinion, I've never once said that any has to follow it. If that's what you're taking from it, I apologize for the misunderstanding, but you've completely misread my intentions.

OK, but you flatly stated it. There's no reason to take it just as an opinion rather than assertion if it's delivered in declarative sentences with no "in my opinion" clauses. This is a writing board.

 

[SikFuk]

....
The story did pretty well here, but every time I see it I get annoyed, its the only time I have ever backed off my vision and I am not happy I did. The print version will have the true ending.

I had the same experience as a songwriter. "Heather and Rose" was a story about two girls growing up together. They're a little wild, prone to making bad decisions. In the last verse, as teenagers they die in a drunk driving wreck. It's the point of the song. The tag line of the chorus was: "you could never say never to Heather and Rose".

Every time I'd sing it I'd get a big lump in my throat. It moved me, and it touched on an issue that people would rather ignore. After getting feedback from the GF, and a couple of other people, including a Nashville publisher, I rewrote the ending and let the girls survive, living happily ever after. On a tight deadline, I put the rewritten version on my CD. To this day, I hate it. It's listless. Dead. A throwaway song. (Some people liked it, mainly moms, so I guess it wasn't a total loss.)

 

[SamScribble]

There are some (dead tree) publishers who insist that all 'romance' stories have an HEA ending. Over the years, they have found that that's what their buyers/readers expect. On Lit ... no, just write the ending that you feel is right for the story. Just don't expect a red H.

 

[HandsInTheDark]

On Lit ... no, just write the ending that you feel is right for the story. Just don't expect a red H.

For the most part, erotica is the most trivial of all "feel good" literature, and the simplest way to maintain the good feelings is a happy ending.

But there's such a thing as catharsis, which is often done with a sad ending. It has a place in erotica; it's just harder to make work.

My '"Angelwatch" has a difficult ending and provids intense catharsis. The ending rated very well. But it's also worth noting that the story is only barely erotica in any sense at all; it exists as an epilog to Toymaker.

If you're writing a story to get people off, go with the happy ending. If you're writing a story that successfully says something about life and is here because it has a lot of sex scenes, then as long as you do it well, you'll get a decent rating, even if the readers are using tissues to blot tears instead of other things. You just won't get many actual readers.