Endings That are Less Than Happy

[VeraGem]

Sad endings. Bad ends. Readers seem to hate them. I know I do. Sometimes though, it seems the only way to finish the story.

I sit here for hours on end, concocting, fabricating, feeling, analyzing - and when the end finally lands in my lap it's something I didn't necessarily see and then I think: "This is going to get shit on if I don't change it. This is going to go over like death on a wedding day."

Then I read it again and make a couple punctuation and phrasing changes, highlight the ending, ready to delete and rewrite, ready to say happily ever after and...

My fingers stab the save keys. Fuck it, it is what it is.

Are we, as writers, here to provide escape? Maybe. But do we have to lose our honesty to please the crowd? Are we supposed to say that everything can always work out for the best? Or, do we instead write what comes and say to ourselves: "Some things just can't be fixed."

Or do we hide from what's real and make the sun come out at the end of every journey?

Just wondering...

 

[Whispersecret]

Let me first say that I agree with you. Even though I prefer happy ones, some stories require sad endings.

I think each writer has to determine the answer to that question him/herself. I know there are writers out there whose goal is to please their readers above all. They want to garner the largest audience possible, and to that end, you must slant your stories a certain way.

There are also writers who write exactly what they want; damn anyone else. If people want to read their work, fine. If not, that's fine too.

I strive for a balance between those two extremes. I try to write the story the way I think it should be done, while keeping in mind what people may enjoy reading.

It's obvious from your post that you think the story needs a sad ending. So it seems to me that you have to decide which is more important to you: making readers happy (if, indeed, a happy ending will do that) or staying true to the story (again, assuming that a sad ending will turn people off.)

 

[TheWriter]

Sometimes it is called for. I wrote a story called "Day One" which was a rape story. I don't like rapists, and I don't like seeing stories where a raped person enjoys it.

So I wrote this story that conveyed my opinion and of course it needed an unhappy, or at least morally ambiguous ending in order to make my point.

Just write the story it should be written. Unless of course you're trying to get lots of votes, in which case you'll have to make sure that the story can be enjoyed by everyone.

 

[MaxSebastian]

I don't think a writer is necessarily more 'honest' because he or she creates the odd story with an unhappy or ambiguous ending.

Sure, an ending should be right for the particular intentions of the story, but I don't think it's necessary to equate unhappy endings with realistic writing and therefore better quality.

I think many people come to literotica to escape into someone's fantasy, but that shouldn't rule out an unhappy story ending, either.

My stories all seem to end happily - I'm fine with that, so are the readers, it would seem. I don't force an ending towards a happy conclusion because when I write a story, I have already planned it out so that I know precisely how it will end before I've even started the first paragraph. And what makes me happy to write is a story that is resolved into a happy conclusion.

What a dreamer. I leave the unhappiness for my chosen career: journalism.

 

[Melissa Randolf]

sad endings

Our job is to write our truth. If my truth is that life is shit, I write that. If I don't like the fact that my life is shit I CAN CHANGE THAT. Then my stories, and their endings, change. I write my life story with each day.

 

[karmadog]

unhappy endings

If you've written your story well enough, you can't just change the ending. Changing the ending will make the whole edifice crumble. If you like the story--your characters are believable and consistent, the plot is internally consistent, and it means something to you--don't change it.

 

[Whispersecret]

Good point, karmadog.

And I also agree with Max. Happy endings don't equal more honest fiction. (Is that an oxymoron?? LOL)

 

[Quiet_Cool]

Nice thoughts...

I have to disagree with a few things here, though. First off, the truth of a story doesn't exist in our own lives, but the lives of the characters. Our truth is brought from our experiences, and the characters don't always have those same experiences. Even when they do, they tend to be different. These differences would change the direction the story must take in order to convey "truth."
Secondly, the story's ending, happy or sad, must carry the same continuity and fluency as the rest of the story. Once the pattern is broken, the reader has to stop and ask themselves why, or at least slow to find the path it is now taking. Once that happens, we fail as writers.
Basically, the story has a path that is defined by itself. It begins in a single place, and where it goes is entirely dependant on what happens from that point on. What we intend isn't necessarily what we should say, but hwat we do say.
Not to criticize, but a lot of the stories on this site, aren't written by good writers. no offense to anyone, but some of them, have little to no inspiration or craft behind them. Others, however, are quite good, and sometimes even better than one would have expected. I'm basically saying that getting votes has little to do with how good a writer you are, eventhough if you write well, you will almost definitely get high votes. A story can totally suck, and the characters be fully embarassing to a real writer, but the story, being read by people who mostly want literary porn (I'm not knocking the readers or writers for this, but it isn't an art form in this case) may get an onslaught of 4's and 5's in votes, while something well-written may get 2 or 3's in votes because the story has too much content for the pornographic reader to enjoy.
Just my thoughts...sorry to be so long-winded.

 

[KillerMuffin]

QC is most correct. You have to consider your reader when you write something. Certain markets require certain types of writing. Laurel isn't horribly picky about content beyond that it be sexually oriented. The readers, though.

Do readers want a happy ending? I don't necessarily think so. Readers want an ending where there is some resolution. They want to go away from the story feeling that it accomplished something, otherwise they badger you for the next installment. Some readers want nothing but happy endings. Most don't actually care all that much as long as the sex is good. One thing you should never do is piss off your reader.

Most people judge a story on two things, if the got off and how much they enjoyed it. If your payoff is high scores in the voting arena, then you must please your audience. If your payoff is knowing your story is well written, then you must please yourself. However, you'll have to live with whatever your audience tells you once you've posted it.

So, should you change the ending?

 

[poohlive]

I think KM really hit it. I was waiting for someone to actually say the word "resolution," looks like she doesn't miss a beat.
That's what it's all about isn't it, resolution. Wrapping things up. An author's job is to show the reader characters, put them in a situation, and then get them out again. This works for porn, erotica, or even stories that don't have a sexual tendency.
Now, in the end, there are really two things that can happen. Well, what I really mean is there are two sides, and a line in the middle. Now, on one side of the line is a happy ending, on the other side is a sad ending. Your ending doesn't have to be on the extreme of the sad side, but can still fall under the sad category.
Here's a question, Which Star Wars movie did the audience love the most? Which one did you love the most? Most people would agree that they loved Empire Strikes Back, which had a sad ending. With the cut off hand and Han being shipped off in copper or whatever. Then, the whole "I'm your father" incident. Well, let's just say it wasn't good times in a galaxy far fary away.
Then, there's the exact opposite. The movie Little Shop of Horrors had it's ending changed because the people hated the original ending where the little plant pods were scattered all over the world and Seymour and Audrey both died. In the play it's a sad ending, in the movie they made it happy to please the audience.
So, you have to look at:
1. The truth of the story. Some stories work better with happy endings, and some stories don't. Don't lie to the readers, that's worse than making a bad story to begin with. At least with a bad story, the ending matches everything else.
2. The audience. Some like happy, some like sad, but they all like the truth. Characters, plot, setting, it's all based on truth and the audience. If you start lying to them, they don't trust you anymore. A reader can not read a work if they don't trust the author.


It all comes down to believability. If a woman gets raped and when it's over, comes running back home, is she really going to thank her raper and then not be able to wait to go running in the park at night alone again? If a couple gets back together for one more fling, will all of their problems that drove them apart just vanish and then they are left in each others arms? If an evil villan finds out his son has joined the good side and has come to destroy him, will he really betray all he has ever know to be joined once more?
You get my point. I leave it up to you, the writer, for there is no answer to this question except your own.

 

[The Sex Master]

Sad endings. Bad ends. Readers seem to hate them. I know I do. Sometimes though, it seems the only way to finish the story.

I sit here for hours on end, concocting, fabricating, feeling, analyzing - and when the end finally lands in my lap it's something I didn't necessarily see and then I think: "This is going to get shit on if I don't change it. This is going to go over like death on a wedding day."

Then I read it again and make a couple punctuation and phrasing changes, highlight the ending, ready to delete and rewrite, ready to say happily ever after and...

My fingers stab the save keys. Fuck it, it is what it is.

Are we, as writers, here to provide escape? Maybe. But do we have to lose our honesty to please the crowd? Are we supposed to say that everything can always work out for the best? Or, do we instead write what comes and say to ourselves: "Some things just can't be fixed."

Or do we hide from what's real and make the sun come out at the end of every journey?

Just wondering...

Fact or fiction,if fiction,it should have a happy ending

 

[VeraGem]

Oops...

I'm doing it all wrong then...

 

[Paolo Labico]

There are sad endings and there are sad endings.

Even when the events of a story lead to a tragic end, it might be possible to leave the reader with a more positive impression. This would be true in a "Martyr's death", or when their is a hint that things might be better in the future. In one of my stories, everyone you care about dies at the end, but it is, If not upbeat, at least somewhat positive.

Maybe a change of Point of view is neded- usually somebody's misfortune benefits another character.

That having been said (unless I'm trying to get paid) I pretty much write what I want reguardless of how people will take it.

 

[Frenchman]

It is admirable to consider the importance of sadness and happiness. However, to condider when a particular story should be happy or sad now that is a horse of a different color.

The greek story tellers had 2 masks. They looked very much alike in style. It was not always important that a familiar character had the same mask on subsequent readings. It was left up to artistic interpretations. One mask happy, one mask sad.

Some characters need and demand structure; Charlie Brown was fairly predictible and I never saw him Schtoop Lucy.

Other characters have little or no character--like my neighbor!

And some stories end without an ending such as O'Henry's, "Lady and the Tigre" we never knew what door was chosen.

Paint your characters with the color of your own pallet. Screw the public. I aint gettin paid so I can paint and be praised or burn't at the stake. But when I do paint, by god I paint (good or bad) at my pleasure and for my joy or pain.

Pass me a mask. I feel happiness/sadness...hell I just dig a good masquerade!

Live long, write well and peace (or a piece)!

The Ol' Silver Fox

 

[jon.hayworth]

Wouldn't it be nice if every story had a happy ending - something that "the money" in the Hollywood film industry seems to think is an absolute prerequirement or people will not want to watch it.

But life is a series of ups and downs, and as writers we should see our task as being to reflect reality. Even the parralell worlds of Sci-Fi and Fantasy Fiction reflect and often amplify our own reality.

When I recently wrote my latest short story - a historical set in Roman Britain it was predetermined that it had to end in death, and that death would be a central part of the story.

If you want to see my treatment of death in this story take a look at "JULIA'S LAST STAND" erotic coupling (at present in "New Stories")

jon

 

[CRaZy]

I've read this thread with interest. The words sad and happy are too extreme. I tend to explore the darker side of human sexuality and, as such, my stories reach KM's resolution with a definitive moment that may or may not let the reader believe there is hope in the future. I think sometimes, it is valuable to leave the ultimate ending (Will they see each other again? Will she stop the affair?) to the reader's imagination whilst still providing a logical conclusion to the slice of life you have presented.

Your characters always tell you how the story should end. If you have selfish, unsympathetic characters, the reader will not expect a bright ending. A forced ending to garner votes doesn't fool most readers.

 

[ozeboi69]

the end is never nigh

While my plots may detail everything, I find that my most successful endings have left the readers wanting more.

A sudden plot twist at the end seems to drive my readers to write me urging me not to finish the tale(s) at that point.

I'd rather tie up the loose ends of the story, then throw an unexpected spanner in the works, leave them wanting more than to wind it up all need and tidy and close off the character's lives completely.

Personally, I like to think of my characters as continuing on after I've finished with them. I've only peeked into a small part of their lives. For me, to end the story completely would be to kill off my characters. Does that make me insane?

 

[Frenchman]

Not at all. It just make me want to cut my throat.
In a nice sort of way so my character can continue.
Sorry, I mean no disrepect but a tiny bit of this (just now and then) seems like a pretentious load of the stuff I spead on my lawn twice a year.
Do I sound insane?

But first I must postulate (excuse me): Am I happy, am I sad, or worse yet..somewhere in a eretheaul inbetween. Doom and Gloom!

Forgive me it was the 2nd bottle of wine, I will be more my real self tomorrow.

 

[Whispersecret]

Re: the end is never nigh

While my plots may detail everything, I find that my most successful endings have left the readers wanting more.

A sudden plot twist at the end seems to drive my readers to write me urging me not to finish the tale(s) at that point.

I'd rather tie up the loose ends of the story, then throw an unexpected spanner in the works, leave them wanting more than to wind it up all need and tidy and close off the character's lives completely.

Personally, I like to think of my characters as continuing on after I've finished with them. I've only peeked into a small part of their lives. For me, to end the story completely would be to kill off my characters. Does that make me insane?

How do you know that the endings that leave the readers wanting are the most successful? To me, the way you describe it above, it seems like just a ploy you use to compel them to write you.

If you ask me, most readers want that feeling of satisfaction you get when all the loose ends are tied up. (That's why most stories do that.) Sure, it's a bittersweet feeling. If the author has done a good job, you feel complete, like things have come full circle, and yet you're sad that it's over. It's one of the reasons I love epilogues. That's like a little piece of chocolate for me--a way to see those characters a little removed from the ending, on their merry way toward the rest of their lives.

However, that's just my opinion. There may be people out there who agree with oze.

 

[rigged4dive]

There is definately a place in the world for the sad ending. Would Romeo & Juliet still retain it's popularity if they had lived happily ever after? Would anyone remember the Movie Old Yeller without the sad ending?

 

[ozeboi69]

I agree with rigged4dive that there is room in the world for every kind of ending and the ending must fit the story.

Regarding my own preference for 'open endings', it's certainly not a ploy to get people to write to me! I've been writing those kind of endings since I can remember - long before the Internet was around!

An unexpected plot twist at the end suggests life after the story, which is what I like to think happens to my characters. I do believe that all the loose ends of a story's plot MUST be wound up before the ending. The plot twist simply ends it on an interesting note. It can also cover any emotion - sad, happy, angry, etc.

I believe it works best for me, because feedback I've had from my writings (even way back in high school!) has always received better praise for imaginative plot endings rather than a predictable, tidy finishes.

But again...I think there is room for every style of writing and every style of ending.