The bleakness behind an unfinished story

[NuclearFairy]

A few threads have gotten me thinking about something, specifically the ending to The Princess Bride (book) and how it has shaped my view of unfinished stories. Especially stories that stop just before or in the middle of a dangerous moment. Keep in mind, the movie is a sequel to the book, not a re-imagining.

Now the book, is about a guy remembering a story that his father read to him, and trying to get his son to read the book. He did but he asked his dad why he liked a book with such a downer ending. So he reread the book, and then reprinted it with italicized inserts about everything his father had changed when reading it to him.

His dad's ending:

"It appears to me as if we're doomed, then," Buttercup said.

Westley looked at her. "Doomed, madam?"

"To be together. Until one of us dies."

"I've done that already, and I haven't the slightest intention of ever doing it again," Westley said.

Buttercup looked at him. "Don't we sort of have to sometime?"

"Not if we promise to outlive each other, and I make that promise now."

Buttercup looked at him. "Oh my Westely, so do I."


'And they lived happily ever after,' My father said.

The other ending:

Buttercup looked at him. "Oh my Westley, so do I."

From behind them suddenly, closer than they imagined, they could hear the roar of Humperdink: "Stop them! Cut them off!" They were, admittedly, startled, but there was no reason for worry: they were on the fastest horses in the kindgom, and the lead was already theirs.

However, this was before Ingio's wound reopened; and Westley relapsed again; and Fezzik took the wrong turn; and Buttercup's horse threw a shoe. And the night behind them was filled with the crescendoing sound of pursuit...

Even when the story abruptly cut's off during a high moment, a moment where things are going good but the author clearly did not intend to stop yet, I feel like it's just the narrators dad saying, "And then they all lived happily ever after." And then everything goes wrong. It was a good book, and probably taught me more about story telling than any other book I've read. But it also taught me to be a pessimist about unfinished stories.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

All stories are 'unfinished' until a character or all of the characters die.

But even then, I took one beyond.

 

[Djmac1031]

I recently "finished" what wound up being a 30 chapter long series, plus a prequel.

i never had an Endgame in mind for it, but decided 30 was more than enough. Being honest, it probably dragged on too long and could have ended much earlier.

I didn't kill off my characters, nor give them a definitive Happy Ever After.

I basically gave them one last big adventure together, one they'd been building to the entire series, then left readers with the idea the two main characters would stay together and keep exploring their kinks and relationship.

Its "over" in the sense i no longer wish to keep writing it. But certainly the adventures could continue in readers imagination.

 

[Jorunn]

I have received comments on some of my stories wishing I would have kept the story going. Often these stories have some sort of conflict or situation or danger, causing the characters to separate.

Sometimes they reconnect at the end. It is a challenge at that point to do something other than ‘they lived happily ever after’ (the danger is over) although I could tack on a second sex scene and repeat one from earlier in the story.

Sometimes they don’t reconnect, but I try to leave open a door for that to happen. At that point, the character reflects on what might have been (or might still be). Same deal, get together and have sex again?

Endings can be hard, and plenty of movies and Television shows fail at it.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

I have received comments on some of my stories wishing I would have kept the story going.

Me too.

Then they bitched when I ended them.

 

[NuclearFairy]

I'm more talking about when an author was posting chapters to a story, and then abruptly stops without even giving it an open ending.

It always leads my mind going, "Okay, what's the worst that could've happened here... Yep that's how everyone died. Pack it up and go find a completed story to read next time."

 

[Jorunn]

I'm more talking about when an author was posting chapters to a story, and then abruptly stops without even giving it an open ending.

It always leads my mind going, "Okay, what's the worst that could've happened here... Yep that's how everyone died. Pack it up and go find a completed story to read next time."

If an author simply stops at a chapter, it is often a sign they have not written the next chapter yet. Or they are tiring of the story and just stop writing it. Though it could be a writer who needs to improve their craft, in which case a pleasant comment might be welcome.

 

[NuclearFairy]

If an author simply stops at a chapter, it is often a sign they have not written the next chapter yet. Or they are tiring of the story and just stop writing it. Though it could be a writer who needs to improve their craft, in which case a pleasant comment might be welcome.

Yes, I know sometimes authors come back to them years later and continue. And sometimes the author comes back years later and posts a note in their profile saying that they cannot continue the work they're sorry it ended right before the climatic battle but please stop sending them feedback on how awesome it is.

I have seen both.

Doesn't stop my pessimistic mind from being a pessimistic mind though.

Nor does it stop my otherwise optimist self from picking up a new story and following along, even if I know what torture my brain will put me through if they stop posting without a conclusion for more than six months.

 

[iwatchus]

I kind of forced an ending onto my original series, just so I could move on. It kind of wrapped things up. Mostly because I wanted to write other things as well. And not abandon the readers as it was.

But three of my subsequent stories have overlapping characters. And myWIP really could have been the next story in the series. I am writing it to be read independently, but it is the direct result on one of the storylines that did not resolve in my series ending. And all the characters from one are the main characters from the earlier series. Not all of them, but I am not sure any story had the full set of characters in it. I think have seven more percolatinging in my brain now. A couple of them already have some writing done on them. I am guessing I will publish an extra story in the series every month or two. Much more slowly than the every three or four days the original series was coming out at.

 

[Omenainen]

As a reader on this site, I learned pretty quickly that if a series looks interesting, I should first go to the last chapter’s comments, and if there is people lamenting that it isn’t finished, I shouldn’t bother to start reading. Now there’s the series cards that can be flagged complete, but the above method works with older stories too.

 

[TheLobster]

Now there’s the series cards that can be flagged complete, (...)

Very few people seems to use it, though. Which is a shame since it's not even in any way limiting. If you figure out you wanna continue the series later, you can always "reopen it" and more entries.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

I'm more talking about when an author was posting chapters to a story, and then abruptly stops without even giving it an open ending.

So am I.

I have several like that.

 

[Omenainen]

Very few people seems to use it, though. Which is a shame since it's not even in any way limiting. If you figure out you wanna continue the series later, you can always "reopen it" and more entries.

Also I assume that the cards were generated to all existing stories when they were introduced, the series cards that is, which means the authors who aren’t active wouldn’t have checked theirs as complete even if they were complete.

 

[JohnBJohn]

Yes, I know sometimes authors come back to them years later and continue. And sometimes the author comes back years later and posts a note in their profile saying that they cannot continue the work they're sorry it ended right before the climatic battle but please stop sending them feedback on how awesome it is.

I have seen both.

The author FinalStand finally came back after about a 5 year absence due to health issues. James is finally working to finish several of his stories and is getting some nice feedback.

 

[NuclearFairy]

The author FinalStand finally came back after about a 5 year absence due to health issues. James is finally working to finish several of his stories and is getting some nice feedback.

Awesome.