Whether your story is a tragedy, a comedy, a “happily ever after” jaunt, or any variety and combination thereof, the one thing you want it to be is resonant. You want readers to close the book with a feeling of satisfaction. Whether they’re laughing, crying, or just thoughtful, you want them to be able to give their heads a […]
January 18, 2012 by 30 Comments Novel EndingsA Must-Know Tip for Writing Slam-Bang Finales
The ending of your novel is make or break territory for your readers. If you’ve convinced them to keep reading this far, you need to have something extra special in store for them come the end. If you disappoint readers in your story’s Climax, you risk losing those readers forever. So how can you dazzle […]
October 23, 2011 by 37 Comments Novel Endings5 Elements of a Resonant Closing Line
As important as the opening line may be to convincing someone to read your book, the closing line is the one that determines how well your story works—and whether or not readers will find your story a satisfying experience. Last month, we talked about the 5 Elements of a Riveting Opening Line, and today we’re […]
October 19, 2011 by 27 Comments Novel EndingsAre All the Pieces in Place for Your Story’s Climax?
The trick to providing readers with a satisfying story Climax is making certain all the pieces are already there. Stories are like puzzles—giant 5,000-piece puzzles you spread all over your table and spend a year putting together. By the time you only have a handful of pieces left—by the time your story’s Climax is coming […]
July 17, 2011 by 47 Comments Novel EndingsDeus Ex Machina: Latin for “Don’t Do This in Your Story”
By the time you reach the end of your book, you’re sometimes out of steam, sometimes out of ideas, sometimes sick of your story, and sometimes just plain wrong about how to end it. As a result, you might find yourself walking through yellow caution tape into the pothole of deus ex machina before you […]
June 15, 2011 by 1 Comment Novel EndingsThe 4-Part Process for Writing a Phenomenal Story Climax
The best part of the Fourth of July (other than the fried chicken and potato salad, of course) is the fireworks at the end of the day. Everyone looks forward to sundown and the explosions of color that light up the darkness. Your novel’s Climax is like that. Readers will enjoy the preceding chapters (just […]
May 29, 2011 by 78 Comments Novel EndingsDo You Have to Write Happy Endings?
In the 2003 film adaptation of Peter Pan, Wendy describes the stories she’s been telling the Lost Boys as “adventures, in which good triumphs over evil.” In response, Captain Hook sneers, “They all end in a kiss.” Like Wendy and the Lost Boys, millions of people escape into the world of fiction to find happily-ever-after […]
December 8, 2010 by 9 Comments Novel EndingsExternal and Internal Conflict: The Killer Combination
A general writing rule of thumb states that every page of your story should contain conflict. But sometimes it can be difficult to think up enough conflict to fill the nooks and crannies. After all, your hero can’t be battling it out with the villain on every single page. So what to do? The secret […]
February 10, 2010 by 19 Comments Novel EndingsHow to Write an Epilogue That Works: 5 Tips
Want to learn how to write an epilogue that works? First, you need to understand why so many epilogues don’t work. How Not to Write an Epilogue Epilogues, like prologues, are, by their very definition, extraneous. As a result, they’re often unnecessary. Too many epilogues are self-indulgent happily-ever-afters by authors who want to make sure the reader […]
November 22, 2009 by 52 Comments Novel EndingsHow to Kill a Character—And Avoid Hate Mail
Some of the most powerful stories in literature and cinema have a surprising common element: The death of a main character. At first glance, this would seem to be an instant turnoff. Why hang with a character for 300+ pages only to watch him get knocked off in the end? But the truth is, when […]
