Wrap it Up!

Sometimes writing endings to stories is more difficult because the techniques aren’t so clear, but there are a few guidelines we can follow:

1.      The ending needs to make sense.

2.      It shouldn’t be anticlimactic.

3.      Don’t’ make it confusing.

4.      The conclusion should come when the interesting part of the story is over and occur on a high note.

5.      Story line shouldn’t disintegrate before the ending. Must have tension to the last page.  When action and suspense dominate, the climax must come at the end, preferably on the last page but at least in the final chapter.

6.      In an action packed story, don’t glide to the end.  Readers want that slam on the brakes ending.  You must maintain action and suspense to the last line.

7.      Tie up loose ends or major ones, like who was the murderer?  The reader should understand what has happened.  Endings that keep the reader in the dark are not effective.  For one thing, the reader will go away unsatisfied, and that will influence his attitude toward the writer, resulting in a long grudge.

Shakespeare always tied things up.  He never left a major unresolved question for the reader to ponder.  The only time a writer can get away with leaving a question unanswered is when it’s a pleasant question, and he or she wants us to decide how it ends, as in Gone With the Wind. 

However we end the story, the main thing is that the reader not feel cheated.  Expectations must be met!