Personally, I think thereβs nothing worse than getting to the end of a book and being disappointed by the resolution of the story. I especially hate it when the story has been gripping but the ending is a total letdown. I donβt know about you, but when that happens, I feel cheated.
It may be that the resolution is just too unbelievable β the characters are suddenly rescued and everybody lives happily ever after β or some important detail is left unexplained (unless thereβs going to be a sequel or the book is part of a series). Sometimes the ending is just too sudden. Whatever the cause of the disappointing ending, you want to be 100% sure you avoid leaving your readers feeling cheated by the ending of your novel.
So, what do you need to avoid if you want an ending that doesnβt fall flat? Keep reading, and Iβll give you some hints.
Mistakes You Need to Avoid
1. Characters Who Suddenly Begin to Act Out of Character
If, throughout the course of your novel, Philip has been mild-mannered, calm, and unflustered no matter what has happened to him, then to have him suddenly, at the climax of the story, become aggressive, panicked, and brash is just going to confuse your readers. Likewise, if Derek has been hotheaded throughout the story, having him become the epitome of calm when faced with disaster is going to seem strange.
If you plan for a character to behave in a certain way in the concluding chapters of the story, you need to foreshadow that behavior. Itβs got to seem natural. People donβt just do a 180 in their behavior. Keep your characters in character β consistency is your friend.
2. Shocking Endings That Seem Out of Place
If youβre writing a thriller, having bombs going off in the climax of your story is to be expected (or, at least, wouldnβt seem out of place). If, however, youβre writing a gentle romance set in Amish Country, then explosions in your ending could leave your readers puzzled. Iβve tutored writing students whoβve presented me with those kinds of shocking endings that had me wondering if theyβve mistakenly copied-and-pasted the wrong ending onto their story.
Donβt do it. The climax of your story doesnβt have to be explosions and disasters and characters fighting for their lives. If your story is more gentle in nature, you need a dramatic ending that is character-led or mystery-led rather than adding a shocking ending just for the sake of it. Itβs fine to end your story with a whisper, not a bang!
3. Cheating Your Reader With New Information
You get to the end of a book, and the author has neatly tied up all the loose ends. Great. Thatβs what I like in a standalone book. However, if the loose ends have been tied up with a thread that has literally come out of nowhere, thereβs a problem. This happens more often than I care to remember, and it frustrates the life out of me.
For example, your heroine has been on a quest to uncover the truth about her great grandfather. Thereβs been lots of mysteries and scandals, and puzzles that have seemed impossible to solve. Finally, your heroine arrives at the end of the journey. There are a number of unresolved threads to the story, and you need to wrap things up.
Suddenly, Katyaβs phone rang. It was her mother. Sighing at the distraction, she answered the call.
βHow are you getting on, honey?β Mom asked.
βThereβs nothing here, Mom,β Katya sighed. βI donβt know where else to look.β
βDid you check under the floorboards?β Mom asked. βIβm certain thatβs where Grandpa said it would be.β
βWhat? You didnβt tell me your grandfather had left instructions!β Katya exclaimed.
βI didnβt?β Mom replied. βThe letter was in the box I gave you.β
βI thought that was just old photos!β Katya yanked open her backpack and pulled out a battered metal box. There, under piles of faded black and white photographs was an envelope, yellow with age. Katya opened it carefully and pulled out the letter inside. She scanned the pages, nodding at the details that matched what her mother had told her. The last paragraph was unfamiliar, however.
Katya sighed. If only her mother had mentioned these details, the last couple of days need never have happened. She glanced out of the window to where Drew was still laboriously filling in the holes theyβd dug.
βI wish youβd told me about the letter, Mom,β she said.
βI presumed youβd look through the box, honey,β Mom retorted.
In this (somewhat predictable) ending, the heroine learns that sheβs been carrying around the information she needs to solve the mystery once and for all β but the problem is that this is the first time the box has been mentioned. Naturally, the reader will feel cheated.
4. Deus Ex Machina
Just in case youβre not fluent in Latin (neither am I, of course!), what I mean by deus ex machinais that ancient storytelling trope the Greeks used to love, where the hero is suddenly rescued at the last minute by the gods who swoop in to save him.
Although deus ex machina is an ancient technique, that doesnβt mean it doesnβt turn up in modern fiction. It does. Oh boy, it does. For example, your hero is hanging by his fingertips off a cliff edge when suddenly thereβs the sound of a helicopter. His friend/uncle/brother/father/boss is there to save him β but the news that the savior a) owns or has access to a helicopter and b) can fly a helicopter is news to the reader.
Iβm sure youβve encountered these kinds of endings in books youβve read. Try to think of some of the worst youβve come across and drop them in the comments below!
Will your reader be disappointed if you resort to this technique? You bet they will. So donβt.
Exercises You Need to Practice
The best way to learn how to avoid a dissatisfying ending is to practice. There are two parts to this practical aspect of writing great endings, and I can guarantee youβre already doing one of them. Unless, of course, youβre one of those oddities in the writing world who never reads other peopleβs novels.
Yes, youβve guessed it. The first part of the practical exercises is to recognize whatβs wrong in story endings that leave you disappointed. Instead of taking straight to GoodReads or Amazon or your blog (or wherever else you write book reviews) to give a scathing denouncement of the book youβve just finished, spend some time working out whyyou feel let down. Ask yourself:
- What did the author fail to do?
- How could the ending have been made better?
- What is the biggest letdown in the ending?
- Why doesnβt the ending work?
The second part of the practical exercises is to spend time carefully examining your own endings. Are you guilty of making any of the mistakes outlined above? Could your endings be somehow made more satisfying for your readers? Pick a story ending that you think could be improved and redraft it, eradicating any potentially disappointing aspects and polishing it until even the harshest critic would find it difficult to find fault.
Your Job as a Writer is to Satisfy
Although there are plenty of writers β including (shockingly) some bestselling authors β who didnβt get the memo about a writersβ responsibility to satisfy the reader, itβs an unavoidable fact. Your continued success as a writer depends on it, so donβt make excuses.
Just because [insert name of a bestselling author here, because I donβt want to get sued for defamation of character!] gets away with rubbish endings doesnβt mean you will. They (probably) have a lot of money with which to purchase their place on the bestseller lists, but thatβs really not the way to do it.
Learn to write great endings. Your readers deserve that.
