First a little lovely news: Writer to Writer, From Think to Ink<\/i> (based on this blog, for any of you who don’t know) has been chosen by the discerning people at the Junior Library Guild as one of their selections when it comes out, and both Publisher’s Weekly <\/i>and Kirkus<\/i> will soon be giving the book lovely reviews. Publisher’s Weekly <\/i>calls the book “valuable,” and Kirkus <\/i>says it’s “comprehensive.”<\/p>\n
Onto this week’s post. On July 23, 2014, Penelope wrote, I’ve been having a really hard time with my endings. I’m doing a redo of a fairy tale and I’m split on the ending. What I originally had was perfect, I thought. So unbelievably perfect. The element of surprise, the setting, the MC’s heroism, everything. It was a Happily Ever After, for sure. But now I’m realizing that it just won’t do. It makes everything too easy. I’m thinking of changing it only because it ends too quickly and makes everything too simple. <\/i>
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\nSo here’s my dilemma: Should I mold the story to my satisfying but easy ending? Or should I go with the less appealing alternative which is probably better, but a little anti-climactic?<\/i><\/p>\n
In reply, Bibliophile suggested, Write both and see which your friends\/critique group like better.<\/i><\/p>\n
I like both parts of Bibliophile\u2019s suggestion. Let\u2019s start with the critique group idea. Some of us are great critics of our own work, but some (me) not so much. We may be too hard on ourselves. Nothing we write is good enough. And some are blind to the flaws in our masterpieces. My guess is that most who read this blog fall into the severe category, because people who think everything they pen is pure gold probably don\u2019t read writing blogs.<\/p>\n
So it may be helpful to get another perspective from someone or several someones who can be counted on to be constructive. (We don\u2019t need harsh critics to provide another voice in our heads telling us that what we\u2019ve done is a mess.) If you\u2019re in a critique group, that\u2019s great, and it\u2019s not too much to ask members to read two versions of an ending. After all, you\u2019d do the same for them. You\u2019d be happy to. It\u2019s an interesting dilemma.<\/p>\n
If you aren\u2019t in a critique group, you can still get help. A good critic is, first of all, a good reader. You can ask friends who read almost as voraciously as you do, whose taste is similar to yours. You can ask family members who aren\u2019t hyper-critical. You can reach out to a teacher or, especially if you\u2019re home-schooled, a librarian. You can say that you want an opinion about the alternate endings only. If they offer more, you can say no; just that one thing. (If your readers are helpful and you think they may have other things to say that you can use, you can ask for more afterward, but don\u2019t open the floodgates right away.)<\/p>\n
If possible, it\u2019s nice to get more than one opinion. If the two agree, that\u2019s pretty solid. If they don\u2019t, you still have fresh perspectives to consider.<\/p>\n
But–and this is important–you don\u2019t have to listen to the advice. Just because your critiquers did you a (little) favor, you have no obligation to do what they say. It\u2019s still your story.<\/p>\n
On to Bibliophile\u2019s second point, I\u2019m all for trying things more than one way. Writing the ending both ways may make all clear to Penelope, and to all of us when we\u2019re not sure which way to go. And writing both ways may lead us to a third way, which turns out to be the best of all. Or, trying both ways can lead us to a middle ground that satisfies.<\/p>\n
In this kind of dilemma, I like to back up and dream up even more than two possibilities. I list all the endings I can think of. Sometimes I run through fairy tale endings and endings of books I love, looking for a key to my story.<\/p>\n
I may revisit the problem at the core of my story to help find the ending that fits best. Let\u2019s do this with a couple of examples.<\/p>\n
First, we\u2019ll take \u201cRapunzel,\u201d a fairy tale with, in my opinion, an imperfect ending. Aside from the mystery of why the witch wants a child in the first place, I\u2019m on board with the story almost until the end. The prince is thrown from the tower and Rapunzel is sent far away; that\u2019s fine, just what this witch would do. But then the witch seems to forget about both of them. Rapunzel is reunited with her prince and cures his blindness, and they live happily ever after. Their troubles are over. But the problem at the heart of the story is the witch! The ending should include her, and she doesn\u2019t want Rapunzel or the prince to be happy. She wouldn\u2019t stand by and let them be. According to Wikipedia, there\u2019s a version in which she\u2019s trapped forever in the tower where Rapunzel was imprisoned. Better. But there are other options as well. She could grow and become a better being, or she could be distracted by another baby for her to adopt and behave weirdly to. Or something else. The best ending, I think, would involve Rapunzel and the prince settling matters with the witch: destroying or reforming or distracting her.<\/p>\n
Now let\u2019s look at Anne of Green Gables<\/i>, which, to me, has a perfect ending. *Spoiler Alert!* If you haven\u2019t read Anne of Green Gables<\/i> and intend to (I recommend you do!), skip this paragraph because I\u2019m going to give the ending away. As I see it, the central problem is that Anne needs a home where she feels at home, an outer home and an inner home. At the beginning she doesn\u2019t feel loved or understood, and she isn\u2019t at ease with herself. By the end she gives up something up that\u2019s important to her, and she does so because she\u2019s achieved self-knowledge and a deep sense of belonging. It feels inevitable. Any other response to Matthew\u2019s death would be wrong.<\/p>\n
When Penelope says that her first ending is surprising, I\u2019d call that a plus. We want inevitability and surprise at the same time. Of course, not all surprises are good. Dropping a bomb on our characters may be tempting, but it\u2019s never good. Likewise, bringing in a fairy to solve everybody\u2019s problems.<\/p>\n
Inevitability arrives when we solve the main problem. Surprise comes in through the way it\u2019s solved. In a romance, for example, we know that the lovers will be united if the story is happy or separated if it\u2019s tragic. But we don\u2019t know how the two will come together or how they\u2019ll be torn apart. To take another fairy tale, \u201cBeauty and the Beast,\u201d as an example, what seems inevitable as we first encounter the story is that Beauty will finally agree to marry Beast. The surprise is the transformation that follows. So satisfying!<\/p>\n
Here are three prompts:<\/p>\n
\u2022 Write a new surprising ending for \u201cBeauty and the Beast.\u201d Yes, there\u2019s a transformation, but it isn\u2019t the one we\u2019re used to.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Write a Rapunzel story and weave the witch into the ending.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The ending of \u201cRumplestiltskin\u201d is problematic. We\u2019re left with a loveless marriage and a dead imp. I know there are versions that fix this. Write your own. In this case, consider what the problem at the heart of the story is. I don\u2019t think that\u2019s so clear. Could be the imp who desperately wants a child for reasons fair or foul, or an impoverished king, or a neglected girl, whose feelings nobody cares about.<\/p>\n
\u2022 One of the twelve dancing princes is in love with one of the princesses, a love that\u2019s outside the enchantment he\u2019s under. Write the story of their romance. Think of five possible endings and write at least two of them.<\/p>\n
Have fun, and save what you write!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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