Endings for your novel
Endings start from page 1 in your book. Yep, you read right, I said 'page 1'. An ending is like a river pouring its heart into the sea.
A book should start like a snowflake on the top of the mountain. At first it is just one melting drop of water; a fine detail, which will usually appear in the first words, sentence or paragraph of your novel. It sets the mystery of the novel, the premise. It is the key. From there readers need to keep reading, they ask themselves repeatedly while they are reading, What details will reveal the ending? What will the final picture look like? Each detail you put in your book, each character, each setting, needs to be a piece of the puzzle, contributing to the ending. If it doesn't contribute to the complete picture it is best left out. Like drops of water if enough details join, soon you will have a stream. With more details it turns into a river, and its direction is clear, sometimes it may wind, and ebb, but with every added detail it flows strongly towards the sea (the end of your novel or story).
And ending should be inevitable. This does not mean it should be boring. But every detail in the novel needs to make its inexorable way towards the end. If all you're left with at the end of your book is a stagnant puddle, then you know you've been unsuccessful.
An ending should leave the reader with an Aha! I knew it. Niggling at the back of their mind should have been some idea of what might happen, but if you have been clever, they will not guess. That is the key, enough clues to keep them going, but not too many to give it away. Also, keep in mind that if you insert details that do not contribute to your ending then your readers will get bored and shut the book. Each detail needs a reason, each one must contribute to the river, and slowly make its way towards the ocean. By the end you should have a gushing torrent, there will be only one clear ending; that which is made up of all the clues you have left along the way.
A book should start like a snowflake on the top of the mountain. At first it is just one melting drop of water; a fine detail, which will usually appear in the first words, sentence or paragraph of your novel. It sets the mystery of the novel, the premise. It is the key. From there readers need to keep reading, they ask themselves repeatedly while they are reading, What details will reveal the ending? What will the final picture look like? Each detail you put in your book, each character, each setting, needs to be a piece of the puzzle, contributing to the ending. If it doesn't contribute to the complete picture it is best left out. Like drops of water if enough details join, soon you will have a stream. With more details it turns into a river, and its direction is clear, sometimes it may wind, and ebb, but with every added detail it flows strongly towards the sea (the end of your novel or story).
And ending should be inevitable. This does not mean it should be boring. But every detail in the novel needs to make its inexorable way towards the end. If all you're left with at the end of your book is a stagnant puddle, then you know you've been unsuccessful.
An ending should leave the reader with an Aha! I knew it. Niggling at the back of their mind should have been some idea of what might happen, but if you have been clever, they will not guess. That is the key, enough clues to keep them going, but not too many to give it away. Also, keep in mind that if you insert details that do not contribute to your ending then your readers will get bored and shut the book. Each detail needs a reason, each one must contribute to the river, and slowly make its way towards the ocean. By the end you should have a gushing torrent, there will be only one clear ending; that which is made up of all the clues you have left along the way.
posted by Jessica at 1:13 pm
1 Comments:
And what of Murakami?
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