The End of the Word

There are so many things people want out of a book or story, but one of the most crucial is a satisfying ending. Without that, everything falls apart, and readers are disappointed.

That seems simple enough. But what, exactly, is a satisfying” ending? Is it ‘Happily Ever After?’ Is it ‘everyone dies at the end?’ Is it deus ex machina? Is it genre determined? How does a writer know what sort of ending to give to their work?

On the surface, the answer seems obvious; a satisfying ending is one where the action culminates in a fitting, but not totally predictable, wrap-up of the main and sub plots of the story. That may be within a short story, a single book, or a series, in which case there should be satisfying smaller climaxes for each separate book, with all the threads pulled tight by the series end.

Simple, right?

Except that takes you right back to – what is a “fitting but not predictable” wrap-up?

Right here is probably where you’re saying, “Um, Beth, isn’t that dependent on both the reader and the writer?” To which I’ll answer, “Yes! It is!” Of course it always comes down to a subjective opinion, which is why there are fans of every story. However, there are some endings that are inherently unsatisfying; also different types of endings have different benefits.

So what sort of benefits and drawbacks do different endings produce?

‘Happily Ever After’ is a traditional way to end a tale, and one used copiously in contemporary romance writing. There is a comfort about Happily Ever After. It doesn’t mean that the characters will never experience any more pain or sorrow of difficulties; it means that the difficulties that the characters experience in the story will be resolved, and future difficulties will be no more serious than the small, everyday problems that everyone faces. Happily Ever After is a comfort ending, a suggestion that the reader’s problems can also find a happy resolution. Going into a story knowing that it will have a happy ending can be like eating a favorite food; you basically know what you’re getting, even if it’s an unfamiliar brand. In a world where so many things are uncertain, a Happily Ever After can have a strong pull.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with a Happily Ever After, but there are potential drawbacks. If you know you’re reading one, you don’t get surprised (I guess that’s both a drawback and a benefit, in some ways). Some authors feel that they need to provide a Happily Ever After even when it doesn’t fit the story, and that can be jarring. A certain level of complexity can be lost by tying the threads into a neat bow instead of creating macramé, and if you’re a reader who likes the second, you may be frustrated by the first. It can also seem unrealistic, which has its good and bad sides as well, depending on whether someone is reading for pure escapism or for catharsis.

What other ending types are out there?

‘The Lady or the Tiger?’ is a type of ending that gathers all the threads of a story, but does not explicitly connect them at the end, leaving two or more possible ending which require the reader to decide for themselves what the true ending of the story is. The term is from an 1882 short story in which a man must choose to open one of two doors, respectively containing a marriageable lady and a tiger. The story ends before the man chooses. The very ambiguity of this type can have a very strong appeal; as it’s reader-determined, it gives control over and input into the story by the act of reading. The downside is that it’s not really a proper ending, and may leave a reader unsettled and uncomfortable. (Alternatively, that may be exactly what some readers are actually looking for – a story that will challenge them and unsettle their worldview.) It also has to be done quite well to be effective.

Dystopian endings? Quite popular! The appeal of ‘the world is going to hell in a handbasket, but we’re fighting it’ is powerful in a real world that seems increasingly more dystopian. Certainly the appeal of this type of ending (and the entire story) is that it gives the reader catharsis, helping them connect to the work and its ending with their own conflicted feelings about the state of the world. It also can make the story feel more real, if the reader has a pessimistic worldview.

There’s a lot I could write on dystopian fiction as a whole, but sticking to endings, dystopian fiction tends either to end on a note of cautious hope (it’s bad, but we’re still fighting), or with all hope being lost. The drawback to the first is (as in bittersweet endings) that it may strand a reader halfway between hope and despair, leaving them unsatisfied. Obviously, the drawback of the second is that it’s flat-out depressing, something that may turn readers off because it makes them feel – like the ending – depressed.

Bittersweet endings are my personal favorite. This type tends to have a mostly happy ending, but that happy ending is won at great cost. I think of these as basically hopeful. The advantage to this sort of ending is that it’s very real; people constantly win victories while losing important things (and people) along the way. Depending on the optimism of the reader, this can appeal more or less than the similarly structured but less hopeful dystopian ending. It has the advantage of giving the reader a sense of happiness that the characters have won out without losing a sense of realism. The downside is that the ending is laced with sadness or depression, sometimes leaving the reader unsatisfied with the quality of escapism offered.

I rule out leaving plot threads strewn around (not in the sense of the Lady or the Tiger, but simply neglected) as comprising a satisfying ending, unless they’re specifically to set up for a future story – and even so, there should be some resolution of plot within the confines of the story being told. The only satisfaction of a truly unfinished story is if the reader gets the ending at some point. If that point comes too late, readers may have already abandoned ship.

There are all sorts of ways an author can end a story, but in the end, it depends on what they want to say to their readers, and who they are writing their stories for. So the question of what a satisfying ending will have to rest on the question:

Is it the Lady or the Tiger?