# Consider your Ending



## Kyle R (Apr 21, 2012)

... in relation to your beginning, as bookends to your story.

Here the prolific and (in my opinion, brilliant) writer John Irving shares his creative process.

[video=youtube;I2mId99XQYg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2mId99XQYg[/video]

Do you consider your ending when writing your stories?


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## Neath Lankly (Apr 21, 2012)

Well yes I personally agree with him, I know 'mostly' everything about my story (at least the important parts) that i'm telling, especially the ending. I also have an idea of my last sentence, but that might change slightly too.

To me, my beginning and my ending are crystal clear in my mind, there are scenes that are also important and are also clear, however there are grey areas in between that only becomes clearer to me when i actually put pen to paper.

I do think that everyone writes differently though, and I do think that some people might not have an idea of where they will take their character.


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## helium (Apr 22, 2012)

I have no idea how my story will end. Even when I begin, I have no idea where it will go. All I do is write and get ideas as I go along.


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## Trilby (Apr 22, 2012)

I kick stories around in my head for some time before I start to write them. By the time I begin to write I already have a beginning, a middle and an end; so I have to work on linking A,B,and C together.


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## Sam (Apr 22, 2012)

That's all well and good for John Irving. I have my own creative process. 

While it's interesting to here what the great writers say, you ultimately have to find what works best for you.


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## Robdemanc (Apr 22, 2012)

I know what I want the last scene to be, but I don't know the last sentence.


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## Cefor (Apr 22, 2012)

It's my biggest issue... not actually knowing what my story is leading towards. I can write by the seat of my pants as much as I like, but that's not going to help me later when I have to edit the bugger.

I want a story that makes sense as you read it, not that it just meanders along until I decide "that's enough".

I should really try and figure out my ending.


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## Kyle R (Apr 22, 2012)

I'm similar to Robdemanc, in that I don't know my final sentence, but I do know my final scene (or the emotional tone of my final scene).

It's the polar opposite of my opening scene.

Both scenes involve my main character. Though the final scene has my main character emotionally changed, a new person.

Generally my *first scene *is:

Main character, emotionally/spiritually flawed, unaware of it.

And my *ending scene*:

Main character, emotionally/spiritually "enlightened", aware of it.

From that I can identify my *Midpoint Reversal *(big plot twist in the middle of the story):

It's the point where the story forces my main character to take his first big step away from the flawed opening character he has been, toward the enlightened ending character he needs to become.

:encouragement:


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## shadowwalker (Apr 22, 2012)

Cefor said:


> It's my biggest issue... not actually knowing what my story is leading towards. I can write by the seat of my pants as much as I like, but that's not going to help me later when I have to edit the bugger.
> 
> I want a story that makes sense as you read it, not that it just meanders along until I decide "that's enough".
> 
> I should really try and figure out my ending.



Of course, it also depends on whether one is actually writing 'by the seat of one's pants' or if one is just rambling along with words. I do the former, not the latter, and never know what the ending will be until I get there.


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## abuistrago (Apr 22, 2012)

To me it depends of the story. There's stories where I know exactly what's going to happen. There's others that I have no idea where it'll take me and it's a constant crossroads.


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## LoneWolf (Apr 23, 2012)

I was actually thinking about this earlier today. If I get a really great idea I'll just start writing without knowing where it's going and the ending just comes. However, sometimes I'll start writing and know that it really sucks. So I'll go back and write the ending, then the body, and then I'll morph the beginning to fit the rest of the story. 

Now that I wrote that down and re-read it, I don't think that's very normal. But it works...?


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## shadowwalker (Apr 23, 2012)

LoneWolf said:


> Now that I wrote that down and re-read it, I don't think that's very normal. But it works...?



If it works, who cares if it's normal? A smart writer understands that sticking with the method that's worked before is usually a good idea, but sometimes a story demands something different, and we have to be flexible enough to deal with that.


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## Lizzie (Apr 23, 2012)

I now know how my trilogy will end and the second book, but not the first one, not at all. No clue. Nought.


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## Notquitexena (Apr 23, 2012)

I was about half-way through my novel when I decided how it would end, and I wrote the last couple of pages. After finishing the book I tried really hard to get it to fit those last two pages, but ended up throwing out almost the entire thing (I think I might have saved three or four sentences).

My take-away: don't get ahead of yourself.


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## Gamer_2k4 (Apr 23, 2012)

I don't see the point of writing a story if you don't know how it's going to end.


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## shadowwalker (Apr 23, 2012)

Gamer_2k4 said:


> I don't see the point of writing a story if you don't know how it's going to end.



To find out how it ends.


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## Clayburn (Apr 23, 2012)

Sometimes I get too excited about a character or a journey, that I don't know where they're going to end up.  And then I'm not sure what to do.  I mean, I gotta wrap up sometime....but how?  And does it have to be poignant?  I'd like to be able to just be like, "And that was all," with no tying up of loose ends.


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## Kyle R (Apr 23, 2012)

^ lol.

"And they lived happily ever after. The End."


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## Sam (Apr 23, 2012)

Gamer_2k4 said:


> I don't see the point of writing a story if you don't know how it's going to end.



Seriously?


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## Clayburn (Apr 23, 2012)

Gamer_y2k said:


> I don't see the point of writing a story if you don't know how it's going to end.



Sounds like an argument for suicide to me.


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## Gamer_2k4 (Apr 23, 2012)

Sam W said:


> Seriously?



Seriously.  For me, the conclusion drives the underlying plot.  Why are these things happening? Who's behind them? What's the ultimate goal? What do the protagonists need to accomplish?

I like to know these things before I start my story.  Otherwise, I feel like my work has no backbone.


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