The End

[loquax]

I've managed to get past the planning, the beginning, and the 'dreaded' mid-book, but in all honesty, I'm finding the end the most difficult part. I'm past 100k, and now I'm struggling with myself not to rush it. It's also really hard to gather up all of the major loose ends and come to a nice conclusion that will leave the reader satisfied, as well as wanting more.

Anyone else had this problem?

[Mike Martyn]

I've had that problem. All you can do is keep on plodding. Bear in mind that not every loose end needs to be tied up especially if they come in the first, say, 20,000 words. What do the characters "want" to do?

In my last (first novel) I intened to kill off some my two juvenile M/Cs at the and I did. It hurt since they were amalgams of kids I'd known growing up, me at that age and my sons and their friends.

It felt so wonderful to type "The End"

It will fell great for you too.

[maestrowork]

Hmmm... sorry. The end always comes the easiest for me. I guess by the time I struggle through finding the right beginning, and the mid-book hell, I know exactly how everything is going to end...

[icerose]

Yeah don't worry about word count at this point otherwise you will end up with an end that is cut too short and info dumps. The story shouldn't be too hard to tighten and if you go a bit over, it should be okay as long as you are okay. (And you can always cheat and put it in Times New Roman font which makes the page count drop.)

[loquax]

It's not exactly really hard, it's just the hardest part; much harder than the mid-book, which I thought was a bit peculiar seeing as that's what most people complain about.

[maestrowork]

It's not exactly really hard, it's just the hardest part; much harder than the mid-book, which I thought was a bit peculiar seeing as that's what most people complain about.

One of the problems you are having may be that you have too many characters and too many subplots -- they're spread out like vines everywhere... and why it seems so daunting to pull everything back together.

If that's the case, what I might suggest is focus on the main plot. Finish that. Put an end to it. Forget about all the subplots and tentacles. Then go back in your revision and weed out the unnecessary subplots or fill in the blanks to tie things together. Subplots are interesting, but only because your main story is satisfying.

[katdad]

The very end, the final scene that sums up the book, was easy.

It was the leading up parts that I found difficult to craft. But I stuck with it and I found that it came eventually.

Just keep working at it.

[loquax]

Trust me, I haven't come this far to stop. I'll do it if it kills me.

[victoriastrauss]

Hmmm... sorry. The end always comes the easiest for me. I guess by the time I struggle through finding the right beginning, and the mid-book hell, I know exactly how everything is going to end...Me too. Until about halfway through, I feel like Sisyphus. Then it's kind of level for a while, and then, as I approach the end, it's like rolling ever more rapidly downhill.

- Victoria

[Hermit]

In the words of some one that knows what they're talking about:

(on writing a book)
....start as close to the end as you possibly can.

[Akuma]

You could always destroy your career and insult your reader with the ending merely being "And then he woke up."

I wouldn't suggest this, however. :)
Getting all loose ends tied is noble but not always possible. Sometimes it's even better to leave some undone, which is done in intrigue movies/books (M.Night Shamalan is a good example).

[Button]

Beginnings and middles I like. It's the ends that drive me nuts. Maybe I just don't want to let go or something, I don't know.

But to get past it, read the endings of your favorite books. See how they end them. Even type them out in order to study them better. I find it helps to read other people's works to get an idea of what I need to do with my own.

[scribbler1382]

I love endings too, but I know what Loquax is talking about. Sometimes when you get that close and you know exactly the path you want to follow, it's hard to force yourself not to run. Unfortunately, I have no idea what the answer is. When that happens to me, I end up running...and doing a LOT of filling-in during the revision.

[loquax]

I think scribbler hit the nail on the head. The further I go in the book, the more I tend to underwrite.

I suppose that's what edits are for.

[KTC]

I have no problem with the beginning, the middle and the end. Sometimes I get the end about halfway through and quickly jot a draft of it before I forget. Then when I get somewhere between halfway and the end...I can't quilt the two pieces together. I sometimes think I am going to just let the ending go when it pops into my head halfway through and hope that an ending comes when I am chronologically ready for it. So, I don't have your particular problem, but I do have one very similar and just as frustrating. Hope you work it out! Good luck.

[Zolah]

I've managed to get past the planning, the beginning, and the 'dreaded' mid-book, but in all honesty, I'm finding the end the most difficult part. I'm past 100k, and now I'm struggling with myself not to rush it. It's also really hard to gather up all of the major loose ends and come to a nice conclusion that will leave the reader satisfied, as well as wanting more.

Anyone else had this problem?

I've never had this exact problem (since I'm a freak who loves middles and endings but takes months to work out the right beginning) but I think I know what you should do:

Rush if you want to.

If you're feeling this amazing build up of momentum, and you're rushing headlong for the end, then go with it. Chances are your sense of urgency and inescapable fate will transfer itself to the page (always good in an ending). Of course, it could also mean your ending feels a bit too hasty and rushed and that you don't tie up all the loose ends properly...but that's why you're going to put it away for a month after you've finished and then go back and completely revise it. Right? You can fix all that stuff later on, when you don't feel the hounds snapping at your heels. I always think the important bit is just to pin everything down on paper and type THE END - that's the really tough bit. Anything else can be revised. You've got all the time in the world for revising.

[cwfgal]

I write my ending as I go, making notes at the end of the document whenever I'm working on a plot point or scene that will require later resolution. Before writing the final chapter or two, I stop, print out the whole ms, and go back to the start to do edits and rewrites. As I go, I make notes on a separate piece of paper about the things I still have hanging or need to tie up or resolve in some manner. By the time I"ve done all this, the actual writing of the last chapter(s) comes pretty easily.

I almost always have my very last sentence in my head before I start any actual writing.

Beth

[Julie Worth]

Me too. Until about halfway through, I feel like Sisyphus. Then it's kind of level for a while, and then, as I approach the end, it's like rolling ever more rapidly downhill.

- Victoria

Same here. If the whole book were as easy and fun as the end!

[loquax]

I found the first chapter the hardest, and the rest up until where I am now has been a piece of cake. It's just strange that most people find it the other way round.

[Niesta]

I'm approaching the end of mine -- well, the final 1/3 -- and I tells ya, it's not a question of KNOWING what's going to happen, exactly. It's a question of feeling like I've run a marathon, and wondering if I really have the energy for the final miles.

Hoping for a second wind...

[Nangleator]

The further I go in the book, the more I tend to underwrite.
That happened to me, too. It's exacerbated by the style I chose of having my action scenes written with short sentences and little description. Of course, the ending of the book is the climax, which needs to be read quickly, and with bated breath.

Of course, it's so easy to end up pulling your reader out of the story, as if he's seeing it on an ancient TV from across the room.

Maybe the trick is not to want to hurry up and reach the end, but to try to enjoy the process, knowing that reaching the end means the beginning of months of painful revision.

[Kiva Wolfe]

<She inserts The Doors Greatest Hits CD>

In my book, Ben, the end, my friend, is never the end. Writers invariably edit, and edit, and re-edit, as I did over and over and over, yada yada yada, to get it right. Psst: I also changed my ending twice. I loved every minute of the process and own up to every single mistake. It's made me a better writer, and what I write much better.

You asked a great question and got us thinking. Thanks.

[triceretops]

I had a very difficult time not rushing the end of my book. I think I might have done so by getting gun-shy of the high word count.

Tri

[Jewel101]

Wow, good Idea cwfgal.

I got my ending planned so I don't think I'll have any more trouble than I'm having writing the whole book. Although, I might have trouble with the scene before......hmm

[loquax]

I agree with the fact that it's the final few steps before the end that are the hard part (seeing as I haven't actually reached the end yet).

The problem is that there's my perfect ending, the rest of the manuscript, and now I have to glue the two together as if they were never apart.