My favorite variation of a cliffhanger is the "into the sunset" ending. This is where the major dramatic questions of the story are resolved, but it is obvious that the characters still continue their lives and there might be more worth hearing about but, a Michel Ende puts it "...that is another story and shall be told another time." Leaving the world of the story while the wheels of the various narratives within it are still turning. It makes the setting feel more lived in and can be a very positive note to finish on if the reader can imagine the brighter future that will almost certainly come after the last page has been turned.
Love a bittersweet ending that has me torn whether I should throw the book away, or begin re-reading just to see if I missed something. Great video! Thanks for sharing with us.
1) Thematic Ending 2) Cliffhanger 3) Ambiguous 4) Humour 5) The Tie Back 6) The Skip Ahead (or Skip Back) 7) The Happy/Sad Ending 8) Description 9) End on Dialogue
@@timhouser They are already listed as timestamps, and it's a video that's not even 8 minutes long. People do themselves a disservice if they think the list of endings is the important bit here. Thankfully, that means fewer competent writers competing for publisher attention.
Edgar Allen Poe's suggestion to writers: write the end _first_ (then, write the story backwards, so to speak)... This has worked for me over the decades. It tells me where I the story and the main character are headed. The beginning will introduce us to a barely recognizable protagonist. The events/obstacles the author throws in the protagonist's path determine the protagonist's ultimate epiphany and changed outlook that we witness in the end. Be well.
just listening to you and thinking of examples of books that use those endings, I realized I did read much more books than I think I did (and constantly worry about whether it's enough to be a writer), that was a nice realization!
@@jeffmcmahon3278 And as an agent of change I can only act in the present, the _big_ NOW. The other two time "categories" do not exist. (a time's arrow thing, you understand). Be well.
A current writing project of mine has a thematic ending. The whole story has been about integrity and the overall character of the protagonist, what he will do in a given situation based on who we know him to be. At the end of the book he is given a perfect opportunity to exact as much vengeance on the character that put him through all the hell he has just experienced. He has a very strong desire to do so, but his only argument against this guy is that he would never do what he was framed for; which is precisely what he is tempted to do now. How is this resolved? Read my book to see. (If I actually get around to publishing it, that is.)
Brilliant video, concisely and precisely exampled. Thank you for these ideas. I'm with thefoxialbunny, below; what about mixes of endings? For example, a cliffhanger with a snarky ending.
I ended mine a four book series on a heartbreaking ending that wraps up the first series plot but leaves open a new story based on the unfinished business and the development of new characters
I’ve been told many times that in order to sell my novel to news agents that I have to sell it as a stand alone book without the need for another one. What should I do if the story doesn’t make sense to end there as the main characters have made progress, but have only really made it one step to their goal. Also, the ending that I have so far come up with involves them succeeding, but in a way that they have lost so much, for so little of a victory, and they now have to face new challenges. Would this be considered a happy but sad ending?
Great video! In your opinion, which are appropriate for the first book of a series by a new writer? I had planned to make it a cliffhanger, but I'm afraid it won't fly by the publishers.
If you resolve most of the storylines and then only leave one dangling (preferably a storyline that arose later on in the novel) then a cliffhanger could still work.
The Hunger Games has one of my favorite games endings-a sort of bittersweet epilogue. Katniss and Peeta have children now, who won’t ever have to fear the Capitol. Despite that light, she says that they play on a graveyard and they will never fully understand what happened before they were born (just as Katniss will never fully overcome it).
@Bookfox Hi John, thank you for your videos. I just ordered your book "The Linchpin Writer," it will arrive in 2 weeks, can't wait to read it. I have a question about the endings, it's not used in novels: ending with a poem. I wrote a romance novel, and I thought of 2 endings, but my favorite one is the one ending with a poem (the wife, who is also a singer, writes a poem to her husband). For me, it works because poetry is a symbol of romanticism. What do you think?
Maybe the best Dialogue ending I've ever read is the last line of the historical novel "The War of the End of the World" by Mario Vargas Llosa. After the true-but still-incredible saga of the slave rebellion, someone asks the old woman how she can be sure that the messianic leader and his followers really rose up to Heaven. She says "I saw them."
Is there talk about a "false cliffhanger"? I'd say it's when there is what, on the surface, looks like a cliffhanger, but the action isn't concluded in the book, because the result wouldn't matter for the theme. For instance, when the book ends at the start of a fight, because what really matters is that the protagonist decided to fight. (This is a real example, but I hesitate to spoil the book.)
Edit: I didn't thoroughly read the second half of your comment in which you said there was a book that did that. Mm, I personally think it would depend on what all the plot threads are. Does the conflict impact the wider world, even if the protagonist is the main story thread? Because if one is still loose, then by Bookfox's definition, it still counts as a cliffhanger. But if it only really affects the character's arc and the character is the main focus of the story, then...yeah, it might be. Although then you might argue that it falls under the category of thematic ending that merely resembles a cliffhanger. I think he also mentioned an ambiguous ending? I already forgot how he defined that, but maybe it's a combination of thematic and ambiguous ending where the characters have grown and changed and are ready to face the future, whatever it may bring. It might be sunshine and rainbows, but it might also lead to suffering and pushing through too. So it's thematic in that it resolves the character's main arc and whatever their internal conflicts were, but facing an uncertain future where anything might happen. That's the point. I dunno. Is that ambiguous still? I feel it's heavily thematic. Mm, I don't know if you watch anime at all, but I think I saw the ending of 91 Days this way. It's been a while, so I don't know if the ending misses addressing any of the wider themes at play, but if you don't mind spoilers, here's the basic premise of the series and how the ending occured (again, broad strokes because it's been a while and my memory is garbage). *Spoilers below.* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . So, on the surface, this is a mafia revenge story set during Prohibition. The main character was orphaned (his sibling was also murdered at this time) at a young age by a crime family. (I think his family had been working with them but wanted out. Which, as we all know, is a big no-no.) So naturally, the main character built his whole life around taking the crime family down. They control a lot of speakeasies and provided alcohol for such establishments, so the main character gets their attention by having his friend make some impressive moonshine to entice them. From there, he infiltrates the crime family and comes in close contact with the mafia's boss's son. The two build a sort of friendship despite the MC's plans. As mysterious deaths start happening within the family, an effort is made to flush out the traitor. Things happen, the mafia family is successfully collapsed, leaving only the main character and the boss's son alive. I think the son didn't suspect anything even immediately after the collapse of the family? But eventually he learns the truth and the ending takes place on a beach where the son might or might not have shot the main character. Again, I don't know if this is a false cliffhanger in the way you mention, where all is resolved implicitly, but at least in-universe, the personal conflict doesn't matter in the end. Why? Because the prohibition was ending by this point and there's no space in the world for these characters anymore. They were a relic of the Prohibition, and now they are no longer needed. In fact, they are undesirable. So to me, that might be an example of the false cliffhanger you're looking for. But considering Bookfox's definition (mostly resolved threads with only one plot thread dangling), most people would probably still consider this a cliffhanger. Because the characters might've still had some development that might've been shown in either the mercy or the killing. The story had been mainly character-driven, after all, even if the story's themes and motivations were directly tied to the setting. 91 Days wasn't, like, *overly* popular, but I actually really liked it overall even if the animation quality wasn't the best. I especially did really like the ending, even if my memory of it is a bit fuzzy by this point.
oh, I am a big fan of The Count of Monte Cristo! However I don't really get why people like the ending so much, probably because I wanted more of the book, plus am still annoyed that Andrea/Benedetto's storyline ended so ambiguously
Oh, I loved the ending of the book-far more than the end of the movie. The book’s ending reinforces the theme that sin has consequences, but redemption is possible. In the movie, he rubs his nose at God but still gets the girl and the son.
@@dorysmith2776 oh, that movie. I have feelings twords that movie and they aren't good ones (I even made my own video about it.) If you want a movie that's ending is basically the opposite, watch the Richard Chamberlain one. Mercedes' line at the end is so good
A book pitch isn't specific. There are formulas you can follow, like, "A does XYZ to/for/because of blah-blah-blah, only to discover rah-rah-rah (or so-and-so in the form of adj + noun) has sis-boom-bahed." That's a hackneyed way to do it, but it's a start. The key is to pull in as many intriguing buzzwords into the pitch.
Most endings should be uplifting or you’ll feel cheated. Like the end of Saving Private Ryan. Loses most of its rewatch ability because Stupid Upham gets everyone killed.
How would you recommend ending a novel which theme is based on the concepts of the raw laws of nature, and how it isn't evil in the humanic sense, but simply the cycles of the wild?
I will never write an emotionally ambiguous ending. No hallucinations, no cut to black right before a big moment. I'm OCD diagnosed and ambiguous endings, especially emotional ones, make me obsess until I regret my whole investment lol. I avoid stories if I know it ends with intentionally withholding information that would satisfy my reason for sticking with it
Yeah I hate ambiguous endings the most. I went through all the book expecting a climax then resolution, and I just get the climax and no clear emotional resolution. So I’m forever left with just the unresolved tension…
A storyline not being satisfying to you personally does not mean it isnt a valid way of telling a story at all. Sometimes unknowns are the only answer to certain questions.
My favorite variation of a cliffhanger is the "into the sunset" ending. This is where the major dramatic questions of the story are resolved, but it is obvious that the characters still continue their lives and there might be more worth hearing about but, a Michel Ende puts it "...that is another story and shall be told another time." Leaving the world of the story while the wheels of the various narratives within it are still turning. It makes the setting feel more lived in and can be a very positive note to finish on if the reader can imagine the brighter future that will almost certainly come after the last page has been turned.
Love a bittersweet ending that has me torn whether I should throw the book away, or begin re-reading just to see if I missed something.
Great video! Thanks for sharing with us.
1) Thematic Ending
2) Cliffhanger
3) Ambiguous
4) Humour
5) The Tie Back
6) The Skip Ahead (or Skip Back)
7) The Happy/Sad Ending
8) Description
9) End on Dialogue
Always appreciate when someone does this, and wonder why OP doesn't.
@@timhouser They are already listed as timestamps, and it's a video that's not even 8 minutes long. People do themselves a disservice if they think the list of endings is the important bit here. Thankfully, that means fewer competent writers competing for publisher attention.
ending are the hardest for me so having more then one might be good to try
*than
Edgar Allen Poe's suggestion to writers: write the end _first_ (then, write the story backwards, so to speak)...
This has worked for me over the decades. It tells me where I the story and the main character are headed.
The beginning will introduce us to a barely recognizable protagonist. The events/obstacles the author throws in the protagonist's path determine the protagonist's ultimate epiphany and changed outlook that we witness in the end.
Be well.
Eye-opening suggestions. I've watched hour-long videos that didn’t provide as much clear-eyed information as you did in less than 8 minutes. Bravo!
just listening to you and thinking of examples of books that use those endings, I realized I did read much more books than I think I did (and constantly worry about whether it's enough to be a writer), that was a nice realization!
this is terrific. thanks for all the great examples from real books - takes it out of the theoretical and into the practical. appreciate it!
Love your style, love your content. 👊🏿
“Tomorrow is another day.”
"And yesterday is gone."
@@jeffmcmahon3278 And as an agent of change I can only act in the present, the _big_ NOW. The other two time "categories" do not exist.
(a time's arrow thing, you understand).
Be well.
A current writing project of mine has a thematic ending. The whole story has been about integrity and the overall character of the protagonist, what he will do in a given situation based on who we know him to be. At the end of the book he is given a perfect opportunity to exact as much vengeance on the character that put him through all the hell he has just experienced. He has a very strong desire to do so, but his only argument against this guy is that he would never do what he was framed for; which is precisely what he is tempted to do now. How is this resolved? Read my book to see. (If I actually get around to publishing it, that is.)
Brilliant video, concisely and precisely exampled. Thank you for these ideas.
I'm with thefoxialbunny, below; what about mixes of endings? For example, a cliffhanger with a snarky ending.
I ended mine a four book series on a heartbreaking ending that wraps up the first series plot but leaves open a new story based on the unfinished business and the development of new characters
Thank you! I’m new to your channel. Could you do a list of ways to open your novel (if you haven’t already)
Great idea! I'll work on it.
Excellent video. Thank you so much!
Glad it was helpful!
I’ve been told many times that in order to sell my novel to news agents that I have to sell it as a stand alone book without the need for another one. What should I do if the story doesn’t make sense to end there as the main characters have made progress, but have only really made it one step to their goal. Also, the ending that I have so far come up with involves them succeeding, but in a way that they have lost so much, for so little of a victory, and they now have to face new challenges. Would this be considered a happy but sad ending?
Nice tips, man. What about mix two or three ends?
Cheers from Brazil.
I would be wary of trying to mix too many -- but sure, mixing two like humor with cliffhanging could work.
My Bittersweet ending ends up with my heroes dying, but their sacrifice ensuring a more peaceful world. Is it good?
Great video! In your opinion, which are appropriate for the first book of a series by a new writer? I had planned to make it a cliffhanger, but I'm afraid it won't fly by the publishers.
If you resolve most of the storylines and then only leave one dangling (preferably a storyline that arose later on in the novel) then a cliffhanger could still work.
The Hunger Games has one of my favorite games endings-a sort of bittersweet epilogue. Katniss and Peeta have children now, who won’t ever have to fear the Capitol. Despite that light, she says that they play on a graveyard and they will never fully understand what happened before they were born (just as Katniss will never fully overcome it).
nice summary
@Bookfox Hi John, thank you for your videos. I just ordered your book "The Linchpin Writer," it will arrive in 2 weeks, can't wait to read it. I have a question about the endings, it's not used in novels: ending with a poem. I wrote a romance novel, and I thought of 2 endings, but my favorite one is the one ending with a poem (the wife, who is also a singer, writes a poem to her husband). For me, it works because poetry is a symbol of romanticism. What do you think?
Tough to tell in the abstract, but I think it most certainly could work!
And hope you enjoy the book.
Maybe the best Dialogue ending I've ever read is the last line of the historical novel "The War of the End of the World" by Mario Vargas Llosa. After the true-but still-incredible saga of the slave rebellion, someone asks the old woman how she can be sure that the messianic leader and his followers really rose up to Heaven. She says "I saw them."
Is there talk about a "false cliffhanger"? I'd say it's when there is what, on the surface, looks like a cliffhanger, but the action isn't concluded in the book, because the result wouldn't matter for the theme. For instance, when the book ends at the start of a fight, because what really matters is that the protagonist decided to fight. (This is a real example, but I hesitate to spoil the book.)
Edit: I didn't thoroughly read the second half of your comment in which you said there was a book that did that. Mm, I personally think it would depend on what all the plot threads are. Does the conflict impact the wider world, even if the protagonist is the main story thread? Because if one is still loose, then by Bookfox's definition, it still counts as a cliffhanger. But if it only really affects the character's arc and the character is the main focus of the story, then...yeah, it might be. Although then you might argue that it falls under the category of thematic ending that merely resembles a cliffhanger. I think he also mentioned an ambiguous ending? I already forgot how he defined that, but maybe it's a combination of thematic and ambiguous ending where the characters have grown and changed and are ready to face the future, whatever it may bring. It might be sunshine and rainbows, but it might also lead to suffering and pushing through too. So it's thematic in that it resolves the character's main arc and whatever their internal conflicts were, but facing an uncertain future where anything might happen. That's the point. I dunno. Is that ambiguous still? I feel it's heavily thematic.
Mm, I don't know if you watch anime at all, but I think I saw the ending of 91 Days this way. It's been a while, so I don't know if the ending misses addressing any of the wider themes at play, but if you don't mind spoilers, here's the basic premise of the series and how the ending occured (again, broad strokes because it's been a while and my memory is garbage). *Spoilers below.*
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So, on the surface, this is a mafia revenge story set during Prohibition. The main character was orphaned (his sibling was also murdered at this time) at a young age by a crime family. (I think his family had been working with them but wanted out. Which, as we all know, is a big no-no.)
So naturally, the main character built his whole life around taking the crime family down. They control a lot of speakeasies and provided alcohol for such establishments, so the main character gets their attention by having his friend make some impressive moonshine to entice them. From there, he infiltrates the crime family and comes in close contact with the mafia's boss's son. The two build a sort of friendship despite the MC's plans. As mysterious deaths start happening within the family, an effort is made to flush out the traitor. Things happen, the mafia family is successfully collapsed, leaving only the main character and the boss's son alive. I think the son didn't suspect anything even immediately after the collapse of the family? But eventually he learns the truth and the ending takes place on a beach where the son might or might not have shot the main character.
Again, I don't know if this is a false cliffhanger in the way you mention, where all is resolved implicitly, but at least in-universe, the personal conflict doesn't matter in the end. Why? Because the prohibition was ending by this point and there's no space in the world for these characters anymore. They were a relic of the Prohibition, and now they are no longer needed. In fact, they are undesirable. So to me, that might be an example of the false cliffhanger you're looking for.
But considering Bookfox's definition (mostly resolved threads with only one plot thread dangling), most people would probably still consider this a cliffhanger. Because the characters might've still had some development that might've been shown in either the mercy or the killing. The story had been mainly character-driven, after all, even if the story's themes and motivations were directly tied to the setting.
91 Days wasn't, like, *overly* popular, but I actually really liked it overall even if the animation quality wasn't the best. I especially did really like the ending, even if my memory of it is a bit fuzzy by this point.
Honestly I may use one of those for the one I'm writing
oh, I am a big fan of The Count of Monte Cristo! However I don't really get why people like the ending so much, probably because I wanted more of the book, plus am still annoyed that Andrea/Benedetto's storyline ended so ambiguously
Oh, I loved the ending of the book-far more than the end of the movie. The book’s ending reinforces the theme that sin has consequences, but redemption is possible. In the movie, he rubs his nose at God but still gets the girl and the son.
@@dorysmith2776 oh, that movie. I have feelings twords that movie and they aren't good ones (I even made my own video about it.)
If you want a movie that's ending is basically the opposite, watch the Richard Chamberlain one. Mercedes' line at the end is so good
how do you do a good book pitch without revealing too much, especially if, in order to be specific, will likely have a major spoiler
A book pitch isn't specific.
There are formulas you can follow, like, "A does XYZ to/for/because of blah-blah-blah, only to discover rah-rah-rah (or so-and-so in the form of adj + noun) has sis-boom-bahed." That's a hackneyed way to do it, but it's a start. The key is to pull in as many intriguing buzzwords into the pitch.
Most endings should be uplifting or you’ll feel cheated. Like the end of Saving Private Ryan. Loses most of its rewatch ability because Stupid Upham gets everyone killed.
Mark of Athena. That’s all I have to say when it comes to cliffhangers.
Excellent
That's not how the novel "A Princess Bride' ends. Neither the story about Wesley and Buttercup OR the novel itself🤔
How would you recommend ending a novel which theme is based on the concepts of the raw laws of nature, and how it isn't evil in the humanic sense, but simply the cycles of the wild?
description of natural processes (decomposition, new growth, or weathering / whatever is next)
He wasn't hallucinating in The Giver, because he was never given the memory of music. He wouldn't know how to imagine that.
Life of Pi -- Pi is the tiger. Food for thought...
I like your videos, and I'm gonna give you a lil feedback: the sound effects are distracting. you don't need em.
4:57 so it did affect the trout population.
Kind of wierd to bring up Princess Bride but not the book's actual ending
Did he just say "the Count of Monty Crisco"? 😮
“It was all a dream”
The book I am about to write can have only one ending. And this is crucial to the story. Can't change it. Sorry.
It's Cristo, not Crisco.
I will never write an emotionally ambiguous ending. No hallucinations, no cut to black right before a big moment. I'm OCD diagnosed and ambiguous endings, especially emotional ones, make me obsess until I regret my whole investment lol. I avoid stories if I know it ends with intentionally withholding information that would satisfy my reason for sticking with it
Yeah I hate ambiguous endings the most. I went through all the book expecting a climax then resolution, and I just get the climax and no clear emotional resolution. So I’m forever left with just the unresolved tension…
@zenleek2129 Yea, it's bad enough for me that I never really trust the author/writer with my emotions again. Just finish your dang story lol
A storyline not being satisfying to you personally does not mean it isnt a valid way of telling a story at all. Sometimes unknowns are the only answer to certain questions.
@@jasminv8653 I never said it's invalid, it's just not a story I'd be personally interested in
HP was a bad example
You're talking about two different things here: 1) The way your the story/ies of your novel wraps up & 2) The final lines of your novel