Dear Readers, I apologize for the lack of a blog post last week. I was so pressed for time, I couldn't get myself to think of a topic to write about. Anyways, I'm on the last few thousands words on my work in progress, and I must say the journey through this book has been a very enlightening one. My characters have shown me a lot about themselves I never knew before. I can't wait to write more about them. I used to be so good at endings. In fact, I'd write the ending first, then write from there, but with The Earl's Son, I tried something different.
I will admit I did have an ending planned for the book all along, but I knew it would come about way differently than I anticipated. Of course, it wouldn't be a Victorian romance novel without the happily ever after!
Every book deserves to have a perfect ending.
Here are the different types of HEA endings:
-The hero/heroine gets what they desired and ends up happy.
-The hero/heroine does not get what they desired, but something better, and is happy about it anyway.
-The hero/heroine finds his/her original goals were flawed and changes for the better as a result, thus ending up happy in the end.
Unacceptable HEA endings:
-An unknown character shows up to save the day.
-An unknown conflict occurs that only enhances the conflict of the story.
-You keep the story going past an implied ending.
-You end a single title romance with a cliffhanger.
Your HEAs may be different than mine, but I hope you get the idea.
Here are some tips on writing the perfect ending:
1. Satisfy the reader. Make sure the good guy wins and the bad guy loses.
2. Tie up all loose ends. The main plot and all sub plots should be resolved. (Sometimes you could tweak this step for books in a series.) Your hero/heroine should also solve their own problems.
3. Make the ending flow with the rest of the book. The hero isn't going to walk away from the heroine at the end if he had spent the whole book chasing after her. Also, the ending should be obvious from the information given throughout the novel.
4. Match the ending's emotion with the beginning and middle. It's not fair to your readers to send them on such a wonderful adventure only to crash their plane at the end. This won't encourage them to buy anymore of your books.
5. Your reader should feel the same emotions as your hero/heroine. If they can't envision your character's happy thoughts and feelings at the end of a novel, you haven't fully developed your character's personalities, and you should address this ASAP.
6. Finish with a strong sentence. This sentence should be just as powerful as the one you started the whole story with. It could reflect your story's theme, explain the title, or you could restate the first line.
(For more information, please read: How To Write The End of A Novel by C. Patrick Schulze and Keys To A Great Ending by Crista Rucker.)
Thank you so much for reading. Next week, on Thursday, I'll be participating in the 18 And Over Giveaway Hop. I'll see you then.
One last thing before I go: Do you have any tips on writing the perfect ending? Please feel free to post your response in a comment (and subscribe if you haven't already done so) below.
Happy writing!
Diva J.
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