End a Short Story

Short stories, when pulled together effectively, are refreshing little tidbits that can provide a valuable escape from everyday routines without having to commit to a huge novel. If you have your story all figured out until the end and don't know what to do next, remember that even the best writers hit a block sometimes.

Steps

Evaluating Your Story (So Far)

1. Reread what you have written of the story so far. This will refresh your memory and allow you to evaluate what you've already got, and what you need to add. While you read, ask yourself some questions:
   • What is the goal of the story? In other words, what do you want your readers to take away from it?
   • Do you want a surprise ending? An abrupt ending? An inconclusive or open-ended ending? A happily-ever-after ending?
2. Consider what type of story you've written. Is it literary fiction? Science fiction? Romance? The genre of your story may help you decide what types of ending are most appropriate. Your ending should be related to what the rest of your story has promised your readers.
   • If you're not sure what types of endings are most conventional for the genre you've chosen, pick a popular author (like Stephen King for horror or Flannery O'Connor for literary fiction) and read a couple of their stories. You can learn a lot from reading how other authors end their work.
3. Create an outline of your story. Write short descriptive sentences that summarize each scene or important plot point. For example: "Larry goes to the store to buy bread, but forgets his wallet. He returns to the house and discovers a stranger sitting on his front porch." This outline will help you figure out the "bones" of your story: what happens, with whom, etc., which will come in handy when trying to decide on an ending.

Getting It Down on Paper

1. Brainstorm possible ideas. This part doesn't have to take the form of complete, polished sentences just yet. Your goal here is to produce a bunch of possibilities, so write down any and all of your ideas, no matter how vague, silly, or unconventional they may seem. There are many ways to brainstorm your ideas, so try out a few techniques and see what works best for you!
   • It can be helpful to draw a "mind map," either with pen and paper or on a computer. Start with what you know about your story -- characters, events, settings -- and assign each element its own bubble. Begin to add details and questions, drawing connecting lines between bubbles to show how your ideas relate to each other.
   • You may also try writing down some keywords on index cards or small pieces of paper. Try putting your cards together in different combinations and see if you like what happens!
2. Examine what you've produced. As you consider your ideas, look for themes, patterns, and repetitions. Are there ideas or characters that seem particularly important? Your ending will likely need to deal with those.
   • If you're having trouble picking a direction, try making a list of what your characters want. Characters with strong wants or needs are more compelling to your audience. Famous author Kurt Vonnegut once said that "Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water." Ask yourself: Have your characters achieved their desires, or not? What could be the consequences of where your characters are now?
   • If you're still stuck, try figuring out what problems or themes your story has introduced. If there's a problem, how can it be resolved? (You could think about something like the Harry Potter books here: if the problem is Voldemort wanting to take over the world, what is the resolution?)
3. Free-write. Once you've thought about which direction you want your story to take and brainstormed some ideas, sit down and free-write for 30 minutes or so without stopping. Try to sketch out the ending from start to finish, but don't worry about getting the sentences just right and correcting spelling just yet. Focus on getting your ideas in order for now.
   • You may find it helpful to set a timer. Once your time is up, take a break and then come back to what you've written.
   • Find a quiet, low-distraction place to write so that you can focus on your writing.
   • Try to write for the full 30 minutes without stopping to self-edit. What you produce will probably be messy, but it's useful to get your ideas out all at once without breaking your writing flow.

Putting It All Together

1. Choose your favorite ideas from your brainstorming and free-writing. Make sure your ideas are consistent with the rest of what you've written; for example, a happily-ever-after ending might work for a romance story but perhaps not for a horror story.
2. Compare your potential ending with the story outline you wrote in Part 1. Make sure your chosen ending tells your readers what they want to know. Don't leave any loose threads hanging; for example, if one of your characters was about to have surgery in the middle of the story, your readers will probably want to know what happened to her.
3. Respect your reader. As writer Kurt Vonnegut advised, "Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted." Endings such as "it was all a dream" or "they were dead all along" are usually a bad idea, as they almost never resolve conflict or provide a logical conclusion, and this can make your reader feel like they were tricked.
   • Avoid the deus ex machina (literally, "god in the machine") ending, where something happens to occur in the nick of time to help a character overcome a difficult obstacle: for example, a detective in a suspense story only solves the mystery because he gets a call from a mysterious person who has all the answers.
4. Ensure that your ending follows the internal logic you've established in the story. Try not to "change the rules" on your reader. So, for example, if your heroine has never wanted to get married and she changes her mind at the end of your story, make sure that her reasons for that decision are shown throughout the story, rather than just having it suddenly happen.
5. Write out the final events in concise sentences. For example: "Millie walked to the closet. She listened to the scratching within and tried to overcome her fear. Suddenly she grabbed the handle and opened the door. A little mouse ran out of the closet, and she laughed." This way you know exactly what happens; you will come back and polish the language in Part 4.
   • Keep an eye on length. A good ending will be proportionate to the rest of the story.

Smoothing Out the Kinks

1. Add descriptive language to the passage you just wrote. Focus on concrete and sensory details. In the above example, you might describe what the scratching sounded like, and what Millie imagined could be within the closet that stirred her fear.
2. Re-read the ending. Make sure you've provided enough information about characters' thoughts, feelings, and reactions. In the above example, the ending might reveal that Millie was really just afraid of fear itself, and seeing the mouse made her realize her own silliness.
3. Re-read the story from beginning to end. Make sure you're consistent throughout; you don't want a story where one part is shallowly described while the rest of the story is described in even the most minute details.
4. Perform a "global edit" of your entire story. Here is where you can make all the final tweaks and changes to make your story read smoothly. Proofread carefully, make sure all your grammar is correct, and polish up any unclear or awkward spots in your language.
5. Share your story with a friend! Because you've spent so much time and effort writing the story, you may have a very different perspective of it than other readers. Having a friend read your story can help you discover if there are any places that seem confusing or out of place to readers. You may also find out that your friend thinks it's amazing just as it is!

Tips

• Sometimes if you're blocked in regard to creating ideas, it helps to make a web of your characters. Draw lines between a pair of characters, and then imagine a way they could know each other.
• Don't be too hard on yourself. Writing takes practice! Relax and have fun.

Related Articles

• Edit a Short Story
• Use an Incident to Develop a Short Story Theme
• Write a Great Short Story
• Begin a Short Story

Sources and Citations

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