How do you write a believable ending?

[BenJepheneT]

Most of SHF's jokes are like Icarus; they flew too close to the sun and aren't funny enough to justify the quantity. However, this Frankenstein is of my creation (i swear to god if someone brings up how it's fRaNkiE's MonSTeR); it's only fair that I be a responsible father and perform the late-term abortion myself.

---

You've written through several hundred thousand words already. All of your characters have gone through their character arcs, from your side bros and your harem to the very protagonist themselves. The demon lord is dead. Twice. You've resurrected him for a plot twist and by some miracle, you managed to resolve that as well. You've hit the ceiling. There's literally nowhere else for your story to go.

It's time to end this.

Yet, as you stare blankly at your Word file, you come to ponder the ultimate question.

How do I end this?

We've all seen the happy protag-has-a-home-in-the-cottage-with-his-wife-and-kids ending or the-adventure-has-only-begun! ending but we all know those are cop-outs. I'm not even gonna humour rushed endings like "the demon lord ate a Big Mac and got a cardiac arrest while the MC was training under the waterfall". I'm talking about a real ending here, one that is gift-wrapped and ready to be recommended to an unsuspecting novice webnovel reader ready to experience an actual, no joke, finished story that's as completed as it is at the start as well as the end.

How do you achieve that mythical status where instead of plopping it down because there isn't a "Discontinued" option, you actually earned it?

How do you believably end the story?

 

[georgelee5786]

Kill everyone.

 

[Prince_Azmiran_Myrian]

Avoid just ending it out of nowhere. It should be satisfying for the characters and for reader's expectations. Maybe a happily ever after, there are no more story issues that need to be addressed, no meaningful remaining conflict.

Well, to start you jus-

 

[PeacefulMyst]

and like this, this trend ends how it started. I hope

 

[FiendsForHire]

Put 'The End' at the end

 

[NotaNuffian]

No joke, these is the list of what-not-to-do:

1. Write the ending of each prominent character with a sentence
Eg. Character A fucks a cow. Character B fucks a horse. Character C fucks himself. And they live happily ever after.
2. Create the worst open ended ending like I Just Want to Play the Game Quietly and leave more questions than answers. Questions such as "why is this author autistic?" and "Is he that bold to believe in a sequel?" The second question has a "Yes" for an answer, seeing how the author still has a fanbase.
3. Go on a fucking hiatus and no way to find you for an answer. If you are going to die/ hospitalised, please have the decency to put down the note that say you are dropping.

 

[K5Rakitan]

First of all, stop listening to your characters when they talk to you. What they want doesn't matter anymore. You've given them everything, and how do they repay you?

 

[TotallyHuman]

Most of SHF's jokes are like Icarus; they flew too close to the sun and aren't funny enough to justify the quantity. However, this Frankenstein is of my creation (i swear to god if someone brings up how it's fRaNkiE's MonSTeR); it's only fair that I be a responsible father and perform the late-term abortion myself.

---

You've written through several hundred thousand words already. All of your characters have gone through their character arcs, from your side bros and your harem to the very protagonist themselves. The demon lord is dead. Twice. You've resurrected him for a plot twist and by some miracle, you managed to resolve that as well. You've hit the ceiling. There's literally nowhere else for your story to go.

It's time to end this.

Yet, as you stare blankly at your Word file, you come to ponder the ultimate question.

How do I end this?

We've all seen the happy protag-has-a-home-in-the-cottage-with-his-wife-and-kids ending or the-adventure-has-only-begun! ending but we all know those are cop-outs. I'm not even gonna humour rushed endings like "the demon lord ate a Big Mac and got a cardiac arrest while the MC was training under the waterfall". I'm talking about a real ending here, one that is gift-wrapped and ready to be recommended to an unsuspecting novice webnovel reader ready to experience an actual, no joke, finished story that's as completed as it is at the start as well as the end.

How do you achieve that mythical status where instead of plopping it down because there isn't a "Discontinued" option, you actually earned it?

How do you believably end the story?

Carefully

 

[TheUnsuspicious]

before im gng to give my opinions, here is a recommendation

the video clears out a lot of things and gives you a more constructive step by step on how to end a story which helps out a lot.

and now to my 'completely-subjective-opinion-which-can-be-completely-wrong' humble answer.

to me, a good ending is when the story does not resolve everything or at least introduce another challenge for the MC and the others.
the ending simply closes by revealing that altho the story has reach its last page. the life inside this story however still has a long way to go.

the challenge does not need to be similar to the previous challenge, for example, if the story is kingdom building where MC has become the strongest empire. the story reveals that there's still internal affairs and rebellions inside the empire itself. The MC still needs to manage laws, public safety, improve healthcare. So all in all, the road to become the greatest empire are still far and long.

and for another example, the challenge can be living as a normal person after the immense growth of your character.
the story shows that although all the big wars and heavenly battle had happen. in the end, there will be a time of peace where the characters need to adapt and live their life.
the story shows that even a normal living life is still a challenge and not all problem can be solve with your fist. shows that even after all the adversities, your character is still not perfect, that your character can still improve further and beyond.

in a way, it is quite a common ending as you said before. that the 'true adventure had just began'.

however, unlike that, the story should show how far the characters had travel How much growth and losses had they experienced. the story should show that. No, the adventure had yet to end, but the characters have certainly walked a long and far road.

in conclusion, i really like it when the story tells us that there's no such thing as the 'end'. that there's always something to do and to improve. that challenges will knock at your door at some point in time. so you should never stop striving to become a better version of yourself.

 

[Alfir]

Open endings never get it wrong. Also, you can just axe the story before the ending, that is also an open ending. You can play it safe this way. Then finally and suddenly, one day, you'd have a eureka moment... 'Ah, the ending can be... (whatever)'

 

[MajorKerina]

I recently had one that I was really satisfied with. It was melancholy with a cap on every characters position at the end of the narrative but because it was basically an infinite story which never ends I left a little tease to what could happen in the future. The antagonist was defeated but they are working on a way to return kind of thing. Those are always interesting.

 

[doravg]

Most of SHF's jokes are like Icarus; they flew too close to the sun and aren't funny enough to justify the quantity. However, this Frankenstein is of my creation (i swear to god if someone brings up how it's fRaNkiE's MonSTeR); it's only fair that I be a responsible father and perform the late-term abortion myself.

---

You've written through several hundred thousand words already. All of your characters have gone through their character arcs, from your side bros and your harem to the very protagonist themselves. The demon lord is dead. Twice. You've resurrected him for a plot twist and by some miracle, you managed to resolve that as well. You've hit the ceiling. There's literally nowhere else for your story to go.

It's time to end this.

Yet, as you stare blankly at your Word file, you come to ponder the ultimate question.

How do I end this?

We've all seen the happy protag-has-a-home-in-the-cottage-with-his-wife-and-kids ending or the-adventure-has-only-begun! ending but we all know those are cop-outs. I'm not even gonna humour rushed endings like "the demon lord ate a Big Mac and got a cardiac arrest while the MC was training under the waterfall". I'm talking about a real ending here, one that is gift-wrapped and ready to be recommended to an unsuspecting novice webnovel reader ready to experience an actual, no joke, finished story that's as completed as it is at the start as well as the end.

How do you achieve that mythical status where instead of plopping it down because there isn't a "Discontinued" option, you actually earned it?

How do you believably end the story?

End with something memorable. Like a wedding, or an event where most of your characters are together. Whatever you do, don't give your readers a closed ending. Leave them with a couple of questions.