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My current WIP is a sci-fi trilogy. In my mind, it’s kinda a mix of Star Wars and Tron (if that makes any sense). But not plot-wise, just the technology, weapons and forms of transportation are a little similar. The first book is more like Star Wars, the second more like Tron, the third…..who know? I haven’t planned that far yet.
So anyway, I think I’ll title it Guardians of Airos (any other ideas?). It follows this teenage girl as she joined the Guardians. Long story short, her shortcomings because of her small size and lack of experience (she’s just out of the Guardian Academy) puts the team and the Queen of Airos in jeopardy. At the end of the book, the queen is kidnapped by her adviser who took over Airos and the Guardians have disbanded, blaming her.
Soooooo……..I’ve never written a sad ending like this before, and I don’t know how to make it work without readers being disappointed that the story didn’t really finish, or everything just turned out bad and wondering why they even read the book. I’d love any and all suggestions you may have! 😊
I'm a Kapeefer 'TIL WE'RE OLD AND GREY!
www.jennaterese.com@jenwriter17 Good question! I think you should leave the story with the characters feeling hopeful, even if it’s just a little hopeful, in the circumstances. You character should be motivated to set her wrongs right, and to improve everyone’s image of her, by saving the queen, or helping to save the queen, or doing her part in any way. If you can give her, the other characters, and the tone of the story in general, a sad yet slightly hopeful and optimistic feel, the reader will feel that, and will want to read on to the next book to see what happens.
That’s my best advice 🙂
Anyone have a second opinion?
@jane-maree @daeus @dragon-snapper @seekjustice @sam-kowalYou can pronounce it however you want.
Thanks so much for your advice! It makes a lot of sense. 😊
I'm a Kapeefer 'TIL WE'RE OLD AND GREY!
www.jennaterese.com@jenwriter17 You’re welcome! I’m glad it makes sense! It looks like mumbo-jumbo to me XD
You can pronounce it however you want.
@jenwriter17 I think an important thing is that the character needs to reach the story goal. (Though I may be wrong on this…) They might have something they thought they were reaching for the entire story, but it turns out it was just something else. They don’t reach the origonal goal, but they meet the second one. OR, they can reach the story goal, but have the consequences of reaching that goal be more dire and deadly than first thought. OR, they have to give up something incredibly important to them to reach the story goal.
I dunno though, you probably want to get a second opinion before taking my advice, because I am not totally sure.
Okay, I’ll give this some thought as I figure out the characters’ goals. Thank you!!! 👍
I'm a Kapeefer 'TIL WE'RE OLD AND GREY!
www.jennaterese.com@jenwriter Yes, sad endings can be tough because readers might feel dissapointed- the thing you have to keep in mind, is there has to be some kind of goal achieved at the end to make the story feel worthwhile. So maybe the ending’s very sad, but it has to has glimmerings of hope and accomplishment to it- say, the queen gets kidnapped, the Guardians disband, but in the very end the girl gets important intel on how to save the queen and one of the guardians rejoins her… and they set out to save the queen with a little bit of hope.
This article that was just published on KP is perfect for helping to answer your question https://kingdompen.org/how-to-craft-bittersweet-endings-that-dont-turn-off-readers/
*Giarstanornarak tries to melt chair*
Also, Daeus has 22 turtles in his signature.@jenwriter17 Sad endings are tricky to write, but also a ton of fun. Your character DOESN’T have to succeed in the story goal (if they do, there’s less sadness, in a way), but they SHOULD grow themeatically. If they fail in the goal, but grow and learn and have a great character arc, that will satisfy readers just as much.
Writing Heroes ♦ Writing Hope // janemareeauthor.com.au
Thanks for the advice! I think I’m beginning to get a feel of how to work an ending like this.
Hey, Jane! I’m ‘Jenna’! I follow your blog!!! ❤😊
I'm a Kapeefer 'TIL WE'RE OLD AND GREY!
www.jennaterese.comYes, this makes sense. The story doesn’t actually end, because there’s still hope!
I'm a Kapeefer 'TIL WE'RE OLD AND GREY!
www.jennaterese.com@jenwriter17 Even if it feels like they’ve lost, I’d still give them some sort of victory, even if it seems really small. A great way to do this, is pretty much what @jane-maree said. If they can grow as a person in some way, I think it will help the ending feel more satisfying. In stories, I personally find internal victories more exciting than external victories.
And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.
This makes sense too. I just have to make sure there’s some sort of victory right?
I'm a Kapeefer 'TIL WE'RE OLD AND GREY!
www.jennaterese.com@jenwriter17 I feel like that’d help give that spark of hope the others were talking about. Maybe the Queen’s been kidnapped, but the MC has an idea where her adviser is holding her captive. Maybe a character the MC has been at odds with throughout the book tells her they’ll help her find the Queen, or that they don’t blame her for what happened. Just throwing ideas out. I hope you figure it out! Endings are tricky things.
And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.
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