Twisted Endings

It’s no secret that I usually prefer happy endings.  Yes, I may write dark stories, but that’s in order to justify a happier ending.  Happy endings give us closer and validate why we picked up the book in the first place – to feel better.  I know that’s at least why I pick up a story.

However, there are some stories that are not practical for a happy ending, especially when the way it ends is the entire point of the story.  That usually applies to horror novels, and it seems I have a story in mind where it will apply as well…

So what creates the need for a less than happy ending?  It really depends on what the purpose of the story is.  Is the story’s purpose to give chills and create foreboding.  Books in a series sometimes need this in order to draw in the audience for the next story.  Sometimes, however, a writer just wants to have a story not end well.

As I said, I usually don’t like this.  But it is useful on rare occasion when an author wants to throw off the audience.  If your stories always end happily, then throwing the reader for a loop so that they can’t predict your work has value.  If it becomes a habit, it will turn off readers who expect a certain standard from you since those looking for less-than-happy endings are a completely different audience, but an occasional swerve can shore up an audience before it grows bored.  The ending still needs to fit the story, but it can make sense, even if only rarely.