Friday 1 February 2013

The End... or is it?


 
 
This is the end, Hold your breath, And count to ten
(Lyrics to Skyfall by Adele)


Today I wrote The End of my romantic suspense novella ‘Voodoo Wedding’ which is the sequel to ‘How Do You Voodoo?’ - Yay!

But of course, it’s not The End really because despite editing as I write, I do know the manuscript needs a bit of a polish and I still need to smooth over a few tiny plot holes. Then I’ll transfer the manuscript to my Kindle for reading it as a reader rather than a writer and I’ll go back and polish it some more. Next week, I’ll send it off to my trusted Editor for a story critique and I’ll take on board her thoughts, and if I agree (she’s very wise and clever so I usually do – and she has an uncanny knack of telling what I suspected all along) I’ll work on it some more. Then it will be edited again for grammar, spelling mistakes, silly typos, layout inconsistencies, etc - and then, finally, it will be The End!


I thought you might enjoy these quotes on writing The End:

Frank Herbert

 “There is no real ending. It’s just the place where you stop the story.”

 
J.R.R. Tolkien

“Bilbo – have you thought of an ending?
Frodo – Yes, several, and all are dark and unpleasant."

 
Rose Tremain

“In the planning stage of a book, I don’t plan the ending. It has to be earned by all that will go before it.”
 
 
John Geddes
“My novels are like life – I never know where they are going until the end.”
 
And my personal favourite:

 It’s by Winston Churchill
“Now is not the end. It’s not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”
 

So writers – tell me - how do YOU come to The End…?

and how far off The End are you when you get there…?

 Readers – do YOU look for a happy ending every time…?

Have ya’ say and haste ya comments!