Here is my deeply scientific poll about endings in novels. I'm deliberately leaving out the choice It depends on the book, because that's a given, always, and besides, I suspect many of us pick novels because we're hoping for a specific kind of frisson at the wrap up.
Your answer doesn't have to mean you dislike all the other choices, just the one that stands out as the most appealing for you.
Your answer doesn't have to mean you dislike all the other choices, just the one that stands out as the most appealing for you.
Endings I prefer in my novels (generally-speaking)
I prefer happy endings
8(29.6%)
I prefer happy endings with a little sadness mixed in
8(29.6%)
I prefer small, sad endings
0(0.0%)
I prefer big, tragic endings
1(3.7%)
I prefer sad endings with a happily wrapped up romance subplot
0(0.0%)
I prefer happy endings with an unhappily wrapped up romantic subplot
0(0.0%)
I prefer stories with many POV characters, and a mix of sad and happy endings for them
2(7.4%)
I prefer pyrrhic victories
2(7.4%)
I know you said you were deliberately omitting the option"it depends" but I would rather thwart your attempt to gather useful information.
6(22.2%)
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Page Summary
- zornhau : I prefer endings... [+1]
- (Anonymous) : (no subject) [+5]
- rosefox : (no subject) [+9]
- nick_kaufmann : (no subject) [+1]
- wldhrsjen3 : (no subject) [+5]
- seawasp : Endings... [+1]
- seawasp : (no subject) [+1]
- geniusofevil : (no subject) [+2]
- corvidophile : (no subject) [+1]
- jryson : (no subject) [+0]
Comments
- 14 Jan 2019, 21:47Oh, yeah, excellent point.
- 14 Jan 2019, 21:46Oh yeah. Like the lawyers who get obvious really venal criminals off because it makes their success rate look good. But those are not the ones I am referring to in meaning well. These guys are mixed…
- 14 Jan 2019, 20:37This reminds me of the time my wife was injured and the insurance guy handling her case did everything possible to deny and stall the payment. We had to put her surgery on a credit card because this…
- 14 Jan 2019, 19:24The creepiest part is that some of them are actually well meaning.
- 14 Jan 2019, 19:08Yeah. It's godawful what people will do when they have authority and no fear about using it.
Comments
I'll admit that part of what I want from a genre is the sort of ending I most enjoy--for instance, I picked "pyrrhic victory" because so many noirish crime stories seem to come out that way, and I love it.
In contrast, I'm generally bored by love stories so I would never go for those.
That's what I get for leaving out "Something else I will describe in comments."
I don't like ambiguous endings, generally, because they make me feel like the rest of the story was pointless. And I don't like tragic endings, because really? Life is hard enough sometimes, and I read for enjoyment.
(Um, maybe I should here admit that I'm the sort of reader who nearly always reads the ending first... :P)
:)
How far from this you can go and still keep my attention depends on exact circumstances and how good you are at the writing. There are some points beyond which you can't survive going; projecting HOPELESSNESS would be a generally lethal thing for getting me to read your books (this is why 1984 and Lord of the Flies split their bindings on impact).
And I can't stand hopelessness either.
Or if it's a fluff book, I don't want main characters to die at the end.
But some sort up hope for the future is preferred in all cases.