End Game . . .

‘I’m slipping into grey.
And I was (in my way) good to you.
And you were good for me.
Bye Bye my love.
Going to play the End Game…’

Ian Anderson – End Game

The relationship between author and reader is a close one  – or should be. You have created a world in which the reader has lived, laughed, cried, been scared (maybe) –  in short, has experienced every emotion going.

So how are your characters going to sign off? How are you going to end it?  There are quite a few choices:

• Suddenly (an unexpected disaster?)
• Violently (a sub category of the above)
• Reflectively
• Sadly
• Stoically
• Philosophically
• Happily
• Esoterically (ie you haven’t a clue what’s just happened)
• Unexpectedly
• Uncertainly
• Poetically

You can probably add a lot more to this list!

But returning to my trusty Shakespeare illustrations, old Will was really good at the end game stuff. Often he’d have someone wander on and sum up the play in a few verses, maybe evoking some of the above options, or maybe giving his/her take on the events which have just drawn to a (usually tragic) conclusion.

This can also work well in a modern context, where a revealing closing conversation between two leading characters ties things up nicely and leaves you in a satisfied, pondering sort of frame of mind.

As I write Crime novels and thrillers I like to end with the unexpected, or rather ‘the hinted at’, where something the reader has predicted might happen actually does happen, but not necessarily in the way they anticipated.

This works well because it ‘wrong foots’ the reader, and (if a big enough event) may either reinforce or even overturn their understanding of the novel’s theme.

Think of your favourite novel. How did it end? What did you like about the way the author brought the curtain down?

Sebastian Faulks’ powerful novel, ‘The girl at the Lion D’or’ concludes on a note of hope. But boy, do the final few pages make you sweat! I held my breath as the heroine was plunged into the worst despair ever before she finally won through and showed her incredible strength of character; thus was a tragedy averted by sheer will power and determination.  And let me tell you it was SO gripping!

Another of my favourite novelists, Rohinton Mistry, is a master at leading you to the inevitable without you realising it until it actually happens. Read ‘A Fine Balance’ or ‘Family Matters’ (btw, his characterisation is wonderful and very often it’s the characters themselves who dictate their eventual fate).

How about an epilogue? Well, I’ve seen the good, the bad and the pointless. A good epilogue is akin to providing the reader with a kind of literary airlock which prepares them for (and eases their return to) the real world. It can be written in a different style, a different tense. If one doesn’t occur to you naturally, don’t force it! Better no epilogue than an indifferent one.

If I don’t end with the unexpected, I must confess that I tend to the poetic (Will’s influence again!). But only after I have resolved all conflict and tied up loose ends! This is the camera shot that pans back and back and back and allows the reader to catch their breath, relax and enjoy the moment.

Here’s the closer from ‘The Trespass’:-

Towards the east a congregation of clouds was
gathering. Dracup watched the formation coalesce as
a zigzag of white lightning cut the horizon in two. He
rested his head against the padded seat and closed his
eyes. The Chinook flew on, into the eye of the
coming storm.

Over to you! Going to play the End Game…?

Walk on, walk off …

So, you’re writing your novel and of course it’s right and proper that you should spend time making sure your characters come to life – especially the main characters of protagonist and, if appropriate, antagonist.

If the characters don’t come to life your readers will be unable to relate to and engage fully with the novel.

Hang on, you say. I’ve done that. I can even tell you what my characters ate for breakfast in 1976!

Well, that’s great, but have you paid any attention to that much neglected and little considered species, the walk-on, walk-off character?

Shakespeare was good at these. In the middle of some terrible, agonising situation someone would appear briefly to make some witty or pithy remark before disappearing into the wings, never to be seen again. Sometimes they have no name, but are simply referred to as ‘Servant’ or ‘Messenger’. They would provide comic relief or, more seriously, act as a catalyst to propel the story forward or perhaps nudge it in a new and completely unexpected direction.

I’m a great fan of this type of character, both in my own writing and in the novels and plays of others.

And they’re brilliant fun to invent. You feel a bit like a chef mulling over which spice will be the perfect complement to le repas du jour.

While we’re on the catering theme (!), one of my favourite characters in ‘The Trespass‘ is Pam Dellow, proprietress of  Devon-based sandwich company ‘Dellow’s Delicious Deli’. The protagonist, Simon Dracup, is forcibly taken to an US air base where he eventually boards a plane bound for Iraq.

I needed a way for Dracup to get vital information to his only potential ally, DCI Brendan Moran, before he got on that plane.

Pam Dellow appeared in my head straight away, with her little white van and middle-aged fantasies about handsome men sweeping her off her feet and spiriting her away from delivery drudgery to a new life.

She was perfect, a little light relief and an important conduit for the next stage of the plot.

Cardinal Vagnoli plays a similar but subtly different role in ‘Black December’. He is a visitor to the abbey and, although he flits elusively in and out of the narrative, he seems to intuitively understand DCI Moran’s deepest thoughts. Instinct or something more sinister? Is he a suspect? Or merely a commenting observer of events?

So, add a little spice to your narrative and introduce a walk-on, walk-off character to your WIP.

You may be pleasantly surprised where your newcomer takes you . . .

The long and grinding road

George Orwell‘s quote, ‘“Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout with some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.”

. . . has never rung so true. I am almost at the half way mark of the sequel to ‘Black December’ and it’s not been easy so far.  Nor, I suspect, is it going to get any easier. Still, whichever demon (metaphorically, of course) is chasing me at present is still moving at a fair lick so, while that’s the case I’ll keep going.

Are you writing a novel? Are you exhausted with the struggle? Here are some of the remedies I’ve been using to ensure that my bottom attaches itself to my chair, the laptop is opened, Twitter and Facebook are avoided, and the file marked ‘Work in Progress’ is opened before me.

I’ll just say firstly that some of these remedies need to happen in the form of a morning or afternoon off, OK? My methods allow you to treat yourself (just for a short time, mind, so don’t get carried away).

• Have a wander around your local bookstore. If there is a Costa coffee shop on the premises, dive in and order your favourite pick-me-up before beginning a leisurely tour of the new releases, old favourites and anything else that tickles your fancy
• Take your laptop with you; you may find inspiration strikes while you’re within the hallowed walls. If it does, head back to Costa and make yourself comfy. Off you go! You’re inspired, and in good company; Balzac used to write in a cafe, y’know . . .
• While the wonderful mixture of smells (coffee and new books) percolates through your system, think a little about your plot, and how much better it is compared to the current number 1 novel’s plot (which it probably is, especially if the Fifty Shades trend is still flavour of the month).
• Have another coffee.
• And a chocolate twist if you’re feeling particularly wicked.
• If you’ve written and published anything before, remind yourself that if you’ve done it once, you can do it again.
• If you haven‘t finished a book before, think about all the completed tasks you have achieved in your life. Award yourself a huge pat on the back. See? You can complete tasks, including difficult ones, so be assured that you can finish your book too.
• Chat to one of the booksellers. They are mostly encouraging souls and will enjoy chatting to an author. If you have a business card, pass it on. You’ve found a new fan!
• If it’s a nice day, take a long-ish walk in the countryside (if available; if not, wander aimlessly around the shops). Think about anything except your book. You’ll find that inspiration strikes when you least expect it.
• When you get home, open that WIP and reread the last chapter you wrote. Sketch a few ‘what if’ scenarios to free up your imagination. Think about what your next key scenes could be.
• Start writing. After ten minutes you’ll be in the zone.
• Celebrate with a coffee.
• Enjoy the achievements of the day/afternoon.
• Go to bed (if you’re not still wide awake after all that coffee). And be happy! But before you do, remember: never leave your WIP at the end of a scene or chapter. When you start work again you won’t have to begin with the dreaded blank page.

Now, Chapter thirteen beckons . . .

SH after excessive caffeine intake