It's been seven weeks since my last post and in that time I've reached the downward slope towards an ending of my novel. At nearly 35,000 words I feel like I should be aiming to finish in another 10,000 or so words. But there is a problem; a good one, but a problem nonetheless. The ending which I originally planned has changed. That's not in itself unusual. But what is different now is that if I go on and tie up all the loose ends that a reader might demand, I'd write another 10,000 words and the climax of the story would be too far away from the end of the book. I feel that the characters have developed a new story beyond my sight, a story that could just make this novel into a 70 or 80,000 worder. Mmmm. Or is it just another story, another book?
Of course, we know there is no such thing as an ending. Stories in real life don't just end, even with death. We know fictional endings are a necessary illusion, but we still demand them.
I recently read a snotty review of my latest book (most of them are favourable by the way!) by a blogger who said she/he thought the last two chapters were too clever for her/him and went over her/his head. Of course, writers shouldn't get precious about this kind of thing. People are entitled to an opinion. But it did make me think about the ending. But re-reading it, I still think it's just a case of lazy reading. The clues are there. I think a reader has responsibility for their reading as a writer does for their writing. If everyone said they couldn't understand the ending, then fair enough there's something wrong with it. But if you're the only one, then read it again . . .
So endings can be controversial. I prefer an ending where the reader has to interact with the text to decide how it 'ends' rather than be spoonfed the author's ideas. And with this novel drawing to a close now I have some big decisions to make to get it right.
