A twisting ending
“That’s not her name.” A mama looks down at her new
baby and tries to wrap that special name around the person now in her arms, but
it doesn’t fit. That’s how I felt when I had about two-thirds of my novel, Finding Lady Enderly, drafted and done.
It wasn’t the name that bothered me though, but the core of the story—the
twist. It wasn’t that story’s ending, and it had to go.
The entire story idea actually grew out of the
original twist. It started with Princess Diana, and my mother’s speculation
that her death was faked so she could slip away to live on some island with the
man she loved. Originally, that’s what had happened to our dear Lady Enderly
who the heroine fears is kidnapped or murdered. But as I wrote it, and those
vague characters became flesh on the page, that ending was such a bad fit—and it
sort of felt familiar, like something I may have read before.
I blame Daphne Du Maurier for my addiction to
unexpected endings, and I delight in attempting it.
Here are my secrets.
1. I
give about 70% of my manuscript to a handful of readers and have them guess at
as many possible endings as they can. Then I throw them all away. I write
something totally different and unexpected. I did this for my debut novel, Lady Jayne Disappears, and happily
surprised many readers.
2. For
a manuscript that isn’t working, I outline the whole thing and mark where it turned
trite, forced, or predictable. I throw in something wildly unexpected right
there—even if I have no idea how it’ll play out. I let it ripple through the
novel and see what comes of it! My second novel was rescued this way, and I had
amazing, very touching scenes that included characters who were actually dead
in the first draft.
3. I
turn my ending upside-down and challenge myself to make it work. Even if I don’t
keep it that way, I often have lots of brilliant ideas to play with. I make the
character I intended to be the villain into a victim of heart-rending
proportions. I see where I’ve layered in assumptions and then prove them wrong
in big ways. (Oh, you’re cancelling out this suspect and that one because they
couldn’t possibly have killed your dad? Ok, that works. Except it wasn’t your
dad who was murdered, but this person over here. Dad just died of natural
causes.)
Most of all, my best secret is that I’m extremely
flexible, receptive to wild ideas and bursts of inspiration, suggestions from friends
and crazy dreams. Even if they seem far-fetched, I let them play around on the
playground of my mind. I have to be honest—nothing is more effective than
changing my novel’s ending as I write. If I’m surprised, the reader probably
will be, too.
______________________________________________________________
Joanna Davidson Politano writes historical novels of mystery and romance,
including her debut Lady Jayne Disappears.
She loves tales that capture the
colorful, exquisite details in ordinary lives and is eager to hear anyone’s
story. She lives with her husband and their two babies in a house in the woods
near Lake Michigan and you can find her at www.jdpstories.com. Author website/blog:
jdpstories.com - Social Media Links: www.facebook.com/joannadavidsonpolitano/ https://twitter.com/politano_joanna https://www.instagram.com/joannadavidsonpolitano/ https://www.bookbub.com/profile/joanna-davidson-politano
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