5 Common Problems With Endings

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy

Your ending is the whole point of your book.

This is the last post in my mini-series on common problems in beginnings, middles, and endings. Today, we’ll take a look at common problems with endings.

When a reader picks up your novel, they do so because something about the blurb made them think "This sounds like a great book." It might be the premise, the voice, the setting, or even a character, but something intrigued them enough to give it a try. How you end the novel and resolve the story will determine whether or not that reader raves about the novel the next day, or forgets about it before the week is over.

Oh yeah, endings have that kind of power. 

Because the ending is the moment readers have been waiting for the entire book (no pressure). It resolves the core conflict of the novel and puts the protagonist up against the antagonist, which is why the most common problem with endings is that they don't live up to that promise.

The only thing tougher than an ending is the middle. Except for the beginning.

If an ending isn’t working, it’s often because we’ve forgotten what the point of the novel was. We end the story, but it’s not the ending we promised, or it doesn’t resolve the things we set out to resolve.

Let’s look at five common problems with endings:

1. It's the Wrong Size

Structurally, endings are about the same size as beginnings (roughly 25%). They follow similar paths, but instead of getting the protagonist onto the plot path, the ending gets them off of it. When the ending is the wrong size, it either feels too fast and everything resolves so quickly readers don’t have time to absorb (let alone enjoy) the climax, or it’s so slow it feels like the novel will never end.

Endings that are too short: Look for places where the story is rushing to the payoff and not letting enough tension build. Watch for places where you’re summarizing the action instead of dramatizing it. Also check how the ending compares to the beginning size-wise. If one is 100 pages and the other is 35 pages, odds are a lot is still missing. Try fleshing out what feels sparse and slowing down a little to let the tension build. You might need more dialogue and internalization to flesh out all the action and description (or vice versa).

Endings that are too long: Look for places where the ending rambles on after the climax is over, or it takes too long to get to that climax. There might also be too much description or infodumping as loose ends are tied up and explained. Try resolving some of those issues earlier in the ending (closer to the beginning of act three than the end), or leaving some loose ends untied. Keep an eye out for excess description, infodumps, or internalization, as well.

(Here’s more with Does Your Novel Just…Stop? What Makes a Good Ending) 

2. It Doesn’t Resolve the Core Conflict

The whole point of an ending is to resolve the core conflict of a novel. But sometimes we forget what that point was supposed to be, and we end up solving a problem in the climax that doesn’t actually fix the problem posed at the beginning of the story—and the one the protagonist has been trying most of the book to solve.

Make sure the climax is solving the core conflict, and resolve the problem the plot set out to solve in the first place. You  might need to go back to the beginning to remember what that was, especially if you have a complex or complicated plot.

(Here’s more with Building Your Core: Internal and External Core Conflicts) 

3. It Doesn’t Involve the Protagonist

This is more common in large-scale novels with multiple point of view characters than single point of view stories, but it can happen anywhere. The characters have finally fought their way to the climax, but the protagonist isn’t the one who defeats the antagonist and saves the day. This is especially problematic if you could completely take out the protagonist and the ending still works.

If the protagonist isn’t the hero, then why have readers been following them all book? Put the protagonist back in the driver’s seat and let them solve the problem. It's okay if they have help, but they should be at the center of what happens.

(Here's more with Why Rescuing Your Protagonist Might Be a Terrible Idea)

4. The Protagonist Doesn’t Grow

In most novels, the protagonist is going to learn something and grow in response to their experience in the novel (the character arc). When they don't, readers can wonder what the whole point is and the novel can feel like a waste of their time.

Look out for endings (and arcs) where the protagonist has gone through all the deliciously evil things we did to them while getting there, but by the end, they learn nothing, and are no better or worse off than when they started. Had they not gone through this experience, their life would not have changed at all, or so little it doesn’t matter. They basically wind up in the same place as when they started with nothing to show for it.

Try giving the protagonist a character arc and a reason to experience the plot of the novel. Make what they do in the story matter to them.

A quick note here...not every novel needs a character arc, so this only applies to ones that do. 

(Here’s more with What "So Undercover" and "Miss Congeniality" Can Teach Us About Character Arcs) 

5. The Ending Doesn’t Fulfill the Story Promise

We make a promise to our readers at the beginning of a novel (sometimes before then, with what we say in the cover blub). “This is the type of story you’re going to read and you will have this reading experience.” Readers expect us to live up to that promise, and when we don’t, it affects how they feel about the book.

Look for endings that don’t match the beginnings, and don't keep the promise made at the start of the novel. Maybe it began as a political thriller and turned into a romance, or started as an adventure that turned into a story of self-reflection. Whatever the reason, the story promise made at the start is not kept, and the ending feels like it came from a different book.

Keep the promise. Try adjusting the plot to fit the story you want to tell, even if that means changing the ending, fixing the beginning, or adjusting other major events in the novel.

(Here’s more with What “The Intern” Can Teach Us About Keeping Our Story Promise ) 

The ending often determines how much readers like the novel, so knock their socks off and give them an ending they can't forget. 

Make sure it lives up to all the work you did to get there. Tug on those heartstrings. Get those pulses pounding. Bring tears or laughter, and resolve your conflicts in whatever way will best satisfy your reader. 

EXERCISE FOR YOU: Take five minutes and examine your ending. Does it have any of these problems? Is it working? Are there any ways you can tweak it to make it even stronger?

Do you have trouble with endings? 

*Originally published February 2016. Last updated July 2024.

For more help on plotting or writing a novel check out my Plotting Your Novel: Ideas and Structure.

Go step-by-step through plotting and writing a novel. Learn how to find and develop ideas, brainstorm stories from that first spark of inspiration, develop the right characters, setting, plots and subplots, as well as teach you how to identify where your novel fits in the market, and if your idea has what it takes to be a series.

With clear and easy-to-understand examples, Plotting Your Novel: Ideas and Structure offers ten self-guided workshops with more than 100 different exercises to help you craft a solid novel. Learn how to:

• Create compelling characters readers will love
• Choose the right point of view for your story
• Determine the conflicts that will drive your plot (and hook readers!)
• Find the best writing process for your writing style
• Create a solid plot from the spark of your idea

Plotting Your Novel: Ideas and Structure also helps you develop the critical elements for submitting and selling your novel once it’s finished. You’ll find exercises on how to:

• Craft your one-sentence pitch
• Create your summary hook blurb
• Develop a solid working synopsis And so much more!

Plotting Your Novel: Ideas and Structure is an easy-to-follow guide to writing your novel or fixing a novel that isn’t quite working. 

Available in paperback and ebook formats.

Janice Hardy is the award-winning author of the teen fantasy trilogy The Healing Wars, including The Shifter, Blue Fire, and Darkfall from Balzer+Bray/Harper Collins. The Shifter, was chosen for the 2014 list of "Ten Books All Young Georgians Should Read" from the Georgia Center for the Book.

She also writes the Grace Harper urban fantasy series for adults under the name, J.T. Hardy.

When she's not writing novels, she's teaching other writers how to improve their craft. She's the founder of Fiction University and has written multiple books on writing.

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