In this week’s Story Works Round Table, Alida, Kathryn, and Robert continue our discussion on dark endings. We talk about satisfying readers, and when dark endings just don’t work!
VIDEO
AUDIO
SHOW NOTES
If you haven’t heard part one of this episode yet, check it out here!
How does it affect the reader? We explore all sorts of dark endings, including twists, gut punches, and those that leave no hope remaining. The ultimate question you have to ask yourself is how it affects the reader. Because ultimately, if your reader is satisfied, the ending can be as dark as you want it to be!
What we talked about:
What is the payoff for a twist? (0:35)
Think about the element of the gut-punch. (2:44)
Can you have an ending where the main character both doesn’t get what they want and also doesn’t get what they need? (3:35)
Examples of plays with dark endings. (5:08)
How does it affect the reader? (8:00)
A Dark Ending is different from a sad ending. (10:25)
Do sad endings always have hope left at the bottom? (13:15)
What about short stories? (13:45)
Have we encountered dark endings that didn’t work? (16:53)
LINKS
Things we mentioned:
Peter O’Toole
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf
Long Days Journey Into Night
The Sixth Sense
Twilight Zone
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Want more about these topics? Check out:
SWRT33: Endings
SWRT 016 Cliffhangers
SWRT 069 How to End A Story