Writing Twists
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Deborah Owen
If you are still in doubt as to which class you should take, send a 1,000 word story or a 200 word article to deborahowen@cwinst.com and ask for an evaluation. (Join our Short Story/Article Writing Contest from Aug. 1 - Sept. 30, 2008) Compliments of http://www.creativewritinginstitute.com. By Deborah Owen
Published on 10th November, 2008
Twisting the ending of a story is like putting icing on a cake, a cherry on top of a sundae, or nuts in brownies It is the ultimate satisfaction
Twisting the ending of a story is like putting icing on a cake, a cherry on top of a sundae, or nuts in brownies. It is the ultimate satisfaction.
I'm supposing that most writers go through the same learning process that I did. In the early days, my first attention went to the opening line, the plot, climax, and logical end. (Which is the wrong order, but that’s another article.) Twisting the ending didn't occur to me for many years, and when I finally did it, it was by accident. Now I like to twist almost every ending. If you learn to do it once, you can do it every time thereafter.
The skill of a twisted ending is in misleading the reader to believe something different than what is really going to happen. Sometimes the writers, themselves, don’t know what their ending is going to be. If that is your case, you will have a lot of trouble twisting the ending.
Stop and think about where your story is going. What is the logical ending? Next, think of an alternative ending that would surprise the reader. Now, find a common denominator between the two endings where you can make the flow similar, and then split the story line off in an unsuspecting direction at the last minute.
One good twist is to take the reader back to the beginning scene of the story. This is called the loop effect. For example: I wrote a story where a man sat in the doctor’s office and listened to patients giving personal information. Knowing when a certain lady would not be home, he went to steal her jewels for the sheer excitement of it. The loop ending says he would end up in the doctor’s office again, waiting to hear more information. But another good ending would use irony. He could have entered the house to rob it, and another thief slipped in when his back was turned. The second thief thought the first one was the master of the house and he shot him.
Another example of irony: A man rescues a wolf and makes a pet out of it. The government decides the wolf is dangerous and they take the wolf away from him. He files a lawsuit against the government and wins. (Okay. We can call this a fantasy story.) He gets the wolf back and the reader thinks the climax has come and gone with the courtroom scene and the reunion with the wolf. The reader is coming to the end of the book, just half a dozen paragraphs left – and they learn that the man takes the wolf for a romp in the snow and the wolf tears his throat out.
Make your readers think they know the ending, and then pull the rug out from under them. This is what made Alfred Hitchcock so famous. When you watch his old movies, you’ll never figure out who did the dirty deed until the last scene. He was the master of twisted endings. Since his day, multiplied thousands of writers have learned to follow in his footsteps.
Have fun doing the twist! (See below)
I'm supposing that most writers go through the same learning process that I did. In the early days, my first attention went to the opening line, the plot, climax, and logical end. (Which is the wrong order, but that’s another article.) Twisting the ending didn't occur to me for many years, and when I finally did it, it was by accident. Now I like to twist almost every ending. If you learn to do it once, you can do it every time thereafter.
The skill of a twisted ending is in misleading the reader to believe something different than what is really going to happen. Sometimes the writers, themselves, don’t know what their ending is going to be. If that is your case, you will have a lot of trouble twisting the ending.
Stop and think about where your story is going. What is the logical ending? Next, think of an alternative ending that would surprise the reader. Now, find a common denominator between the two endings where you can make the flow similar, and then split the story line off in an unsuspecting direction at the last minute.
One good twist is to take the reader back to the beginning scene of the story. This is called the loop effect. For example: I wrote a story where a man sat in the doctor’s office and listened to patients giving personal information. Knowing when a certain lady would not be home, he went to steal her jewels for the sheer excitement of it. The loop ending says he would end up in the doctor’s office again, waiting to hear more information. But another good ending would use irony. He could have entered the house to rob it, and another thief slipped in when his back was turned. The second thief thought the first one was the master of the house and he shot him.
Another example of irony: A man rescues a wolf and makes a pet out of it. The government decides the wolf is dangerous and they take the wolf away from him. He files a lawsuit against the government and wins. (Okay. We can call this a fantasy story.) He gets the wolf back and the reader thinks the climax has come and gone with the courtroom scene and the reunion with the wolf. The reader is coming to the end of the book, just half a dozen paragraphs left – and they learn that the man takes the wolf for a romp in the snow and the wolf tears his throat out.
Make your readers think they know the ending, and then pull the rug out from under them. This is what made Alfred Hitchcock so famous. When you watch his old movies, you’ll never figure out who did the dirty deed until the last scene. He was the master of twisted endings. Since his day, multiplied thousands of writers have learned to follow in his footsteps.
Have fun doing the twist! (See below)