Story Resolution/Wrap-Up (Part 6)
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This is one of the skills that can be confusing when you’re looking for information. It doesn’t have a consistent name. Algis Budrys may have coined the term validation, which is the term Dean Wesley Smith uses in various workshops and lectures. Deborah Chester calls it “poetic justice.” Reedsy uses denouement, though many of the definitions refer only to a mystery. Others use the term “resolution.” Still others refer to the ending as the climax. No wonder it’s confusing!
I’m going with yet another term, book wrap-up. Yeah, adding another one, but I don’t think the other options are very clear that they have anything to do with the ending. Resolution is often associated with the climax, and unfortunately, beginners are infamous for using words interchangeably without learning what they mean (revision/editing I’m talking about you!).
What it isn’t: It’s not the climax. If you’re having trouble with endings, you’re probably ending on the climax. The climax is the resolution of the story problem, but not the book wrap-up.
What the wrap-up is: It’s that little piece at the very end that tells the reader the story is done. You wrap up any loose ends, reassure the reader that the characters are going to be okay, and give them a sense of closure.
Many of the explanations of how to end a story are pretty poor. They talk at such a high level that it’s hard to know what you need to do. Nearly all of them miss the part about giving the reader story closure.
The wrap-up is hard to write, particularly if you’re a pantser or operating on a tight deadline. I often got to the end of the story and was so eager to finish that I botched the wrap-up. If you mess it up, you leave the reader unsatisfied. TV and film can also have problems like that, particularly because of the time constraints. All my examples are from TV shows you should be able to find on one of the free stations or being rerun locally. No need to spend money buying or renting a movie.
Where it didn’t work:
Adam-12, “The Search”: Malloy’s police car crashes off the road in Griffth Park. He’s badly injured, with a broken leg and is bleeding internally. Of course, it’s night, the radio doesn’t work, and no one knows where he is. Climax: Reed insists Malloy’s still in the park and eventually finds the wrecked police car. He races down the slope and finds Malloy bleeding and broken. Malloy sighs with relief and says, “Partner,” and that’s it. No wrap-up. What would the wrap-up have been? Showing Malloy in a short scene in the hospital recovering from his injuries so we know he’s okay. Reed could bring flowers.
Stingray (the Stephen J. Cannell version), “Playback”: This was an excellent series that always closed the loop on the resolution except for one episode. The episode revolves around a murder in a biosphere. I’m guessing it was a script written to fit the deadline, and it simply didn’t come together. Ray emerges from the biosphere after they’ve answered what happened, gives a flippant remark, and the episode just, well, stops. This was more disappointing than the Adam-12 example because it felt unfinished. What would the wrap-up have been? Ray meeting with the woman who hired him. He tells her husband’s name is cleared, which the episode needed. Then he gets in his black Stingray and the car vanishes (which it does in other episodes).
Where it worked:
Emergency, “Virus”: This episode is a fan favorite. Johnny Gage and Dr. Brackett both catch the Coki fever virus that the doctors can’t treat and is lethal. One person has already died. Climax: Johnny and Brackett are fading fast. No one can find anything that will help. The initial victim suddenly remembers that her choreographer also had a mild form of the virus. Phone call, plane flight, code three to the hospital, blood transfusion. Jump to maybe the next day, and Johnny looks much better. He’s been telling stories to the nurses when Roy comes in. Dr. Brackett, his roommate, complains about “Romeo.” But we clearly see that everyone is okay and will be back another day.
NCIS: Any episode. This is show nailed it nearly every time. Just watch that last little bit at the end wrapping things up.
Die Hard: This is the movie most like a novel. If you watch the beginning where the wife is talking on the phone and then watch the last scene, you’ll see that it’s been bookended. One sentence in the beginning tells you how the movie will end.
To do a wrap-up in your stories:
Make sure you’ve dealt with most of the plot threads before you get to it.
After the climax, do a scene break. There should be a time jump of some kind, even if it’s only a few minutes. But it can be a few hours or the next day. And wind it down.
Wait a few days (if possible), then return to the wrap-up and cycle through it again. Once you reach the end of the story, it’s easy to rush through, so another pass is essential to make sure it wraps the story up properly.
Resources:
The best explanation of this skill is Dean Wesley Smith’s lecture on Writing Endings. He also has a more in-depth course with the same name that analyzes endings. His Novel Structure workshop also covers it, though you will need to buy a copy of Die Hard.
Elements of a Short Story by C.A. Nicholason. This is an article about the various structure parts of a short story, including plot, theme, and setting. As I noted elsewhere, it’s opinion. Caveat: The author of the article says not to do much description. I think he means don’t get overblown with it, but that’s easy to misinterpret.
Story Climax by Jim Butcher. Scroll down to near the bottom of the post for a discussion on what he calls the resolution.
Fiction Formula Plotting by Deborah Chester. She studied under Jack Bickham and taught Jim Butcher.
