-4: Passing the torch
It’s time for the final scene, the tying up of loose ends and the recognition that Finn is not the boy he used to be. This is hard to write without spoilers. So instead, I will outline my goals.
1. Resolve all outstanding issues.
This is harder than it first appears. A story is really an interaction between the author and the reader, or the teller and the listener. I know what issues I intend to bring to the reader, but what issues has my reader brought to the story?
The African storyteller ends each story with a wonderful statement: This be my story. Whether it be sweet or whether it be not sweet, take some for yourself and let the rest come back to me. (Traditional). This statement evokes strong imagery for me. My imagination sees the story as something akin to a ball of dough. The teller put bits of dough together to make the story, and the listeners all reach in and take the bits that mean something to them. When I tie up loose ends, I need to imagine what bits to address, and hope I’ve imagined correctly.
2. Choose the right cast members.
I need to guess which of the many characters deserve to be in the final scene. Who will readers most want – need – to appear to say good-bye?
I remember giving an earlier manuscript to a reader before it was finished. When I got it back, the reader said, “I can’t wait to hear what happens to Jesper!” Jesper? He was a peripheral character who had in no way earned a place in the final scene. Boy, was I wrong.
3. Give closure to the tragedy.
We can’t forget that this is a real disaster. Bad stuff happened, and it’s upsetting. They say time heals, but over the course of one book, there is no time for that to take place. So I need there to be gentleness at the end, a sense of purpose and moving forward in spite of, or maybe because of, the events in the book. What did it all mean? Did the characters make a difference?
4. Elicit the “Sigh of Satisfaction.”
No explanation required.
I have allotted a thousand words to do all this. No problem, right?
