Knowing Where Your Story is Headed (So You Don’t Get Lost Along the Way)

Let’s paint a picture together: You’ve been going back and forth on where to start your story. When you finally have an inkling on where to begin, you open your laptop (or journal, or notes app), fingers posed over the keyboard in eager anticipation. However, in that moment, you come to the startling realization that the first sentence you write down will very much determine whether this project will reach the End or not. The nerves grow too much, worsened by the blinking cursor before you, and you decide, “You know what? I’ll try again another day.” 

For writers such as myself who tend to write linear stories—that is, stories which start from the beginning of the characters’ journey and conclude at the end of it—tackling the opening scene is perhaps the most daunting part of the process. However, here we’ll work together to try and overcome the anxieties of starting a piece. First, let us set our sights on the ending rather than the beginning of the story.        

Why Focus on the Ending?

It’s never a bad idea to know where you’re headed, even if the journey shifts or evolves over time. Like any moment in a story, the ending itself can change regarding its content and meaning. However, you’ll never know how the ending pans out if you don’t sit down and put the words to the page. 

Endings often (if not always) shape the entire story. Themes, character arcs, lessons, plot, etc., are viewed with a different lens than when the audience is first introduced to them. Endings can also determine how the audience ultimately reflects on the journey the characters go through—and yes, I propose that the destination does matter as much as the journey in this case.

Instead of seeing the ending as something obligatory, we can instead try to visualize the ending as a clear destination so that it can be something to look forward to.

Planners & Pansters (a Spectrum)

When discussing writing habits, two types of writers tend to reappear across conversations: Planners and Pansters. 

Planners, as indicated by their name, tend to plan and outline the major aspects of their story, from plot to characters to settings to themes. Planners often work through the finer details during the pre-writing stage of their entire process, from organizing character biographies to fleshing out the systems and structures of speculative worlds. Most importantly, Planners also work out how the characters move from Point A to Point B to Point C, and so on.  

Pansters, as indicated by their name, tend to write by the seat of their pants, figuring out the story (and its various elements) along the way! Also called Gardnerers, Pansters often start with a vague vision or concept, and allow new ideas that emerge in the moment to guide their writing throughout the process. Sometimes the way in which characters get to Point A to Point B is unclear, but Pansters are able to weave an imaginative bridge between story beats without knowing all the details ahead of time. 

Though writers tend to view themselves as either Planners or Pansters, it’s important to recognize that most writers tend to fall somewhere in between these two ends of the spectrum. I’ve met countless writers who plan out character bios and story beats down to the finest detail, but who also write cohesive plotlines by the seat of their pants. Figuring out what specific habits you carry as a Planner, Panster, or both, can help you identify your current strengths and potential areas for growth. While you aren’t required to have a fully-fledged ending in mind when you begin a story, having at least an abstract concept or destination in mind may help you figure out what aspects of your story may require a little more planning pre-writing, and what aspects are open to development later down the road. 

Things to Consider 

Here is a general list of things to consider and questions to ask yourself as you develop the ending of your story (in no particular order):

1. Tie Up Loose Ends: Have you addressed the main plot points and subplots of your story? What questions do you answer, and (just as important) what questions remain unanswered?
2. Character Arcs: Do your characters’ narrative arcs make sense in the grand scheme of the story? Does the emotional build-up pay off, or is there something about your ending which complicates or undermines the place you want your characters to be by the end of the story?
3. Themes: How does your ending reflect or complicate the themes and messages of your story? Does it offer a definitive answer to a particular argument your story makes? Does it leave room for debate about the questions your story invokes? Is it important that your story have a definite answer or response to these themes? What have you left the readers to ponder about? 
4. Take Your Time Ending a Story: I’ve found that many stories end abruptly or shortly after the climax, without leaving room for the characters to process and respond to the events of the climax itself. On the other hand, I have also encountered stories where the ending tends to drag long after the climax has occurred. Always pay attention to the pacing and tone of your work after the climax—sometimes rushing the ending or dragging it can undermine the effects of the climax on the characters and the story as a whole. 
5. Earning an Ending: Ultimately, endings should feel earned for both readers and writers. Readers should be able to come away from your story feeling glad that they picked up the book and read it from start to finish. While not every ending needs to be happy or finish on a good note to be rewarding, readers should be able to see why and how we start and begin the story where it does. On the other hand, writers should feel rewarded for reaching the ending of their story, even if their development of the ending actually occurs in the beginning or middle of their writing process. You’ve dedicated so much time, energy, and effort into your writing—you deserve to feel good about where your story ends!  

Conclusion

Regardless of what type of writer you are, I encourage you all to consider and visualize the type of ending you see your story having, whether it’s a dramatic breakup or epiphany, a return to the beginning, a cliffhanger, etc. Though endings can change and evolve throughout the writing process, having an idea of the destination you want to reach can help guide and even ease the pressure of starting the journey itself. Now go write, and remember: the journey does not have to be taken alone!

Written by Ri Herrera. They’re an English and Sociology major who enjoys speculating about the world within and beyond their writing.