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The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Endings

Endings

What’s My (Last) Line?

By Karen Ballon May 18, 2016
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Here are the sources of the last lines I shared last week:

“Maybe loving dogs… “A Big Little Life, Dean Koontz’s book about his Golden retriever, Trixie. Actually, the ending “The sign now includes…:” comes from the afterword of that same book. Yeah, I cheated. But I thought they both were perfect, in their own ways.

“But the good part is …” Shiloh, Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. This amazing novel won the Newberry Award.

“And you ask…” From First Paragraphs: Inspired Openings for Writers and Readers a lovely little writing resource from Donald Newlove. I included this both because I love it and because it made me grin to including the ending of a book about openings.

“He would be there all night…” To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee

“Tomorrow we will go…” Dancing on the Head of a Pen: The Practice of a Writing Life by Robert Benson

“However, a few days after …” Redeeming Love, Francine Rivers

So, of course, now that we’ve shared last lines that we’ve loved, it’s time to share our own! Yes, grab your manuscripts and/or published books and pull out those last lines.

However, we’ll allow TWO lines because sometimes, as Inigo Montoya learned, to sum up well takes more than one line. (“No, there iss too much. Let me sum up.”) Come on! You gotta know what book/movie that’s from! And yes, I intended to put in two esses, so don’t write me a note correcting it.)

But I digress.

This week, let’s see how you bring your books to a satisfying end.  Give us the title of the book, a quick one-line summary, and the last one or two lines.

This is the last line from my novel, A Test of Faith, about a mother & daughter who must endure the turbulent waters of their relationship:

And with that truth cradling her, holding her tight, she drifted into a deep, peaceful sleep.

Okay, your turn!

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Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Endings, Writing Craft

Happily Ever After

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon May 12, 2016
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Some people wonder why genre readers want to read the same thing over and over. Well, they don’t read the same thing all the time, and they have expectations. A primary expectation? A Happily Ever After ending. If you enjoy perusing book reviews on Amazon, you’ll find that many readers (primarily outside of genres, though genre fiction can have the first three faults as well), express similar …

Read moreHappily Ever After
Category: Craft, Creativity, Genre, RomanceTag: Endings, Genre, Romance

A Good End

By Karen Ballon May 11, 2016
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So, you’ve read the wondrous first lines of a book, been immersed in the journey through the rest of the pages, been enchanted and challenged, terrified and uplifted, educated and enlightened. And then it comes. The ending. The final words on the page to sum up all that you’ve read and experienced to this point. And these words, if chosen with wisdom and care, will echo through you, reminding you …

Read moreA Good End
Category: Craft, Creativity, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Endings, Writing Craft

Leave ‘Em Wanting More?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon May 16, 2013
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Do you like stories with unsure endings? Where you don't know if the main characters will live happily ever after?

I am a reader who doesn't like open endings, probably because I enjoy novels that are heavy on romance and I like to know the couple can expect a happily-ever-after. My personal preference is for a novel that doesn't beg for a sequel for the protagonist.

A Satisfying …

Read moreLeave ‘Em Wanting More?
Category: Craft, Creativity, Tamela, Writing CraftTag: Endings, Writing Craft

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