The Power of Words. What do you do when you can't find the ending

5/6/98
What do you do when you can't find the ending?

       What do you do when you can't find the ending?
       Re-read your beginning. Why did you open that way?
       Ask yourself what the story is about. What is the last thing you want the reader to remember?
       Read through your notes to see if you've included everything of importance. Most news stories don't require a finely crafted ending. Just stop.
       Often the best endings bring you back to the beginning. Look for ways to make that work for you.
       Write a couple of different versions of the lead. Sometimes, a second-choice lead makes a great ending.
       Just stop. Sometimes an abrupt ending is better than three or four aimless paragraphs in search of an ending.
       It's there. You've already written it. Go back and find it.
       Look to the future. What is happening next in a running story? What can we expect?
       Choose your ending before you start writing. Your first choice may not be the final one, but the process helps in mapping out the flow and line of the story. Also, it is much easier to change an ending than to search for one.

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