: The convention is usually that the resolution of the story is the resolution of the mystery, but if you want the mystery to remain unresolved, what is it that gets resolved at the end of

The convention is usually that the resolution of the story is the resolution of the mystery, but if you want the mystery to remain unresolved, what is it that gets resolved at the end of the story? Why does the story end when it does?

You might have your protagonist coming to terms with what he's done and with the idea that he doesn't know what really happened. You could leave the protagonist banging his head against a padded wall unable to accept that he doesn't know what really happened (which is a resolution of a sort). I understand it's moving away from the premise above, but you could have an epilogue with the antagonist starting the process again with his next victim - a resolution for the antagonist that the reader knows but the protagonist doesn't. Whatever you do, there will have to be something the reader can point at to say "this is why the story ends here".

Additionally, you could drop hints to the reader earlier in the book that what they were reading wasn't standard genre fiction - emphasising the protagonist's journey so this is more prominent than finding clues. You could also play with the idea of an unreliable narrator (several good examples listed on that page).

Whichever way you go, something will need to be resolved at the end of the book. If it isn't the riddle, the emphasis should be on what it is.

Load Full (0)

: How important is writing for games? I am trying to create a game that has a small plot (maybe more of a theme). The plot just describes why the characters are fighting each other. Other than

@Steve161

Load Full 9 Comments

: What are the risks and benefits of using humour in business/commercial writing? I know the basics here, and in technical circles it usually comes down to locking the Engineering Manager and the

@Steve161

Load Full 2 Comments

: There are several ways to have more than one language in your world. Here are some ideas: Your characters might be conversant in more than one language. If your characters are high-born or

@Steve161

Load Full 0 Comments

: Listing character traits I wonder if when talking about characters (in a book with a third perspective narrator) one can list their personality traits. I realize how that might be taking something

: The convention is usually that the resolution of the story is the resolution of the mystery, but if you want the mystery to remain unresolved, what is it that gets resolved at the end of

More posts by @Steve161

: How important is writing for games? I am trying to create a game that has a small plot (maybe more of a theme). The plot just describes why the characters are fighting each other. Other than

: What are the risks and benefits of using humour in business/commercial writing? I know the basics here, and in technical circles it usually comes down to locking the Engineering Manager and the

: There are several ways to have more than one language in your world. Here are some ideas: Your characters might be conversant in more than one language. If your characters are high-born or

: Listing character traits I wonder if when talking about characters (in a book with a third perspective narrator) one can list their personality traits. I realize how that might be taking something

Login to post a comment!

0 Comments

Back to top