: Re: Is it time to start closing up my novel? I realize this may be a duplicate question. I've seen, for reference [ How long can a first novel be? ] yet I think my situation is a little more

@Pope4766717

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the feeling that something is inevitably missing

Is exactly where a second act should end.

I had a major climax recently which ended with the death of a character very close to my MC, killed by an hostile, powerful entity. This thing had to happen for several reasons, but it didn't take my MC closer to her goal.

That's the ending of The Empire Strikes Back. Where Luke's father is 'resurrected' into a powerful entity, and not only is he no closer to his goal, he's minus a hand, has a friend frozen in carbonite and then abducted, Yoda's dead, and the plan is to go rescue them with the guy who almost just got them all killed.

It will feel rushed, and you'd better take less than three years to pump out the conclusion, because we're all waiting. I've mentioned the phrase an ESB ending more than a few times at SciFy.SE...

It doesn't sound like you want to, but check out Machete Order if you want to milk it for all it's worth. (after you watch SW and ESB, you watch the prequels to extend the best cliffhanger ever, which ends with RotJ - that begins with a darkly clad Luke whom we're not sure is still the good guy, given his father's behavior we just saw.)

Wrapping up a second act should just toss out plot coupons left and right.

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