National Storytelling Week: The End

The end. 

Fin.  

Slut (Swedish).  

Nailing the dismount. Tying up all the loose ends. Making your closing arguments.  

Reader or writer, the end always lingers the longest and can make or break a piece (no one talks about the first four perfect seasons of Game of Thrones). So, it’s always worth spending a bit more time making sure you’ve really made your point.  

Because when you approach the finish line, that’s all you need to do – drive your point home. I sometimes go through a piece and make sure I’ve accounted for every idea thread I threw out. Did I answer all the questions I put forward? Did I justify every opinion? Did it all make sense!?  

Once you’re sure you’ve made the argument/told the story you came to tell, then you conclude your conclusion. Write with the assumption that every point you’ve made thus far was not just salient but accepted completely by the reader.  

Because it’s all led up to this: the all-important call to action (CTA) – the true reason for this piece’s existence. All roads should lead here, so make your ending bold and make it memorable, but most importantly, make sure it energises the reader. Because if you did your job well, it should make complete sense for them to click on that final link.