Last week I posted Steps 1-5 for what should be included in the second half of your NaNoWriMo Novel. Here are steps 6-10. I hope these help.
6. Give Side Characters A Chance To Be Heroes
Remember all those supporting/comic relief characters you introduced along the way? Chances are they’re your readers’ favorite characters. (Seriously, whose favorite Star Wars character is Luke Skywalker?) Readers want to see the supporting caste shine. Whether they’re the ones driving the hero to the airport (or space station) to stop the love of their life from leaving forever or they’re the one who defeats the villain’s subordinate, give them a chance to be a hero for a moment.
7. Give Your NaNoWriMo Novel A Twist
There’s a reason so many stories have surprise endings. They’re memorable and if you provide enough foreshadowing, readers will read the story again just to see how all the pieces fit together. But even if your NanoWriMo novel doesn’t have an Agatha Christie, pull-the-rug-out-from-under-you style ending, still give us a twist. Don’t have the hero show up to the climax and everything goes as planned. Surprise us right up until the happily ever after.
But that being said….
8. DON’T End Your NaNoWriMo Novel With A Deus Ex Machina
The villain chases our heroine through a ravine, cornering her. He raises his gun. There’s no way out. Suddenly, a boulder falls off the cliff crushing the killer. Therefore, the story is resolved not through any skill the heroine possesses, but through dumb luck.
Far too many published novels and Hollywood blockbusters end with a Deus ex machina. The hero goes through so much just to escape in the end out of sheer luck or the authorities just happen to show up at the last minute. While you might think: “It worked for all those other storytellers. Why won’t it work for me?” I strongly suggest avoiding Deus Ex Machinas. You can do better. Have the final trial in your NaNoWriMo novel be overcome because of something the hero has learned, not random luck.
9. The Hero Needs To Change
There is very little writing advice (or advice in general) that I consider 100% universal. There are some very fine stories where the side characters never shine or the climaxes don’t have a twist. The 2002 film Adaptation concludes with Deus ex machina that actually works! But one piece of writing advice I do consider “universal” is that the hero should always change throughout the story.
Whether they have learned a life lesson or developed a new outlook, something needs to have changed. It shouldn’t be over the top (“You see, I learned something today….”) but even a casual reader should be able to detect some way that the protagonist’s personality has altered. Otherwise, what’s the point? Even if the hero just saved the world, it won’t feel satisfying if they are a clone of the person they were at the beginning.
10 Give Us A Moment Afterward
And finally, after the climax has come and gone, give us a chapter, or at least a scene, where we can see the hero relishing in the new world they are now living in, interacting with their found family, petting the dog they adopted along the way. You reader has enjoyed all the trials and tribulations you have thrown at your hero, reward them with a moment of joy.
However, your NaNoWriMo novel might not have a “joyful” ending. Some of the greatest works of literature are tragedies. The only thing I would add would be: make sure there is a human lesson to be learned from the hero’s failure. Your story shouldn’t be “life sucks and then you die.” Give us something concrete to come away with, a point for why your hero went through everything they went through.
