How important is the “Opening Scene along with a Good Ending –in a Story?”

I am sure you will agree with my answer— If you mess up the beginning, the audience will not continue reading, and if the end goes flop then the reader will forget all the delightful things that came in the beginning and might not be satisfied.

So first Let’s look at how the ‘Launch’ should be———

• First few crucial pages—-A Golden Opportunity to grab your readers attention—A good writer is one who can keep the reader turning pages. The first few pages are the most crucial because the reader will stop if he or she is not happy. Once a negative impression is created, they will not care for the book anymore.

              So, do your best to make that reader hold on to your script 

• The launch of your story can be exciting, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

              The script can be descriptive or laggard—which is fine, but there should be something that attracts and fascinates your reader at once. The opening controls the rest of your story. So, make sure your beginning makes complete sense with the kind of story you’re writing.

• The audience should be able to have an idea of the whole story just by reading the beginning. 

This is possible if you think that you only have those limited pages to pass on your thoughts on to the readers. It’s the block of dramatic action. It must be executed with efficiency and substantial value because it sets up everything else that follows. 

But if by the end of the few crucial pages, the audience does not understand what the story is all about, then it becomes a big problem. The reason why publishers ask for first 6-8 pages, is to see what your story is about, who is it about, and how strong a writer you are.

So, impress your readers at the launch, and you are able on your way.

Here are the ending Tips for complete success—

• Plan the Ending before– beginning to write  

              At least have an idea of how you want your script to end, if not deciding the actual ending. Know where your story is heading, with an end that feels right to you. You will get lost at some point if you are not sure how it’s going to finish.

• Be able to change ending later.

The tricky part is that as you keep writing and draft the launch, there are possibilities of the story changing and can have a slightly different ending from what you originally designed, which is fine. Even totally deviating from the planned plot is also ok. 

 The ultimate truth is that—the beginnings are demanding, and the ends are way too challenging—

Endings have to make an actual impact, for the reader to keep coming for more. It should be able to make an emotional thump, should not feel like a forced or fabricated ending and must be able to connect with the beginning and the body of the script. Or else it can sound like all that came before, went in vain. No abrupt endings, please. Don’t make the ending negative. It should be positive at the same time, sound natural.

Leave your audience smiling from ear to ear when they put down your book. There is so much that goes into a story writing, so think before you leap.

Therefore, beginnings and endings should be at the forefront of your mind as you write and revise!