When most of us think of the parts of a story that really stuck with us, we tend to think of the climax. It's that moment where things come to a head and the hero has that final fight, plays that last hole card, or (in some cases) where the bad guy wins. While that might not actually be the final page of the story, that's the part that takes the spotlight in most of our memories.
Unless, that is, the falling action falls flat on its face.
Some action falls harder than others.
Before we get into it this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron!
Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!
What is Falling Action (And Why Does It Matter)?
Falling action is the general term for what happens to the plot after your climax. If your novel were a workout routine, and your climax was your big, powerful lift that you needed to finish with an explosion of muscle and effort, then the falling action is the cool down that comes afterward. It may feel less impressive than the climax, but it's no less important to making sure your story is complete, and that you tie up all the loose ends in a satisfactory way (technically these are two different things, but more on that below).
Sudden, abrupt endings can be a serious problem.
Before we go on, yes, some stories aren't meant to have falling action in them. Maybe a novel ends on a cliffhanger, and the whole point is that you end on that note of high tension so that the reader immediately grabs the next book in the series to find out what happens. Maybe a short story ends with a hard slap in the face that's meant to shock the reader, with all the loose ends just left dangling in the breeze like cut cables in an elevator shaft.
But those are the exceptions that prove the rule.
Let's take a story like the Avengers. The battle of New York is obviously the big climax of the story, as it answers the question, "Will Loki defeat the Avengers?" Spoiler, he does not. When Iron Man blows up the alien vessel with a nuke, all the soldiers drop dead like puppets with their strings cut, the climax is well and truly over. The Falling Action, then, is our heroes realizing that the fight is over. It's when the citizens start coming out of the buildings, there's some cheers, and our heroes start clapping each other on the shoulders or roaring in triumph. Arguably it ends when Loki comes to from his smashing, sees the team holding him at hammer, arrow, and blaster point, and just gives up with a rueful smile.
One could argue that what comes after is actually the denouement. The battle is won, and we see what each member of the team is doing. Thor returns Loki to Asgard, Clint is heading off to spend time with his family, Steve is finally back and in his element, and so on, and so forth. We find out what happened to the cosmic cube, what's happening to our villain, and we are told how the major events played up so that we have a full, well-rounded conclusion.
Did we need all of that, strictly speaking? Could we have ended the movie with Loki groaning, and asking for that drink before he surrenders? Sure, we could have... but would it have been as satisfactory of an ending? Or would it have felt abrupt and final, rather than like a part of an ongoing series we were to come back for? That closure the final few scenes gives us is like a palate cleanser that helps really seal the meal, and brings the story to a satisfying stop, rather than just slamming on the brakes and telling us to tuck and roll on our way out the door!
Don't Skip Your Cool-Down
Now that we know what falling action is, and how it's coupled with the denouement, take a moment to ask yourself how you're using these ideas in your story. Are you letting your readers catch their breath, relax, and bask in a little post-climax cuddle with your cast? Or are you just kicking them out of bed as soon as the juicy part's done, and telling them not to let the back cover hit them on the way out?
A lot of the time we get so focused on getting to the climax that we don't take our time with the lead up, but it can be just as bad when we treat it as the end of the story when there could very well be stuff that should come after it. A deep breath, a cigarette, answering some of those critical questions we've been gnawing on the whole time; all of that matters, too.
Don't rush past it just because the tale's been told. Stay awhile, and give us the, "And they all lived happily ever after."
Looking For Some Free Reads?
If you're one of those folks who enjoys short fiction (or unique novels) consider checking out some of my other work! Starting with my ongoing fantasy series The Silver Raven Chronicles!
- Part One: Devil's Night: A ghost haunts the streets of Kintargo. It's gotten bad enough that many Dottari won't go into the old district of the city. Tonight one of them finds out why.
- Part Two: From The Ashes: After a night of burning, the new lord mayor addresses the public of a city that doesn't want him here. Chaos and violence erupt, and a resistance movement is galvanized.
- Part Three: The Raven's Nest: The so-called Silver Ravens need a base of operations if they're going to resist the occupation of Thrune... while this smuggler's cove might do, there are complications involved in using it.
- Part Four: Circles in Salt: The Ghost joins the Silver Ravens in a bold assault on a prison complex. Who, or what, he is remains shrouded in mystery, though.
If you're looking for some additional reading in the mean time don't forget to check out my full Vocal archive, as well as some of my other stories linked below!
- The Irregulars: My official contribution to the Pathfinder Tales, The Irregulars follows an Andoran unit as they throw a wrench into the gears of Molthune's war machine.
- Waking Dogs- A World Eaters Tale: For my fans of Warhammer 40K, this is a story I felt compelled to tell about one of the infamous World Eaters remembering who he once was. It was also dramatized by the channel A Vox in The Void, for those who enjoy audio renditions.
- Crier's Knife: My sword and sorcery novel, we follow Dirk Crier as he sets out to collect his wayward cousin from parts unknown. Dark tidings lie ahead, but those who stand in his way will learn why the mountain folk say only a dead man crosses a Crier.
- Marked Territory and Painted Cats: Join Leo as he gets roped into other people's problems on the mean streets of NYC. A Maine coon with a bad habit of getting curious, explore the world of street beasts in these nasty little noir mysteries!
Anyone who follows me on social media knows that I'm not shy about talking about just how ridiculously hard it is to make a living as a creative professional in general, and an author in particular. From breaking down what reads and watches from an audience actually translate to in Direct Donations Really Are The Best Way to Help The Creators You Love, to pointing out that pay rates for writers haven't kept up with inflation since the days of H.P. Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard, to talking about how Authors Can't Bootstrap Themselves to Success, fully half of this blog is dedicated to talking about the machinery of the writing profession, and the reality a lot of us are facing.
It's come to my attention recently that there are at least a few people out there who are "turned off" by me talking about these facts. How they don't necessarily think I'm a bad writer, but that I complain too much. If that refrain is starting to sound really familiar in this age of renewed union membership, worker fights against corporations, and the rise of Anti-Work, that's good... it means you're paying attention.
Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!
Talking About Money Shouldn't Be Taboo
There's this social taboo we've had in America for years that you don't discuss your salary. However, the only people who benefit from this are the company, because if nobody knows who's getting paid what, then we just tend to assume everyone is at least at our level. This allows the paymasters to keep the actual books closed, and to strategically undervalue the work of some people. Talking to your coworkers about what you're being paid is, in fact, a legally protected right specifically because this is a shell game companies have used in the past to underpay workers.
When you put your earnings out there, and everyone knows what you're being paid, it can only help you going forward. Whether it's giving your coworkers the information they need to negotiate their salaries with management (or as grounds for lawsuits), or tipped workers pointing out exactly how little they make in order to get the public on their side, there's more to be gained by talking about what you earn than there is keeping it to yourself.
The same thing goes with creative professionals in general, and authors in particular. In fact, I'd argue that it's even more important in these fields, because most people will work as a server, a cashier, or an office drone in their lives... but most people don't take a stab at writing novels, being a reporter, or making YouTube videos for a living. The primary things people think of when it comes to creative careers are the successes; either famous authors like Stephen King, or fictional authors like Richard Castle who have plot money as a result of their books.
So it's up to us to shatter the illusion that all the authors you see out there are making it. In fact, a majority of us have to work a day job, or depend on a spouse's job for main income, health benefits, etc. Real talk here, I've been a professional author for going on a decade now... most of that time I've lived uncomfortably far beneath the poverty line. And by the standards of my career, I'm actually doing a damn sight better than most.
The Responsibility of Knowledge
There is an idea discussed by Innuendo Studios that I will refer to as the Responsibility of Knowledge. In the video below the example is that someone in your friend group chooses not to buy shoes from a particular company because they did the research, and they found out this company utilizes sweat shops and slave labor to account for their low prices. Even though they are merely abstaining from this purchase, the very act of sharing these facts with their friends means those friends no longer have the option of making a blind purchase; they know what it is their money is supporting. As such, they have to deal with the knowledge that they might be part of the problem, even if all they wanted was an affordable pair of kicks.
What does that have to do with authors and their audience? Well, if you tell people the obstacles you're facing, and you make it clear what the conditions you labor under are, then you end up destroying a lot of illusions. The biggest illusion, though, is the idea that it's the author who's responsible for making or breaking their own career.
Because honestly, it's the audience that makes us... and a lot of folks in the audience don't want to hear that.
The closest job I have to compare it to that isn't a creative field is being a server. Because we could show up, provide A+ service, ensuring that everything is given to you in a timely fashion, check in on you regularly, and even slip you some bonus stuff with a wink and a nod, but when the meal is over it literally doesn't matter how well we did our job... what matters is whether the table leaves a tip or not. If a server had sympathetic patrons who want to reward them so that server will remember them the next time they come to this restaurant, then said server will go home with a nice roll they can pay their bills with. If they get people who think tipping is only for the best of the best, they walk out the door with little to nothing to show for the day's efforts.
And that's basically what it's like being an author... especially when you try to explain to your audience that they are the ones responsible for whether you get paid or not.
It doesn't matter how many articles we write, how many YouTube videos we record, or how many books we churn out. It doesn't matter how many social media posts we make, or what cons we go to. At the end of the day, we need the audience to finance us. Period, end of story. Whether it's sharing our work on social media to help drum up attention, leaving positive reviews so the algorithm notices us, buying copies of our books, or even becoming Patreon patrons, or tipping us on Ko-Fi, you decide whether we live or die in a very literal sense.
We're the ones fighting in the arena for your entertainment... but you're the ones who decide whether we fight another day by giving us your cheers, and your coins.
Champions need an active, supportive audience.
Knowing this fact means the audience has a decision to make. Do they value an author's work? Do they want to see that author succeed? If yes, then the burden of helping now rests on them. And while some people are all too happy to help once they know how, others will fold their arms, and demand to know why the author needs their help to be successful. Why is it their problem?
Well, because without an audience, we're just someone talking to an empty room.
Short stories are everywhere. From the days of the pulps up through the constant anthology calls publishers big and small put out, to forums across the Internet specializing in everything from creepy pastas to fan fiction, these truncated tales take many forms. While I've got a handful of novels under my belt at time of writing, most of my published work has actually been in the form of short fiction. Because of that, there's a habit I've noticed among a lot of writers who tend to work in smaller word counts... namely, it's an attempt to put a twist into your story.
For some stories, that's a good idea. However, it's not something you need to do every, single time. Trust me, if you feel obligated to have a twist, pretty soon it becomes the focal point of your efforts instead of just telling a good story.
Check this out for some of my bona fides on the subject.
Before we get into it this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron!
Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!
Beware The Tricksy Twist
For folks who don't know me, I grew up watching anthology sci fi and horror programs. From The Twilight Zone, to Tales From The Crypt,to The Outer Limits, this was where I was most comfortable.
Anyone who is familiar with with these programs probably knows that they often deal in twist endings to make a point. From the infamous Eye of The Beholder (where the woman beneath bandages is beautiful by our standards and hideous by those of the day she lives in) to Werewolf Concerto (where it turns out that the man on the trail of the werewolf is, himself, the werewolf... and the beautiful femme fatale we've been suspecting the whole story is actually a vampire) twists were these programs' stock in trade.
Plot twists like these are no mean feat to pull off, especially when you're working in text rather than a visual medium. Using tricks like word choice, perspective, careful framing of a situation, etc., you can still pull it off. With that said, however, it's all too easy to become obsessed with the twist rather than treating it as a component of the story itself.
Let's take the video above as a perfect example. The entire story builds suspense about the character's appearance. She's tried everything she can, and she's desperate to fix what's wrong with her. All the while she's reassured by doctors and nurses whose faces we never see. It builds this sense of foreboding, but it also puts all of our focus on her. So when our protagonist finally reveals her movie star beauty, we're momentarily relieved that all her struggles have come to fruition... until we're slammed back down, realizing that this is the hideous visage she sought to change! She then flees, and we see the legions of people who all have the same face. We see the fascist speech given by their dear leader about conformity to a single norm. We see her terror that she won't be accepted... that through no fault of her own she's been culled. Rendered an outsider. An Other.
The twist exists as a hammer to drive home the greater points being made by the episode about beauty standards, society, acceptance, and a slew of other social issues.
However, before you focus on the twist in your story, ask yourself if the story is served by a twist. Does the twist disarm your audience, leaving them vulnerable to the ending you're about to hit them with? Or are you just jerking them around? Because a twist needs to serve the overall narrative, and improve the story as a whole. But it's all too easy for us to focus on the twist as the end goal in and of itself, rather than as a tool we're using to enhance the story.
How do you know if you're doing that? Well the symptoms might vary from person to person, but for me a sure sign was that I was focusing on reaching the twist so I could get to the good part. This left other parts of the story underdeveloped and anemic, thus rendering the twist even less effective because the story hadn't been good up until that point. Additionally, if a twist seems to exist only for the sake of there being a twist, it's going to have a much smaller impact on the reader.
Always focus on the story itself. If it needs a twist, then give it one that really slaps your reader in the face! And if it doesn't? Well, there's no law that says you need one... especially if it makes the story stronger not to.
In The Market For More Short Stories?
If you're one of those folks who enjoys short fiction (or unique novels) consider checking out some of my other work! Starting with my ongoing fantasy series The Silver Raven Chronicles!
- Part One: Devil's Night: A ghost haunts the streets of Kintargo. It's gotten bad enough that many Dottari won't go into the old district of the city. Tonight one of them finds out why.
- Part Two: From The Ashes: After a night of burning, the new lord mayor addresses the public of a city that doesn't want him here. Chaos and violence erupt, and a resistance movement is galvanized.
- Part Three: The Raven's Nest: The so-called Silver Ravens need a base of operations if they're going to resist the occupation of Thrune... while this smuggler's cove might do, there are complications involved in using it.
- Part Four: Circles in Salt: The Ghost joins the Silver Ravens in a bold assault on a prison complex. Who, or what, he is remains shrouded in mystery, though.
If you're looking for some additional reading in the mean time don't forget to check out my full Vocal archive, as well as some of my other stories linked below!
- The Irregulars: My official contribution to the Pathfinder Tales, The Irregulars follows an Andoran unit as they throw a wrench into the gears of Molthune's war machine.
- Waking Dogs- A World Eaters Tale: For my fans of Warhammer 40K, this is a story I felt compelled to tell about one of the infamous World Eaters remembering who he once was. It was also dramatized by the channel A Vox in The Void, for those who enjoy audio renditions.
- Crier's Knife: My sword and sorcery novel, we follow Dirk Crier as he sets out to collect his wayward cousin from parts unknown. Dark tidings lie ahead, but those who stand in his way will learn why the mountain folk say only a dead man crosses a Crier.
- Marked Territory and Painted Cats: Join Leo as he gets roped into other people's problems on the mean streets of NYC. A Maine coon with a bad habit of getting curious, explore the world of street beasts in these nasty little noir mysteries!
