Tag: epilogue

Happy Epilogues #MFRWauthor

EpilogueI like epilogues. I write a lot of epilogues, too, probably because I like to read them. To me, they finish the book. It’s all well and good to have Heroine A say how much she loves Hero A and vice versa, but I like to see that Heroine A actually ends up with Hero A and not accidentally with Hero B. Did they marry? Have a passel of kids? Move to Timbuktu? Inquiring minds want to know. And that’s what an epilogue does for me.

The only negative I can see in an epilogue is if a reader likes to finish the book in their own imagination instead of having everything spelled out. They would be the kind of people who would like that movie trend a whileHappily Ever After back where two endings were written and which happened was up to the viewer. Or the kind who want to envision their own version of the castle Cinderella and Prince Charming lived in—was it a condo on the beach at Malibu or more like the Biltmore House in North Carolina? When it comes to ending a romance, I prefer to know. I do enough imagining about stuff, like what I’m making for dinner—actual food or reservations. I don’t need to wonder about Cinderella’s living conditions. Give me a good epilogue any time!

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Dee
Mystic Desire: A collection of supernatural tales sure to keep you up at night, peering into the shadows! Or just wide awake, reading.
Only a Good Man Will Do
Naval Maneuvers

The End… Oh wait! There’s an Epilogue! #MFRWauthor

I’m one of those readers who enjoys an epilogue. I like it if a story ends satisfactorily, but I always like to find out what came “after.” Do the two The end or not?protagonists become engaged? Once they’re married are they happy? Do they have children? It seems that children or the announcement of a pregnancy are routinely in the epilogue of historical romances, and I like that little bit extra. It’s like biting into a chocolate—really good in itself—and finding a caramel filling that you didn’t expect. A step beyond satisfying and into the realm of happy.

Writer’s Digest gives six reasons why an epilogue is used effectively:

  • Tying up loose ends when the story itself ends abruptly.
  • To highlight the lessons told in the story and letting the reader know that justice has been done.
  • Detailing information not covered in the story, as in if a character is sick or circumstances are left unfinished.
  • Explaining a future for the characters.
  • Using a secondary character to explain circumstances and thus make the story more realistic.
  • Outlining futures for a large cast of characters.

I think all epilogues are used to answer the emotional questions a reader might have, though. And since I like romance, an emotional finish to a taleEpilogue is what I long to read. I have used them myself, and even enjoy reading them then. 😉

So, hooray for epilogues! Long may they live!

Dee
Naval Maneuvers: When a woman requires an earth-shattering crush of pleasure to carry her away, she can’t do better than to call on the US Navy. Sorry, Marines!