Rules and Story Synopsis My story is a sci-fi fantasy adventure series about two teenagers who get sent into the realm of dreams. The nightmare realm is threatening the rest of the dream world, and it is up to the two heroes to stop them. The book is a blend of Narnia, Inception / Paprika and Blade Runner 2049. One of the rules of the book is that if you die in either realm (dream realm or earth), you will return to the other but will lose your memories of the dimension you died in. I'm not usually a fan of the whole fake-out death trope, but I think in this instance it works because its fantasy and there's a caveat for cheating death. The two main characters are Sarah and Preston, best friends who eventually fall in love. Sarah has a mother figure named Naomi, who she feels indebted to for her years of care. Naomi took Sarah under her wing at a young age and raised her. Naomi dies in the dream realm at the midpoint of the series, and Sarah feels cheated because, in her eyes, she never got to do something of equal significance to repay her. There are two scenarios I'm debating for the ending of the series. From the story's inception, I have planned for a bitter-sweet ending. I'm having a hard time deciding which one to go with, or if I should consider an alternative altogether. I've always planned for the book to end with Sarah's death, but going about it in a way that is satisfying for the reader while tying up the overall story is tricky. 1) ENDING 1 - Sarah dies on Earth In the last book, we find out Naomi is alive on Earth with her memory wiped. Sarah is relieved that Naomi is alive, but heartbroken over her amnesia. In the final moments, Sarah sacrifices her life to save Naomi and Earth. After Sarah's sacrifice, Naomi's memories are restored and she breaks down crying. Preston arrives on the scene just moments too late, and mourns with Naomi over Sarah's dead body. Sarah returns to the dream world with amnesia, and both realms are saved from the nightmare threat. The book ends with Preston dreaming and reuniting with Sarah in a shared dream, suggesting that this may not be the end of their adventures. Admittedly, I created this version specifically so Sarah could fulfill her reciprocation arc. Even though this is a book, there's a specific song I had in mind that matched the scene. 2) ENDING 2 - Sarah dies in the Dream World In this scenario, Preston goes to Earth to protect it and Sarah stays in the dream world. Sarah dies protecting the dream world and gets sent to Earth to earth with amnesia. When Preston returns, he and the rest of the dream world mourn the loss of their savior. Both realms are saved from the nightmare threat. Meanwhile, Sarah lives her life with Naomi on Earth, both of them having the amnesia. The book ends similarly where it began: with Sarah dreaming. This time, she meets Preston and senses that she knows him, but can't remember how. The final line is Preston reciting the first thing he ever spoke to her: "You have something in your eye. Oh wait, it's just a sparkle." I am willing to hear anyone out if they have any other ideas regarding the ending, but overall I'm wanting to know which ending would be more impactful. I know its my series and I should end it the way I see fit, but if you guys think either ending would be upsetting for readers or otherwise not good, please let me know! Thank you all for taking the time to hear me out.
Ending 2 is more hopeful, and since I'm the kind of reader who prefers happy endings, I prefer it. However, it might be a little unfulfilling - it's kind of like the author waving a magic wand and resetting everything, which is pretty unsatisfying. The question is, which one do YOU prefer?
If you planned your story to have romance and it ends without it, chances are you're going to lose a lot of readers. Even if romance readers are not a part of your core audience, it'll probably leave a bad taste in the reader's mouth. Also, I would say if you're selling the story, Ending B will get you more money and readers in the long run. As for what you described in your story, I find it hard to imagine any parental figure wanting their child to sacrifice themselves, especially on Earth/the real world. It would be far from bittersweet for a mother to lose their child, and then go, "Well, at least my child's in a place where I can only see her if I'm asleep." It is a heavy thing for her and for the reader's to feel. Assuming there were more stories after that, I wouldn't want to keep reading them. Which reminds me, who's the target audience? If it's Narnia inspired, and you're trying to write for preteens/young adults, that should factor into how bittersweet you want the ending to be. But like you said, this being a fantasy, you could go with option 2 and have Sarah's dream-soul reincarnated or what not? Or, feel free to steal this, in the next adventure you could have Sarah's memories scattered somehow in the Dream world, and Preston hunts for them. Hope this helps.
I personally prefer the first ending, as it has that balance of the world saving the world through sacrifice. I don't plan to write any other books after that point, but I didn't want to leave the reader completely hopeless, which is why I left it open ended with the dream sequence.
Even though I personally prefer ending 2 (or I would if I was invested in the characters), I think you should write ending 1. It's a better ending and provides more closure. You could write both and see which one your beta readers prefer.
I see your point in terms of leaving a bad taste in audiences mouth, especially with the romance arc. The good news in this scenario is that this is the last book in the series, so having the reader anticipate another novel would be unlikely at this point. I get why option 2 would feel more hopeful, but I'm the type of writer that wants to make the audience FEEL something. I'll definitely consider option 2 before finishing the series though. I didn't want to leave the reader completely hopeless, which is why I left it open with both options ending in the dream sequence. Regardless, Sarah and Preston may be separated in different dimensions, but there's the glimmer of hope that they will be reunited. Anything can happen... this is the dream world after all. ne thing I didn't mention is that in scenario 1, when Sarah goes back to the dream world, she is reunited with her friends and sister, so its not like she's completely alone. Regarding the age range, it's a YA novel, so 12 - 18. I was one of the few people who thought the ending of Narnia was so shocking that it worked.
