I'm kind of a weirdo, it is SUPER hard for me to write without an idea of where the story ends. And I have a small core cast of characters that I want to write a story about. So, does anyone have ideas for a fire-related story ending?
A bit vague? "Fire-related" could be anything from a bonfire/campfire, lighting the boiler to heat a new home, Fireman Sam's first day on the job, or the word that comesafter "ready, aim" at a firing squad, through to damage caused by Vesuvius, or the Grenfell Tower tragedy (a terrible fire in London a few years ago which killed dozens of people as it spread via inflamable cladding on the outside of the block).
It doesn't matter too much what the plot is. Whether it's romance, action, introspective sci-fi, etc., all stories boil down to what a character wants and then the realization of what a character gets. You should decide what that is in your mind first. It's three steps. 1) Define the goal/want/need. 2) Does the character achieve this? Just like those middle school notes: "Check yes or no." 3) Is the character satisfied with this? Check yes or no. Once you know if the MC succeeds, and if this resolves for good or bad, it gives you four different ending combinations. There's the basic MC-wins-and-triumphs, but there are also interesting twists, such as MC-fails-and-is-satisfied. Now you'd think there's not enough in those four endings to make any story, but really, they're all there. Maybe you could make even grayer shades out of it all to get more . . . I suppose that's possible, but those are the four extremes. (Now I'm thinking of that Takashi Miike film, 3 Extremes. I wish I wouldn't have said that.) So first clarify in your mind where you're going with this. That will tell you what needs to be in the story to make it work. It will show you all the subtle motivations and side characters that need to be introduced for maximum payoff. ------------ As an example -- I probably shouldn't use movies instead of books, but whatever -- the movie Slingblade is one of my favorites because the plot is near perfect. What the character has never had is a family (especially interesting when some of his past is really explained, it's miserable), and he finally finds a family, but there's a bigger story of what he needs, and that's to fill a role that no one else can. There's hints at this through the movie. There is a true place for him. At first glance, he's useless. He seems too simple to ever be necessary, but he can do the obvious while everyone else over-complicates problems. It's almost about destiny, which you wouldn't think he has, but he does. So where this Hillbilly with an IQ of 40 must be isn't necessarily where he wants to be. He must strive for failure. It's really quite an amazing feat of storytelling and I can't believe Billy Bob Thornton came up with this. I guess I confuse him with his characters. He's an excellent writer. I tried not to ruin the plot. Doublethink that out of your mind and watch that movie. Preferably with mustard and biscuits, if it don't put you out none, mm-hmmm-mm-hmmm!
So, I found what works for me is kinda different. I call it the Road Trip method. I'm gonna take a road trip to [destination], what's the most interesting way I can go? It prevents the meandering middle problem, because I know which way I'm writing to. I have my A, which B is most interesting in the direction of Z? Wash rinse repeat until you reach Z. Edit: In this case, I don't know where [destination] is, so I need help, and am trying to ask for it.
In which case, you have simply moved the goalposts. Now we don't know what kind of fire your story is related to, we don't know who your character is, or where he starts (A) or where he's going (Z). Some specifics would be nice. We can't help you otherwise. Since I've no idea where your MC (Main Character) coming from or going to, the ending might as well be: "And then the earth split in two, and everyone fell into the lava and were incinerated instantly. THE END." I mean, come on. Please give us something to work with.
