Are Happy Endings Necessary in Novels?

The quick answer, of course, is that happy endings are NOT obligatory in fiction. It is your novel and you can end it in any way you like.

This will no doubt come as good news if you are naturally drawn to the downbeat. But before you dismiss writing a happy ending for your novel out of hand, consider the options...

• One extreme is what might be called a "Hollywood" happy ending. You know the kind I mean - these endings aren't just happy, they leave you with tears spoiling your shirt and a lump in your throat it takes until morning to shift. (You know the whole thing is kind of syrupy, but you just can't help yourself!)
• At the other end of the scale is the ending that is so bleak it is empty of all hope. This variety of plot resolution might leave you in tears, too, but more likely you'll just feel miserable.

Now, there is nothing wrong with either of these endings. Your genre or subject matter or sensibilities as an artist might demand that you choose one or the other.

But if you want me to make a recommendation, I would suggest you avoid either of these extremes in your novel writing career...

• If you plan to give your plot a Hollywood-type ending, try to temper it with a touch of something not quite so happy - a price the character has had to pay on their journey towards achieving their goal.
• And if your novel demands a somewhat downbeat ending (or even an outright depressing one), then at least try to provide your readers with a crumb or two of hope - the possibility, perhaps, that although things aren't great for the central character right now, there is the promise of better days ahead.

The best kind of stories, in my opinion, are natural and credible ones, not artificial ones. Ending them in one of the two ways suggested above - happiness tempered by loss, or sadness with hope on the horizon - will ensure that they are natural.

Next Step: Now it is time to consider a different kind of ending altogether: a "Deus Ex Machina" One...