Mark NewmanThe only endings that really disturb me, are the ones where the guy ends up in his lowest and the girl looses interest in him. For example: Gayle and a few of your other stories. You can be very cruel to your readers.
Yes, I’ve done that a few times. The Lilly Lane story ended like that, and so did The Good Witch. And the "Oh No!" stories all had the main character losing their chance for strength and power to an undeserving woman. But that was the point of those stories.
Contrary to some feedback from readers, I didn’t think the ending in my Jilly Milly story was a negative. Sure, Superboy didn’t get his powers back, but Jilly Milly got her comeuppance and learned a few things, and Superboy seemed happy with his superpowered neighbor. What did you think?
And what about A Real Fantasy? Was it too depressing for the main character to lose all his strength? In that story, he got to keep the girl and live out his fantasy. Is that a happy or unhappy ending?
I can assure you that no real persons have ever been harmed in my stories.
And do you find the endings in the Brandi series depressing or enjoyable? Of course Mark never gets what he wants, but he always comes back and tries again in the next story. And Brandi certainly is never unhappy … in the end. Her power just keeps growing in each installment. (although I don’t know how I’ll make her any more powerful than she is now)
Anyway, I don’t want my stories to repeat themselves. I like to keep my readers off balance, so you’ll never know quite how my story will end. Let me know if I fall into any disagreeable patterns.
(Except that I can tell you now, the Mark in the Brandi series will NEVER get what he wants!)