Technique: Eleven Types of Endings for Non-Fiction Articles

I know many writers, including myself, who spend conspicuous time working on the opening for a given piece of writing. But almost as important, if not as obvious, is the ending. For the readers who make it through the piece, the ending ties things up, helps create a sense of having read something substantial, and helps satisfy the need to hear the entire story. They are also as difficult, if not more so, to write well than ledes. Here are 11 types types - along with some strengths and weaknesses - to inspire some experimentation:

• Kicker - An ironic transition out of the last point or two in the piece. Can be humorous and even make an interesting point, but is more clever than profound.


• Summation - Provide a summary of the article's main point. This offers reinforcement of the most important thing you're trying to convey, but it can seem repetitive and pedantic.


• Take-away - One last point (not the main one) that you want the reader should consider. It provides additional emphasis, but only for those who read to the end. If the point is that important, make it earlier in the piece.


• Circular - You return to the theme of the opening for a sense of thematic closure. It ties things up nicely and delivers a solid feeling of completion, and yet if used badly can leave the reader feeling that nothing has changed.


• Quotation - Uses a quote from an interviewee as a final commentary. Generally carries an emotional weight of a problem that is ongoing. It's a sneaky way of doing a "time will tell" ending without saying that time will tell. Unfortunately, it's over used and may (but not always) leave an editor feeling that you've indulged in cliche.


• Inconclusive - Although popular in modern fiction, this approach leaves things hanging and you guessing as to what happens next. It's similar to the quotation in that it can create the feeling of a situation that is ongoing, with resolution in the distance at best.


• Surprise - More a fictional tool, you might still be able to use it in non-fiction. At the end, something completely unexpected happens. But this is a tough balancing act, because it has to be logical and conclusive at the same time.


• Chronological - If you're writing narrative, you can have the end of the article be the chronological finish of the event or subject. Be aware that you can choose slightly different ending points to create different emotional responses in the reader: irony, disappointment, elation, satisfaction, and so on.


• Abrupt - You would use this in a newspaper, not a magazine, and generally it would be in an inverted pyramid structure, where you make points from opening to closing in their order of perceived importance to the reader. This is fine for the recitation of facts that a hard news article can be, but is not a good fit for anything even slightly more literary.


• Poetic - If you've used rich imagery and a literary tone, you can sometimes go out on an image that becomes a metaphor or visual association you leave with the reader. It's easy to become the "artiste" and call too much attention to your writing style with this one.


• Tagline - Just like it sounds, the tagline is a fixed phrase that you always use. Although it has worked well for some in audio (like Paul Harvey's "Good ... day!"), it has no place in the average article and would often seem strange even in a column.