[trublue]

I'm on book 5, the last of the series and I feel so much pressure from myself to make sure it holds up.
But then, I'm slow to finish a chapter. I thought I was being lazy. I think that's the case foe one or two days but now I think it's more than that. I think some part of me  doesn't want it to end and also doesn't want to let readers down. Anyone else in the same boat? Or anyone end their series? How was the process of writing
It for you?
Thx

 

[SBJones]

I finished and released the final book of my trilogy on Christmas.  I knew when I started the series how it would end.  I outlined everything before I wrote the first word.  Granted I'm bias towards my own work, but I felt book one was a solid story that followed a classic Jarvis method hero's journey. 

Book two, things were at their darkest.  I also felt it was going to be the strongest book of the three.  It had the most growth for the characters and I felt that not having it end well for the heroes was the right thing to do.  My only hate mail has come from book two.  That tells me that I did a good job.  Readers were emotionally invested with the characters.  This is exactly what I need for them going into book three.

Book three...  Doubts started to creep in.  I knew book two was my favorite, but I owed it to my readers to finish the series and to finish it strong.  I looked back at that original outline and hoped that my original ideas were good enough.  So I wrote and wrote and wrote.  All of the twists and turns that I had woven through the earlier books came together.  I handed it off to my editor and waited.  Feedback was positive.  Very positive.  "It put the other two to shame," positive.  As I applied the edits, I read the book for the first time.  My editor was right.  It was good.  I even found myself reading it instead of applying edits.  That hadn't happened with the other two.

Anyway, I think I know how you feel when it comes to the end of a series.  There is a lot of pressure to not drop the ball.  For me, the feedback so far from those that have read all three books has been worth it all.

 

[trublue]

Wow! Glad you were able to stay on top until the end. Yes, it is so bitter/sweet....

 

[David Adams]

Just published part V of Rakshasa, the final part for this "season". ;_;

The series will go on, though. I have too many ideas for that. But it's always weird to end something...

 

[dalya]

Endings are HARD.

 

[Imogen Rose]

I feel you! I have just written the fifth and final book of the Portal Chronicles. It was hard.

 

[Colin Taber]

I'm working on the 3rd in my trilogy and it's difficult (with added procrastination).

While I'm loving the storyline, there is also increased pressure. What doesn't help things is that one of my favourite characters is scheduled to meet a tragic end.

But the show must go on...

 

[miss_fletcher]

Just ended my first series (four books) and found it tricky. I wanted my characters to do one thing knowing my readers wanted them to do another. Pressure is havoc on creativity. In the end, I stopped stressing (that got me nowhere fast) and wrote what I wanted. I reminded myself I write because I enjoy it.

From a creative standpoint procrastination isn't a bad thing. Storytelling is an art form. If writing slowly is what you need to bash book five out go for it. My id is out of control (if it wasn't I probably wouldn't be a writer), and I find a lengthy time out allows me to hyperfocus (might explain why I'm a binge writer). I come up with my best ideas after days of pondering. Warning; procrastination can result in stress then crisis then total cerebral meltdown of epic proportions when the business side of your brain realizes 'productivity' has been scrubbed from your vocabulary.

As long as you're happy with book five, and it leaves you feeling accomplished with a positive mindset to writing it'll be a winner. All things come to an end.

Good luck.

 

[Cheryl Douglas]

I was supposed to finish my series after six books. Then I added two more, than eight more, and a special edition novella. Oh, did I mention the weekly installments ans short stories? lol. Yeah, I understand what you're saying, it is hard to let go of characters who have been a part of you for so long. I'm almost finished book 14 in this series, only three more to go. I know it will be bittersweet when I wrap this up, but I've already started outlining and promoting the next series, which is due out this summer. I know you have to move on sometime, but I'll always remember the first book in this series as the one that changed my life. It convinced me that I could earn a living as a full-time writer and that's more than I ever hoped to gain from this only ten short months ago when I first hit 'publish'.

Best of luck with the last book in your series. 

 

[41413]

When I wrote the end of my first series, I had a checklist of subplots and themes I needed to resolve, and then I extended a scene or two past the actual ending to give it a satisfying "I'm done!" kind of feeling. My goal was to wrap it up nicely and leave readers no space to ask for more books. Regardless of the fact that I've gone on to extend the story, it was really hard to finish, originally--mostly on an emotional level.

The latest series was harder on a tactical level. Ending a love triangle is always going to piss some people off.

 

[TexasGirl]

I have to write the 3rd of a trilogy for kids and the 4th and final installment of an erom as my next major projects.

I'm putting it off.

Anxious!

 

[lewaters]

I've almost published my third and I'm already dreading to start on the last of the series. So much to wrap up and you really need to deliver to satisfy everyone's expectations. Although I am anxious to jump into other projects!

 

[Saul Tanpepper]

Ending a series is tough, especially if you want to keep a few things burning for a possible revival. It's a balance of making sure all the major (and most of the minor) plot threads are neatly tied up and that the MC's character arc is satisfactorily ended. Answer the main questions and most of the minor ones.

Ultimately, you must ask yourself what the main arcs and problems were and whether they can be believably resolved. Then do it, carefully, not all at once, and not in any contrived way.

See? Easy peasy. 

 

[trublue]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who has a hard time.
And whoever said love triangles are hard is correct. You will always Piss some readers off lol

 

[Kwalker]

I am writing the third and final (although I still plan to write a prequel, it won't be the same) and at first I was charging right through. But now that I've gotten near the end, it is like hitting a brick wall. I know how it should end, and I think readers will be pleased with it, but still it is hard. I've got about a 1/3 of the book still to go and I find myself feeling bittersweet about it a lot.

 

[Tracy Falbe]

Oh, I've been there!

I'll republish here a post I wrote at my blog in 2011 as I was working on a final novel in a series. Hope my experience helps give you insight.

Writing the final part of a fantasy series is hard (originally published at http://www.herladyshipsquest.com/2011/05/writing-final-part-of-fantasy-series-is.html )

Ever wonder why some fiction series go on and on instead of finishing? Maybe because it is easier to just keep going with the narrative instead of wrapping it up.

Right now I am deep into writing the final novel of my new fantasy series Rys Rising, and I am thoroughly reminded of the many challenges of writing a finish to an epic story.

I think the toughest part is wrapping up the many details without triggering new subplots that will require even more chapters to resolve. As a novelist I naturally have the ability to dream up new situations and problems for my characters, but eventually I need to focus on tying up loose ends instead of starting new threads.

Right now with my writing I am enjoying my characters and letting them do their things for a while. I want to let the intricacies of their lives play out a bit more before I hurl them into a terrible crisis, but I am approaching the stage in which some serious events need to start happening. This leads me to another problem. Procrastination is creeping up on me, and I know why I am going with the flow instead of paddling my canoe faster downriver. Finishing this series means I have to kill some people. I never like doing that.

I've been in these woods before. I remember how difficult writing The Borderlands of Power was. Borderlands is the last book of The Rys Chronicles (so far) and its creation was often a great trial for me. At one point I had to ditch a whole chapter and start over. Deleted scenes and second attempts make for hard work. It's hard to erase something after spending a week composing it, but if I don't like it, then it has to be rewritten and sometimes even scrapped entirely.

Enough of this procrastinating on my blog. I'm going to go work on that novel. This novel is the one that will tell a story that's been imprisoned in my mind for a long time. I'll go work on its escape tunnel and let it inch toward freedom.

 

[Caddy]

I am writing the fifth, and final, book of The Gastien Series right now.  It's bittersweet.  In a very real way, I don't want it to end. I know once it does I won't be writing about this family anymore and it is such a part of me now that it will be painful. No matter how may other books/series I do, this will be the one I love most and it's almost like saying goodbye.  .  Yet, another part of me knows it's time to wrap it up.  I've also caught myself doing some light research on another subject the past couple of days...so I think I am mentally preparing for the next one.    

 

[trublue]

I love that I'm not alone. Thanks for sharing guys

 

[Al Dente]

I have a final episode of a short story series to write, and I have been putting it off for some reason. Maybe I'm afraid to finish it. Who knows? As for my more traditional works, I just started a series of epic fantasy novels, and I'm already freaking out about ending that when the time comes. 

 

[Raquel Lyon]

The latest series was harder on a tactical level. Ending a love triangle is always going to p*ss some people off.

This.

Knowing the majority of my readers wanted it to go a certain way, I felt I couldn't let them down, but...

Spoiler

I couldn't let them have it all their own way and killed the most loved character off!

It took a long time for me to decide how the story should end, along with ensuring all the subplots were tied up. I'm putting off publishing at the moment because I'm scared of the backlash.

Is anyone else worried that their readers will not like how their series ends?

p.s. I also found it hard to let go, and despite being eager to write other things, I've started writing a prequel!