Story Endings: 10 Tips to Help You

[@jessec5287]

A good quote I like from Pixar about coincidence is that "Coincidence to get characters into trouble is great. Coincidence to get them out of trouble is cheating."

[@markcrilley]

Great advice! Thank you for sharing :)

[@Hertog_von_Berkshire]

That's a great quote. Haven't heard it before.

[@kayr7076]

"If it's a happy ending, everyone gets married in the end. If it's a sad ending everyone dies." Pretty much.

[@johnmarkcorpuz1860]

Goliath100 In my case for that story ending:A severely wounded protagonist kills the antagonist only for him die due to blood loss.

[@zacharykim295]

kinda like Beowulf then

[@thsuperelite]

or a netrorare ending ....

[@johnmarkcorpuz1860]

Zachary Kim Well,it's from my elfen lied-style fan fiction story but it wasn't exactly the ending.

[@rstuio]

if it's a neutral ending everyone's smiling as they walk into the distance, the camera sweeping up into the sky, and the air is full of grand fanfares

[@Frostyflytrap]

"When you love a movie's ending, don't just sit there and love it. Analyse it and figure out how it works."

[@pradyuminater]

it is the most vital part of creation....try to reverse engineer other`s good ideas...

[@nholmes86]

actually to do anything in life you need to analyse and criticize it very well

[@snowconemonster1311]

I actually took script writing class and Deus ex machina was the first thing we covered in how not to end

[@LarssonBhoi07]

"If it's a happy ending, crack a cold one open with the boys. If it's a sad ending, it's lukewarm."

[@gracie_hannah_banana]

Your storytelling videos are helping me so much with a story I'm coming up with. For months now I've been working on a manga, (or at least, the idea of one,) and although I have the characters, theme and so many ideas, I'm having trouble developing a good plot and how to tell the story. Thank you Mark!

[@nobiggie7786]

Same!

[@the-gun-theft4210]

Grace Hannah-Lynn one thing i have trouble on is camera placement in panels, those are the worst

[@LilBrock1990]

Grace Hannah-Lynn I have ideas and characters and plot just trying to figure out how to start it all lol

[@lightcluster7402]

I have the characters I have the ending I have some scenes I have a conflict but I don't know how to make a good plot either ; ^ ;

[@cyberhongoanual4715]

Light Cluster yup

[@emilyconnelly8181]

I love all your videos, I honestly don't understand how someone could be so good at art. Thank you for existing and sharing all your art techniques, you have helped me get high levels in art at my school. I hope you continue to inspire more people. Thank you ~emily

[@Hitomii_]

emily are you back?! i thougt you were away...

[@emilyconnelly8181]

Roboti x I am confused.... Please explain

[@Hitomii_]

Theres a game called Emily is away

[@emilyconnelly8181]

Roboti x Ohhhhhhhh OK I shall laugh now. Ha Ha Ha

[@ElizaKurosawa]

..look at Takehiko Inoue and Kentaro Mirua..their art is god like..Mark is still good though.

[@lauv3871]

One of my favorite writers, Rick Riordan, does something in his books that i really like. In each book series, the main plot is always solved, but he leaves just enough loose ends hanging that there is enough room to comfortably make another book series. He once said that he doesn't like the usual epilogues, where they move on to 20 years into the future and everyone's married and what car do they have and how many kids, because it doesn't leave room for expansion. Look at the Harry Potter franchise (movies) (please don't spoil the books, I'm still reading them). The end basically tells us they grew up and now have kids. Sure, they did make another book beyond that, but it won't have the same flare our original main characters gave us. At some point you have to let go of your original main characters (for example, Percy Jackson, whom Rick said would no longer be going on any INTENSE adventures, but would sometimes pop up), yet its hard to imagine the franchise without them. The endings from his books are usually pretty satisfying and almost always tend to pave the road for a future story OR leave enough minor questions to start a new one. By the end of one of his series, you can ask questions like "what happened to this secondary character?" "where did this person go?" "Where did this person get all this stuff?" And he can come back and answer questions that were subtly hinted but weren't necessary to answer in order to have a good story.

[@solidus_spence]

Convenient way to make more money I guess

[@mightybellarts]

The ending to Brody's Ghost was really well done, in my opinion. The story was really enticing and well-paced.

[@markcrilley]

Thank you so much! Glad you liked it :)

[@mightybellarts]

markcrilley Oh my goodness! I didn't think you would reply to me. :) You're welcome.

[@kyloren5948]

The way you mix manga and realism is so lovely!its so satisfying to look at

[@markcrilley]

Thank you ^^

[@Acidpaxk]

I love these type of videos

[@greatsister2]

Damian Bangari ra

[@theberrby6836]

The picture is soo pretty. Thank you as always for your advice!

[@GrayeIra]

Thx for helping us manga/comic/writers with ending a story.I want mine to be both happy and sad. Like the ending itself will be a good, but the way it happened will be very sad. so bittersweet. ye

[@thelordstarfish]

I feel like my favorite anime, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, actually manages to have examples of both how to end a story perfectly, and how NOT to do so. Specifically, the original 12-episode TV-series has an ending that neatly wraps up all the major themes of the story, is perfectly consistent with the established lore of the universe and when you look back at the story after seeing how it ends, the foreshadowing is readily apparent. Oh, and it also leaves no need for any more story to be told... ...Which unfortunately leads us into the sequel movie, Rebellion. THAT movie basically has a big action scene that seems to be the climax of the story, only to then throw a massive twist ending after that which just completely changes the way the audience perceives a certain character, drastically alters the status quo of the world as a whole, and then it spends the last fifteen minutes or so establishing this really unsettling atmosphere and raising tons of questions about what this turn of event means... And then it just sort of stops. I mean, the twist IS technically foreshadowed, but the hints are SO subtle that it basically demands SEVERAL rewatches for it to make any sense at all, and it undermines what WOULD have been a perfectly fine ending otherwise. Like, the twist happens right when you could be forgiven for thinking the movie is ending. And even then, the ending doesn't really feel like a cliffhanger either, and even now, four years later, we still don't have any clear confirmation that the story will continue, beyond a vague statement to the effect of "We're working on SOMETHING new for this franchise!" ...I suppose with all that I just said, it goes without saying that I thought the story was stronger WITHOUT said sequel. I mean, the sequel had some interesting ideas in it, but as a whole I felt it did more harm than good.

[@no-ro3iw]

the way you do your line art is so satisfying

[@brendaevangelista7783]

Gosh....this is a gorgeous illustration...those lips are wonderful! Thank you so much for the tips! They are always super helpful! I would really appreciate some advice in the future with avoiding plot holes and maintaining continuity within a story :)

[@eugeniosabater8449]

Lips are tricky you gotta learn the many types of lips to draw them properly, although hands are way more difficult actually! 🤔

[@gabrielmaisonet2843]

I don't write stories, I just draw, but maybe this information will be handy one day, so.... in the noggin it goes. time to start watching! Edit; These tips are pretty helpful, but if you ever chose to make a certain video with spoilers in it (of random movies, or anything) in order to aid your tips, I don't think many people would mind, and you could always have an annotation or a warning to skip it! :)

[@shu2775]

Hey Crilley, I just wanted to say thank you. I started watching your videos like a few years back. I went through my old drawings and the progression I had from your videos was amazing. Now I'm kinda doing my own thing; not really relying on tutorials at all. I'm gonna be an art major next year and I largely give you credit for that. I mean, I found your videos when I needed them and they really helped me learn and grow and kept me motivated. Now I'm at the point where I'm going off and doing my own thing and I just wanted to say thank you.

[@satvrnamvs7149]

I just love sitting here watching you draw and talk. It sounds boring but it really isn't at all

[@cyberhongoanual4715]

OnlyVoidStilinski You know whats good

[@LadyBlueRaven]

This has been incredibly helpful, thank you Mark 😁 Also, my sister got me your new book "Manga Art" as a late birthday present and it is THE BEST!

[@markcrilley]

Thank you so much, Karla ^_^

[@theorosef]

your pronunciation of "dénouement" is pretty good actually! you pronounce the "nou" as "new", while it's pronounced more like "noo". great video! I always have a hard time with endings, so this was helpful!

[@outoforder4845]

DEWEY, FRANK, ERNEST?!?!?! *SoRrY I rEaD tOo MuCh AsOuE.*

[@ravenross4344]

I understand what he means about having a good ending. I read this one book and just after the final battle all the important character's lost their memory of the hole event, it left me so incomplete that it took a moment for me to realize that the book achaly ended that way

[@WaywardKnighted]

From a theatre history student (me): It means "god from (a) machine". Ancient Greek and Roman plays almost always ended with a god descending from the heavens to fix all of the problems, the actor playing the god being lowered down via a crane-like device or "machine".

[@anunspokenlegend1747]

Hey Mr.Crilley, just wanted to by say thank you for all the writing advice videos. I have been conceptualizing and piecing together a comic for a good couple of years now. Every time I watch one of these types of videos, I leave with an "Ah Hah!" moment that fills in a bit of my story more. Either I cross out a silly idea, or a plot point/moment/character growth just clicks with me. I am glad I found your channel! It has definitely helped me on my journey to finish this project! Good work :D.

[@DrawRehab]

Let's have a second of appreciation for the fact that Mark has kept his greeting for years now. Seriously I watched him since I was 7

[@naturalthemelodious]

You outlined my favroite piece of advice, Crilley! People always wonder why I watch things if I obviously hate what I'm watching, but I do it to find out WHY I hate it and to learn from other people's mistakes.

[@MusicalRaichu]

Mark, that was really good. I find for a story to work, it's important to identify at the outset what the problem will be, what will maintain interest/suspense along the way, and how it will be resolved. It's helpful to be a loose as you put it so you can take advantage of inspiration that comes to you along the way, but unless you know where the story is heading, I don't think it's going to turn out unless you're just lucky.

[@ArnoldsKtm]

So many years have passed, I am still in love with your style.

[@markcrilley]

Thank you!

[@Bluethealpha]

This is extremely helpful to me. I've already started releasing my own comic pages on social media. And as it follows along my guidelines I had written down ahead of time, I'm rewriting the chapters ahead of the current one and had almost cornered myself to the point where it was hard to come up with a decent ending. Your tips have created a new opening to help me find that satisfactory ending I'm looking for!

[@caraashji]

Today I've been writing the detailed outline for my story for my graphic novel and omg I've watched these advice videos about 5 times hahahaha, very helpful though! Love your videos, I've been watching you ever since I began drawing properly when I was probably around 9 years old. You have seriously helped inspire me so much and I'm so thankful. If I didn't find your videos back then I doubt I would be doing what I am now about 7 years later.

[@roberinoframe]

bittersweet endings are my favourites

[@TheToneBender]

Having a bit of a writing dip. So this helps bunches!

[@schjonicus]

Ricky check out Brandon Sanderson's lectures

[@thersaiyan2604]

Dude, I would call you sir in real life but whatever, your videos are so great to relax and watch and they're so engaging because I'm constructing my comic book's plot. Good news though, its done, the ending and key events have all been finished along with all the character arcs. The Aftermath (Denouement) has been fully crafted, side stories are done too. it took 8 years of Imagination, completely erasing some ideas and turning others into independent stories. I revamped the plot numerous times in those 8 years but it's finally worth it. I've got the best story I could ask for from a readers perspective, and a-lot of great ideas I can't wait to put in comic panels So yeah keep it up , the videos are appreciated. and I'll be sure to pick up Brody's Ghost

[@darkhaze2]

Great video :) I've been working on a novel for 2 years now and I'm almost at the end and these tips will be very helpful when I plan out the ending. Thanks!

[@PatiKos]

I love your vids, especially ones like these, You are amazing at art and I love your tutorials! Thank you so much!

[@naldormight6420]

Didn't even realise it. But your right about raiders of the lost arch. But I think he got away with it because he at multiple times during the film warned the protagonist from opening the arch. So they basically had it comen.

[@celestev7388]

Naldor Might *you're

[@thewanderingwriter4448]

I would think that it's better to have an ending from the start, but once you develop the story, it changes, and you find it better like that. What do you think?

[@lmcdermott2151]

I can attest to that. Or rather, you find your ending part way through sometimes, and then realize what direction your traveling in.

[@robot3555]

I have recently started with story writing and this video really was helpful. Thank you.

[@RoIllustrations]

Another great and informative vid Mark! I appreciate these types of videos and feel they will help me with my future comic project. Thanks!

[@jetrothebadomen9483]

My comic series will end with the main villain dying but a another big villain in my series takes his place. It will lead to my next series. Basically, my point of the ending is to show that a threat will always come even after you defeat the previous one. Same with heroes. A few dies, more will rise. It’s a never ending cycle. The sequel isn’t that planned out though. I’m focused on ending my 1st, favorite series, then I’ll focus on the sequel

[@jetrothebadomen9483]

The sequel will barely even involve my original characters too. New characters will be added to face new threats

[@stedine4427]

I speak French, and I can tell you your pronunciation isn't that bad.

[@mangolie21]

Atleast he knows how it's supposed to be said, still made me laugh lol "denyument"

[@alanbritton]

Hi Mark. Great advice as always. I used to start writing by coming up with an ending, then working backwards to map the rest of the story to that ending. But that was when I was Much younger!! ;-)

[@Vanlifecrisis]

Robert Jordan also did this, just make sure you live long enough to see it thru...

[@mia7163]

I just got "The Drawing Lesson." I've improved alot! Thnx Mark!

[@markcrilley]

Thank you so much ^_^

[@missmintyblue9836]

I LOVE your art so much and you were my big inspiration to draw anime and my first I watched was 'How to draw a manga eye line, by line' and that was about 8 years and ever since I saw that video I started watching every video you posted till this day and thank you for being my big inspiration to draw.

[@Nefariousaa]

I've been dying for more Story tip videos eeee

[@DexterDLopez]

Before I'm dead set on making a series, I make sure I think up the plot first, characters second, ending third and beginning last. Along the way, I'll fill out the middle. That's my process anyways, thanks for the tips!

[@kayval9047]

These tips really helped me ! Thank you ! The art work in the back is absolutely amazing (:

[@dragontruth3701]

can you do a video on character arcs please??

[@lykaios8336]

When you don t know how to end your story: All was a dream

[@petarvukasovic6014]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@boilingoden7984]

"you do not want a magical coincidence to save the day" jojo part 2: 0-0

[@GentleMannOfHats]

It's "God from the machine" but your version works too

[@pierreburgaud2347]

it is god from outside the machine/system

[@Dismythed]

More accurately, "God from artifice" or "God from contrivance". Machines were not actually called machina back then. (Only primative steam contraptions existed back then and the Greek or Roman names for them basically meant "flue" and gears were called "locking wheels" or "wheel and pin" for their use in locks.) "Machina" meant something constructed, contrived or artificed.

[@nellekx]

I love these story tips! Very helpful and informative

[@plmnpeev]

'profoundly dissatisfying' :DDDD I think I'm going to use that in future :D

[@dereckminos4682]

your prononciation of dénouement is good, trust me, i live in belgium

[@wolfco47]

Thank you for the years of lessons and advice Mark! I wondered if you might do a comparison drawing of shading use in black & white vs shading use with true colored pencils (such as what you've done in this image with scale of shading vs the same image done in colors). I'm interested in seeing the difference between using shades of tone along a grey scale and using contrasting colors or blending of colors. It just seems like the techniques are so different except not different at all. The softness of the lead and the pressure used still affect the results, but the potentials are confusing to me.

[@madnessjones9996]

This was a great video! I still remember the worst ending I ever gave a story, and yes, it was a stupid deus ex machina ending where a barely-there character saves the day. Fortunately deus ex machina isn't my style, and most of my endings haven't been so crummy. Thank you for making this video, since comics are as much about writing as they are about art. You're a really good teacher :)

[@daisugh]

this really helped me Mr Crilley thank you!

[@thestaircasetonowhere2303]

These type of videos are super helpful! Thank you!

[@Pyretta]

I love this piece! Very well done.

[@endrankluvsda4loko172]

Thank you for these story advice uploads!

[@CaptainSoftboy501]

this really has me thinking about my comic in general and I still have a lot to think about X'D

[@ClaireYunFarronXIII]

Nice video! I have been working on many Novels and Manga for years. There is one main Novel/Manga( not sure which I'll make it into) that I I've been working on for about 9 years, or so! I am still working on an ending. The story is long. Thanks for the advice, though I was ALREADY using them before this video, lol! Mark of house Crilley. The words of Crilley are: "Blushies for all".

[@cyberwitch116]

All movies now just feel like trailers for other movies that will also be trailers

[@AGPerry-go3xk]

Hey Mark. I love your advice about stories and plots

[@MrFishComics]

great work! love this type of video, help us fine tune our work... thanks a bunch! maybe one about writing stories for continuing series, like large story archs over several issues? foreshadowing for future books?

[@magnusdarkslayer3012]

Pretty much every harem-esque rom-com anime has a "choose your own ending" ending. The ending where the protagonist hooks up with nobody, and you're left to just make up your own ending. That shit really grinds my gears.

[@chiquitasstudio]

hey Mark i was wondering if this week you could do a video on how you create, find, and pick clothing styles for your characters. I don't really know a lot about clothes and was wondering if you had a method on how to pick or create a style for a character.

[@Legoshi972]

thanks for this video! your french accent is quite good actually ^^

[@gracefuldisaster5161]

Yes, thank you! I'm writing the outline for my comic, and the ending was a bit worrisome for me, thank you!

[@HimanArtists]

Very Nice and Awesome painting

[@doshimaaa]

for your next Q&A i'm wondering: do you draw so much that you forget your drawings? like if someone showed you a collection with some of your art and some art in styles similar to yours, would you struggle in picking out which pieces were yours?

[@beriking]

Ive started a comic with this really complicated story with multiple plot twists and a super blurred out line between good and evil... and I have no idea how to end it. I myself dont know who deserves to die, they are all my children basically hah... I feel like a good ending would be kind of a cop out and an easy way out, however letting one of the two main chars die would be super unsatisfactory... Letting them both die is just dark...

[@FloydAngelo]

love these vids and I love the way you draw eyes

[@dirkboi6844]

I actually met him at an art teaching once, it was like 3 years ago. but he was pretty cool

[@aeiyong1219]

in middle school people asked me how i got so good at drawing and i'd be like my god taught me (mark)

[@SillverBel]

back with the black prisma! :D

[@HTMangaka]

The ending to B.G suited everything that had been established up to that point. It emotionally fulfilled the reader and resolved many of the problems the protagonists had dealt with while still leaving just enough still not quite right to make you feel like it could go on or make you wonder after the fact. Basically, my Ideal ending.

[@ryanstanley6372]

I'm 13 and I'm creating a comic. I'm 2 pages away, so this is a great video for me. Thank you Mark!

[@wilklikesmilk5371]

Thank you 😊 this video helped

[@heffthehecked]

i love this topic video! it helped me decide on my story's plot. the drawing is beautiful btw!, but i think you could work on drawing hand anatomy and i thought her right eye (viewer's right) seemed more longer than the other eye.

[@kamel3131]

I had to repeat the WHOLE video again cause I was focusing to Mark's artwork

[@lawrencescales9864]

These videos are fantastic. Can you do one about writing realistic crushes/romance?? I feel like it's easy to skip around to them holding hands and being in love with something as visual as a comic... but how do you show the stuff in between without boring readers?? Romance confounds me !!

[@lawrencescales9864]

I'm a slice of life kind of guy with a twist, like something supernatural or fantasy.

[@SpicySoulsa]

I really needed to see this, thank you so much!

[@DragonbornPrime]

As a reader of books i would add another tip / pointer ... The story can have subliminal plot lines almost hidden deeper within the story plot that a reader won't usually notice on the first read, so by the time the reader has read the story a few times they pick up new things that was missed on previous reads wich sometimes changes the original perception of the story from the first read of the story. This gives your books life beyond the first read and if a reader is reading your book multiple times then they will remember it better and recommend it to thair friends. The Watchmen is one of my favorite stories because you get enough to finish the story upon the first read but you know there was lots of bits within the story that makes you want to read it again to see what else you can spot.

[@DezzieYT]

One of my biggest challenges isn't writing the ending. In fact, I often have the ending written before I even start the story. It's that I get impatient to get to the ending so end up not spending enough time on the build up and development to that ending.

[@Maninawig]

as a Frenchman, your French is actually quite respectful. I don't mind it at all. As for endings, I noticed something that both compliments and counteracts your advice on some good manga and anime. Rather than ending in a "happily ever after" ending, some story tellers opt into hinting to the continuation of their lives. They do this in action books by concoring the evil mastermind of the series, but letting it leak that the mastermind was just a puppet. Or narrating the book as if a memory on how someone became a great hero, while never reaching that point itself. I think this works because of the inorganic feeling of "Happy Ever After"s When someone graduates high school, their lives go on. When a knight defeats a king, even if both of them die, life goes on. When the North beat the South, no Deus Ex Machina happened where everyone's opinions and attitudes changed. Because all great stories in history can conclude with the reader getting an answer to "and then what happened?", so too should great stories follow the same. what do you think?

[@conz7991]

Could you do a video based on getting shape and texture into your drawings

[@michealcadden8715]

Miki Falls did have a surprise ending... I did not see that end coming.....

[@markcrilley]

Thank you Michael! Glad it worked for you. :)

[@seanpernell4232]

Drawn perfectly everytime!

[@marteme2273]

Amazing video! Thank you 😄

[@hanz101]

This is pretty much why I recommend movies that even I don't like too much. You can learn from it~

[@chloes9012]

Hey Mark, about "deus ex machina". I studied Latin for about six years and I have to say, "deus ex machina" more accurately means "God from machine" more so than box. In Greek and Roman times, an actor dressed like Zeus (for example) would be hung by pulley system above the stage and lowered down to fix whatever problem within the play. Just thought you should know :)

[@markcrilley]

Thanks Chloe; yeah I don't know where I got the idea of the weird translation I've been thinking all these years-- clearly I should have researched more, apologies! ^_^'

[@darkscarlet1012]

That girl kind of looks like a grown up Talia

[@gracie_hannah_banana]

Darkscarlet 101 omg it does

[@melsgarbage5375]

thats what i thought he was drawing m8

[@isaiaheberly5485]

Hi mark, I love your vids:) Thanks for everything

[@ragejinraver]

That's Exactly the art style am trying to achieve the perfect mix between anime and western comics

[@jeremy1392]

The denument pronunciation was actually pretty good.

[@Thesilverninja]

Hey guys, I just wanted to add onto Mark's comments about rewriting and knowing your ending. This is actually a super important point that I hope no one overlooks. A lot of people like to just sit down and write, eager for an ending to pop out of nowhere that will be satisfying and oh so sweet. But this approach to writing will take longer and often lead to more frustration. When it's recommended you have an ending in mind, that doesn't mean: hero gets in a car, runs over the villain, hero gets married. It usually means to have a general idea of what you want the ending to be. Does the hero die? Does the villain die? Does the hero escape? Etc. The how and the why are irrelevant until the rewrite stage, but you should know what goal you are writing toward. Otherwise, you're going to be sitting at Chapter 1 wondering, "So what do I want to write about?" Give yourself little ending goals in either the outline or rough draft stage. Then you can refine in the rewrite which will be the most crucial and time consuming part of the process.

[@iuliqt]

Mr. Crilley, could you please do a tutorial on filigree(drawing achanthus leaves). Thank you!

[@philwelsh7036]

Deus ex machina - means god from a machine (or mechanism in those days), it was because in plays a crane or some sort of contraption would lower or wheel a god or magic being that would inexplicably save the day

[@AGPerry-go3xk]

Like Von Ryan's Express. Won't spoil it, but it's really good.