The Coupling Trap

[dinuriel]

Yeah, I don't think the "loving spouse, white picket fence, and 2.5 kids" ending works for every character. Some characters are better justified in terms of the story if they end up alone--and some characters would even prefer to end up alone. Not everyone likes picket fences, after all

I'm not a big fan of "endings" myself. To me, the only real "ending" can be if the author kills off all the characters--if there's one person standing at the end of the story, then there's always going to be a further story for that character, whether or not the author ever writes it or even thinks about it.

[celebkiriedhel]

I have to say, there is no endings of the story, just an ending of that episode. Life always go on.

Personally, in my life - the husband, 3 kids and dog hasn't happened, yet I still go on with relationships that fulfil me, and add meaning to the world. One day, I hope to write a character that gets the loving spouse, white picket fence, and kids. It'll make a bit of a change!

I'm all for genre-challenging - sometimes I think it's an unnecessary limitation on what a story can truly be. I reckon - go for it Laura! You have great and amazing stories and if your literary fiction people can't deal with a twisted happy ending, then they need tomatoes thrown at them!

(I'm reminded of a song...

To market, to market with my brother Jim
Somebody threw a tomato at him,
Tomatoes are soft and they don't bruise the skin.
This one killed Jim - it was wrapped in a tin.)

Make it tin-wrapped tomatoes to throw at the critics!