Three rules for writing the other kind of happy ending

I want to write an ending for my MG novel. The threads I wove are being tied tightly together. I'm circling that satisfactory feeling of closure. The kind of closure where the sign for the broken bridge has fallen face down in the dirt. But this is MG and I need to tread carefully.The end doesn't have to be conventionally happy but it must be logical, signalled and contain a sense of closure.

There are three rules for the other kind of happy ending:

• Make sure your end links with your beginning
• Keep the writing tight: sagging contemplation is not a good look
• The resolution must be clearly explained: it is the moment when young readers realise they got reading right

As a teacher, I keep in mind the fact that unexpected, poorly-signalled endings, the kind designed to catch-out the reader, would reinforce the idea that they can't read well. That is not a happy ending.


“Every story has a happy ending, you just need to know when to stop.” Annie M.G. Schmidt