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What to do?
Mar. 9th, 2012 02:37 amI have nine chapters of my Perry mystery The Spectral Stalker up by now. And since about chapter 5 I've been strongly implying that Jerry's stalker is indeed the real Captain Caldwell, restored to life by Dr. Portman's outrageous experiments. The last couple of chapters have been much stronger, pretty much outright saying it's him.
And yet of course some of the characters have doubts. The most recent doubt is that maybe he's an impostor conditioned to think he's the real one, and that Portman's inside contact in the Air Force replaced the real Caldwell's fingerprints in the files with those of the impostor.
I've been debating since the start of this wild ride how it should go, and with the continuing doubts and possibilities I can always swing one way or the other in the end. The question is what I want to do.
The outline in my head calls for the happier ending, with it really being Caldwell and he and Jerry being able to repair their canonically damaged friendship. The whole reason I started writing this story was to revive Caldwell, as I was devastated by his needless death.
And yet on the other hand, the strange and bizarre elements of the last couple of Perry mysteries have probably been getting out of hand. And aside from that, sometimes I feel that bittersweet endings pack more punch/are more powerful than happier endings. Sometimes I regret picking a more fantastical ending instead of something realistic.
While trying to decide what to do, I wrote a short blurb that would be the final scene of the fic if the bittersweet angle is used. Here it is:
( Regrets )
Opinions? Should I go with the happier ending originally planned and wanted? Or would this more realistic twist be better? (Or should I do both endings and let the audience choose, haha?)
Personally, I think the bittersweet ending is better, but it's not what I wanted. Which only makes the dilemma worse. The better one or the desired one?
And yet of course some of the characters have doubts. The most recent doubt is that maybe he's an impostor conditioned to think he's the real one, and that Portman's inside contact in the Air Force replaced the real Caldwell's fingerprints in the files with those of the impostor.
I've been debating since the start of this wild ride how it should go, and with the continuing doubts and possibilities I can always swing one way or the other in the end. The question is what I want to do.
The outline in my head calls for the happier ending, with it really being Caldwell and he and Jerry being able to repair their canonically damaged friendship. The whole reason I started writing this story was to revive Caldwell, as I was devastated by his needless death.
And yet on the other hand, the strange and bizarre elements of the last couple of Perry mysteries have probably been getting out of hand. And aside from that, sometimes I feel that bittersweet endings pack more punch/are more powerful than happier endings. Sometimes I regret picking a more fantastical ending instead of something realistic.
While trying to decide what to do, I wrote a short blurb that would be the final scene of the fic if the bittersweet angle is used. Here it is:
( Regrets )
Opinions? Should I go with the happier ending originally planned and wanted? Or would this more realistic twist be better? (Or should I do both endings and let the audience choose, haha?)
Personally, I think the bittersweet ending is better, but it's not what I wanted. Which only makes the dilemma worse. The better one or the desired one?
