Created for my seniors as they work on their personal narrative essays. I think that endings are the most difficult part of composing a piece! This presentations contains some tips for making it easier.

I had a professor who suggested that at the end of every essay, as you write your conclusion, you should play the devil's advocate and say, "So freaking what?" Why was this important. What do you intend to emphasize? What was the red pepper of your essay?

You want to write a conclusion that feels like an ending. Look at the Puck's final monologue in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Everything- from the words to the images to the rhythm of the thing- all of it begs you to start clapping and cheering. It puts a final complete ending on the play. That's how you want your conclusion to feel.

You might think of your conclusion not as the "restatement of your thesis" that you learned about back in sixth grade, but as a primer for your reader describing how all the disparate parts of your essay fit together to mean something bigger.

I always ask my students to pretend that they are their own bratty kid sister (or brother). After you finish your essay, imagine her standing there, tongue out, hands on hips, saying, "So whaaaaat?!" Answer her. Answer her as best you can. That's your conclusion.

My friend, Mr. Clark, is fond of talking about how important curtain call is in the theatre productions he directs. Ending with a poorly rehearsed curtain call, he says, is akin to a fellow in a tux and tails walking out of the ballroom with toilet paper stuck to his heels. His exit ruins his image. Think of your conclusion the same way. It is how you'll be remembered.

OK. So now that you're properly terrified about that conclusion, let's talk about some tips for finding a perfect ending.

Look back at your introduction. Is there something in it you can echo or repurpose for your conclusion? This can be a tidy trick for making a satisfying ending.

Think of your conclusion as a place in which you can propose a solution to a problem examined in your essay, offer insight into an obstacle you overcame, or offer questions for your next step in life.

Maybe your essay focuses on a small or mundane problem. Your conclusion, then, should work to reveal that what seems like a minute, everyday issue is actually filled with bigger more universal meaning. Use your final words to show how the sum is greater than the parts.

Another way to imagine your conclusion is to look toward the future. What does everything you've stated in the body of your essay mean for your future (or, if you're a real dreamer, for the future of the planet)? Expand your past and present to impact your future.

OK. Now for the caveats.

Don't cop out. Don't just give up and throw in any old ending. We all hate those movies where it was all a dream. We hate them because we feel cheated and suspect that the author just gave up. Forest Gump could get away with saying, "And that's all I have to say about that." You cannot.

On the other hand, resist the temptation to get up on a soap box and make your deep revelation about fishing something that could save the whole world from itself.

The conclusion is not a place to dump your resume, it's not a place to shovel all the ideas you couldn't fit into your essay, and it's not a place to bring up new topics. It needs to be as focused as the rest of your essay.

Oh goodness. My wonderful friend (RIP Anna Paskevska... http://tallskinny.com/anna/cv.html) once told me (after I told her I hated my poem I'd just read aloud), "My darling, never apologize, never explain, never excuse. Leave that to them. Just make your art." Great advice! And yet so many of us excuse, explain, and apologize in our conclusions. Don't excuse yourself by saying you're not a writer. Don't explain that you hate essays. Don't apologize for writing something stupid. Leave that to them. Just write your essay.

Avoid the typical and oh-so-cliche signifiers that your essay is done. If you need to write them in your rough draft, fine. But cut those puppies out in the end. Come up with something more imaginative.

Finally, think of your conclusion like a frame. What you've written is your photo, your painting, your masterpiece. Your conclusions helps your reader to understand how to frame that piece.