THE SHELL HOUSE revisited: the missing happy ending
19 October 2010
SPOILER ALERT! Do not read this if you haven't read THE SHELL HOUSE and are likely to do so ...
Of all my books, THE SHELL HOUSE is the one that generates the biggest reader response in the form of emails and letters. Most of these messages comment on the ending, often in the form of a question: What happens next? And specifically, will Greg and Jordan get together? While some readers like the ending as it is, others have taken me to task for failing to establish absolutely that there will be a happy resolution. Some assume that there’s going to be a sequel – tempting though that might be, I have no plan to write one.
Although I claim not to have a favourite among my books, THE SHELL HOUSE would be one of the front-runners if I were forced to choose. It’s partly because the setting, the burned-out 18th century mansion, is based on a real place which I visit several times each year: Copped Hall in Essex (see my last post). Partly it’s because the story has a particular intensity of feeling, I think. Partly because it was the first of my books to be edited and published by David Fickling, who has made such a difference to my self-esteem. Partly because I enjoyed being a mediocre First World War poet, and am rather pleased with my efforts. But mainly because I’m so attached to the characters. .
I’ve replied to these readers in various ways, sometimes suggesting that my opinion is no more important than theirs. (It’s a strange thing about fictional characters. No matter how much I like or even love them while writing, it feels as if I have no more right to them than anyone else, once the book is ended.) Sometimes I’ve suggested what I think Greg will do next; more often I suggest a re-reading of the last few pages, where I think there are ample hints.
Only recently did I discover that some readers have written the “missing” ending for themselves. Writer friends have mentioned Fan Fiction, but I only discovered while idly Googling my name (again) that I came across Fan Fiction episodes for THE SHELL HOUSE. (Just to put it in perspective: TWILIGHT has more than 165,000 entries on the FanFiction website; THE SHELL HOUSE has four). So, of course, I read these episodes with keen interest. One has used first-person; another has given Jordan’s viewpoint instead of Greg’s. Each one brought the two boys together romantically, whether immediately or after several years have passed.
It felt very strange to read other people’s stories about my Greg and Jordan, but I was astonished and impressed – not only by the attentive reading (all the writers had picked out tiny as well as major details, so much so that I felt they knew more than I do – I even had to remind myself who one of the minor characters was), but by the understanding of Greg’s motivation and of the confusion and panic he feels over his attraction to Jordan. I was glad, too, that they had picked up the hints I left in the final pages: Greg wouldn’t be able to leave things as they are, and would have to be honest with himself. Above all, though, it was touching to realise that these readers care enough about my characters to want them to live on in their own imaginations. They want them to be happy.
In the Guardian last Saturday, 16th October, there was an article about the difficulties of writing about sex (I wasn’t, exactly, but it’s certainly an undercurrent). Hilary Mantel is quoted as saying: “What is explicit is ineffective … you can do more by hints and implications. As with describing anything, the trick is to get the reader doing the work. The space between the lines, that’s where the reading experience takes place.” Yes, I recognise that; it’s what I wanted in the final pages of THE SHELL HOUSE.
Was there enough, though? If the novel is reprinted, as I hope it will be, it might be tempting to slip in an extra sentence or two. Not to spell anything out; just to make the hint broader.
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