Denouement
Also known as Falling action · Resolution
The denouement is the part after the climax where loose ends get tied up and things settle into their new normal.
The word is French for “untying”, and that’s what it does. The climax pulls everything tight, and the denouement loosens it again. Consequences play out, the characters who made it through come to terms with what happened, side plots get wrapped up, and you get a moment to breathe.
It isn’t the same as an epilogue. The denouement is the last stretch of the story itself, carrying straight on from the climax. An epilogue steps outside the story afterwards. A book can have both, one or neither.
How long it runs matters, and the usual problem is that it’s too short. When readers say an ending felt rushed, they rarely mean the climax. They mean there was barely any denouement. If everything gets resolved on the very last page with no room to take it in, the ending feels forced.
Denouement: common questions
How do you pronounce denouement?
Roughly day-noo-mon, following the French. You don’t sound the last letters.
What is the difference between a denouement and an epilogue?
The denouement is part of the story, right after the climax. An epilogue sits outside it, usually after a jump in time.