It was not easy to be told by my editor that, only one month before my initial publication date, I should consider not only a new title and cover, but a different ending for City of Sorrows. At the time, I thought there was something wrong with that picture. How could I have gotten so many major things so wrong? But, I dared to do it. I resisted the temptation to just leave everything as is and publish. And now I’m proud to say that I share something in common with some of the world’s most famous authors, of some of the most iconic books. From J.K. Rowling to Bram Stoker to Charles Dickens, these authors either changed an ending or deleted a chapter to make their book better, all of them altering—in ways large and small—the course of their book and its impact on society.
At the last minute, Bram Stoker removed the final chapter of the book we now know as Dracula, deciding not to have Dracula’s castle fall apart as he dies. Charles Dickens also changed the ending to his most notable work Great Expectations. And J.K. Rowling considered two possible endings for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows. In the end, she chose the version we all know: Voldemort dies and Harry saves the day. The alternate ending was not so happy. You can read it within the link below. Sadly, Rowling never intended this alternate ending to become public knowledge, but her “friend”—the only one who knew about it—leaked it to the internet.
See what these and other famous authors did with their manuscripts, and how those decisions changed the course of their books. http://listverse.com/2013/01/14/deleted-book-chapters/
What about you? Any last minute changes that altered the course of your work, or more importantly, your life?.
