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Twisting the ending of a story is like putting icing on a cake, a cherry on top of a sundae, or nuts in brownies. It is a writer's finale.

The reader won't see a good twisted ending coming. On occasion, even the writer doesn't know where the ending is going. If that is your case, you will have a lot of trouble twisting the ending.

First, find a natural ending. Now, decide on an alternate ending that will surprise the reader. Next, look for a common denominator between the endings. Then all at once steer the storyline in another direction.

One good twist is to take the reader back to the beginning scene of the story. This is the loop effect. Another good way to twist the ending uses irony.

Irony Example: A man rescues a wolf and makes a pet out of it. The government captures the wolf and decides to euthanize it. He files a lawsuit against the government and wins. (Fantasy story.) The man gets the wolf back and the reader thinks the climax has come and gone with the courtroom scene and the reunion with the wolf. The reader is coming to the end of the book, just half a dozen paragraphs left – and he reads that the man takes the wolf for a romp in the snow and the wolf turns on his owner and tears his throat out.

Make your readers think they know the ending, and then pull the rug out from under them. This is what made Alfred Hitchcock so famous. You won't know who the guilty party is until the very last scene. Hitchcock mastered twisted endings.