The stretch after the climax where consequences play out and the story settles toward its ending.
Falling action follows the climax: the decisive confrontation is over, and the remaining scenes handle fallout - loose threads tied, the cost tallied, the new order taking shape. It's usually brief, because the tension has already discharged and readers feel every extra page.
The trap is treating it as an epilogue that re-explains what just happened. Its real job is to show what the climax changed, then get out before the goodwill runs dry.
Go deeper: Three-Act Structure - beat sheet
Plan with 30+ story frameworks, write your screenplay or novel, and let Quill coach every beat - it guides and never writes. Free account, no card.
