How to Write Stories People Will Love

Question 73: Cliffhangers

MitsuhaMiyamizi asks: How do I create interesting cliffhangers at the end of a chapter? Like, I've tried in every book, but I just can't seem to get it.

A cliffhanger is a writing device with the purpose of making the reader want to read the next chapter. It presents a dilemma or revelation that makes the reader wonder, "What are they going to do now?" This curiosity makes them turn the page instead of taking a break (or going to bed for the night, heh).

Pique Curiosity

Readers turn the page when they want to know what happens next, so the situation you present should be one that makes them pay attention. One they don't already know the answers to. Some examples of standard and cliffhanger chapter endings so you can see the difference:

STANDARD: Boy heads out the door to walk to his first day of school.

CLIFFHANGER: Boy heads out the door for his first day of school and encounters a bully.

WHY THIS WORKS: Walking to school is a typical activity that we are familiar with. But the introduction of a bully makes this atypical. What's he going to do about it?

STANDARD: Hero beats a bad guy.

CLIFFHANGER: Hero beats a bad guy but then passes out from blood loss.

WHY THIS WORKS: The reader is now worried if the hero will survive or not.

STANDARD: Girl is anxious about meeting her mother.

CLIFFHANGER: Girl is anxious about meeting her mother when the doorbell rings.

WHY THIS WORKS: Reader is curious who's at the door at this apprehensive time. Will this person make the situation better or worse?

Timing

Good stories move along with rising and falling tension. Imagine a bell curve (an arc that gradually slopes up, rises sharply, crests, then falls back down. Like the shape of a bell). A scene typically has a beginning (gradual slope), rising tension (heading for the top of the bell), a pinnacle or turning point (crest), and then resolution (falling tension). A cliffhanger happens when you end the chapter somewhere along the rise of the bell curve.

It can be at the beginning of the curve, where just enough information and tension is offered so the reader has a hint of what's to come. For example, a boy walking to school offers no tension at all. But when a bully steps in front of him, boom, instant tension. No action has happened yet, but just the bully stepping out offers something to be curious about.

In the case of the hero passing out from blood loss after a battle, that may seem like the falling tension of a bell curve. He just beat the bad guy! But it's actually the start of another rising curve. He had a moment of rest, and now faces the challenge of whether he's going to survive or not. Readers will want to find out what happens next.

Turning Points

If thinking about bell curves and the mechanics of a plot make your head hurt, then don't think about those. Think about turning points instead, when something shifts unexpectedly, or something important is revealed. You end the chapter at that moment when the reader's mouth drops open. If Star Wars was a book, the chapter would end at, "Luke, I'm your father." If Shrek was a book, the chapter would end when you found out Fiona was an ogre at night.

Tension is the Key

Cliffhangers only work if there is some kind of suspense. Readers don't know what's going to happen next, but want to. If the situation is predictable, then there's no tension. So the situation has to be unexpected or out of the ordinary. Refer to Chapter 6: Add Tension for a refresher on how tension works.