Young Writers Society

A cliffhanger is basically a story that ends (or stops) in an abrupt manner. It came after that absolutely wonderful plot twist where our main character is hanging off a cliff, struggling for his life. Will he make it??? Check out the next episode! It creates tension, makes the readers anxious, and drives them to read more while making the story deeper.

Cliffhangers can be many things. If a wild boar is chasing after me, I trip, and the chapter ends, that is a cliffhanger. It doesn't have to do with cliffs at all.

There are two different types of cliffhangers. The first is the dramatic, the second is the subtle. Both of these can be used as great effects for the ends of chapters, poems, or short stories.

The dramatic cliffhanger is one that stops abruptly on a dangerous, alarming note. For example, say, to use a clichéd example, our hero is climbing up a cliff, and then suddenly falls. The chapter ends. The next thing that comes in the reader's mind is, "What will happen next??" They turn the page eagerly.

Note the drama and tension. Something bad will happen, and that makes the conflict that more real. Because this is such a dramatic effect, it probably shouldn't be used too often.

Now, the subtle cliffhanger is a little different. It ends in a disturbing note. Using our example again, our hero would be climbing up the cliff. Suddenly he slips and almost falls, except he grabs a large rock on time. He is saved... or is he? The next thing that comes into your reader's mind is, "What might happen next?

Note the anxiety. Something bad might happen, and that makes the conflict more real. Some consider this not to be a real cliffhanger, but it is and it can be used frequently as a startling effect.

I hope this helps...

Cliffhangers are always interesting and I think I prefer the subtle kind. It's often too easy to guess what will happen with the big, dramatic cliffhangers. And you've explained them very well Snoink though I'd like to add that there are some physical cliffhangers but also emotional cliffhangers. Sometimes the best ending can be if a character has reached the point of change but hasn't quite gone past that and the reader is left wondering if they will or will they return to their previous routine.

Yes but cliffhangers are very difficult to achieve. You know that nothing bad will happen because the protagonist can't die. Harry Potter's cliffhanger didn't even make me feel a least bit of anxiety. Heck! There was still a quarter of the book left! How do you accomplish something that even J.K. Rowling can't?

To be fair, it's not about knowing whether he'll live or die. It's about what will come of it. As long as we care, it can be easily done, I believe.

Cliffhangers are about SUSPENSE.

Suspense is key to any successful book. It's also known the "need to know what happens next." As the word might suggest, the conclusion of the plot or story strand is left suspended in the air so the audience begs to know the ending. Done skilfully, it can rejuvenate a failing or meandering plot.

Examples:

1. Susan Hill's ghost story The Woman in Black uses short chapters with mini cliffhangers building to bigger cliffhangers to increase the suspense factor and hence ratchet up the tension, very slowly...
2. Any multi-act play. The end of each act is almost always a cliffhanger.
3. Game shows like "Deal or No Deal" where a dramatic moment in the show's "plot" is cut off by a commercial break.
4. TV shows like "Lost," "24" or "The X Files" have a strong tradition of cliffhangers or sudden plot revelations at the end of episodes.

To sum up, Cliffhangers = Suspense = WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?