Cliffhangers. Writers love them, readers hate them. Here is the logic, where is a reader most likely to stop reading a book? The end of the chapter. And there are chances that after they have stopped reading a book for a day, that they will never pick it up again. Cliffhangers are one of the few reasons people are still reading what you have to say. There is only one key word to describe the nature of a cliffhanger, unexpected. Cliffhangers definitely need an element of the last point I made. They are primarily made of the question: "What will happen next?" It needs to be sudden and concise. Unlike throughout-the-chapter conflict and unturned stones, there is no tension buildup. All you have to work with is a quick phrase that will set the readers up for the resolve in the next chapter. And mind you, there needs to be resolve, or the readers will feel tricked into reading the next chapter.
It's safe to say that readers love our books for the very reason they hate them. Cliffhangers will bring your readers to the end they wanted to see.
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The Right To Write
Non-FictionAre you a writer? Did you think it was going to be easy? Well then, you've got yourself in some pretty messy business. From plot twists to character development. From suspense to finding a writing tone. Step by step I'll take you into the li...
