What is a Cliffhanger? Mastering the Types of Cliffhangers Writers Use in a Series

Ready to hook your readers and leave them desperate for your next book? Cliffhangers are one of the most effective tools in a writer’s arsenal to keep readers turning pages—and eagerly awaiting the sequel. In this post, we’ll delve into what cliffhangers are, why they work, and how to craft them effectively.

What are cliffhangers?

A cliffhanger is a plot device that leaves a story unresolved, typically at a moment of suspense or surprise. Whether it’s at the end of a scene, chapter, or an entire novel, a well-crafted cliffhanger will make the reader eager to find out what happens next. 

Some common types of cliffhangers include:

• Ending right before a dangerous or life-threatening event: The hero is hanging off a literal or metaphorical cliff, and we’re left wondering if they’ll survive.
• Ending after a shocking revelation: A twist changes the story’s trajectory and leaves readers reeling.

A cliffhanger at the end of a chapter will entice your reader to turn the page and continue reading into the next chapter, while an effective cliffhanger at the end of your book will have your fans eagerly awaiting the next installment! In this post, we’ll focus on the type of cliffhanger that occurs at the end of a novel, which is designed to set up sequels and keep your audience engaged.

Why do cliffhangers work?

Readers may both love and hate unresolved endings, but when done well, using cliffhangers is very effective! When a narrative ends with unanswered questions or unresolved tension, it creates a sense of curiosity and urgency in readers to seek closure.

Cliffhangers also capitalize on emotional investment. By the time readers reach the end of a book, they’re deeply connected to the characters and their journey. A cliffhanger exploits this connection, making readers care about what happens next. Additionally, cliffhangers build anticipation. Whether it’s suspense over a character’s fate or excitement for a new mystery, they leave readers eagerly awaiting the sequel, turning them into loyal fans.

Popular examples of cliffhangers

Cliffhangers are used in all forms of fiction and are especially popular in film and television series. Some examples of stories that end on cliffhangers include:

• Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins, which ends just as Katniss learns about the rebellion and the destruction of District Twelve.
• Marvel's Avengers: Infinity War leaves the fate of half of the universe in question following Thanos's snap.
• The second season of the BBC's Sherlock ends with the titular character seemingly dying, only to appear alive in the final shot, leaving viewers guessing as to how that could be!

Ready to craft your own thrilling cliffhanger? Read on for our tips!

Tips for writing cliffhanger endings

Resolve the primary conflict

Even if you’re ending the story on a cliffhanger, you still need to make sure your novel is a complete story. This means you still have to resolve the primary conflict (catalyst) that began your story and launched your hero on their journey. If you end the story before you get to the climax and resolve this conflict, your story will feel incomplete. Your story needs a beginning, middle, and end, and that includes the climax and resolution.

However, just because you’ve solved the primary or main conflict in your novel doesn’t mean you can’t leave other conflicts or subplots that are introduced unresolved. This is how you create a suspenseful ending that works and will satisfy your readers. If you do this well, this will help you with our next tip: the sequel setup.

The sequel setup

Think of the other story threads in your novel that you’ve introduced. This could be part of another main character or supporting character’s storylines, a secret that’s been revealed, or an unforeseen consequence resulting from the climax of your story. You can even kill off an important character or cause an accident, such as a plane or car crash, and end the story before readers find out if the characters are ok. Whatever you decide, use it to set up the sequel to your next book.

Remember that cliffhanger endings are not the same as ambiguous or open endings. Ambiguous endings are open to a reader’s interpretation and don’t have a sequel to follow up the current book. Cliffhangers will always have a sequel that follows it. The worst thing you can do is leave a reader hanging on the edge of a cliff forever!

Reveal or withhold new information

A great way to use a cliffhanger ending is to have a character reveal a secret or discover a new piece of information that will have a drastic impact on the narrative. Maybe one of your supporting characters isn’t who they say they are, and they’ve been working with the antagonist all along. Maybe your hero just found out one of their loved ones who they thought had died is still alive. Or, maybe your characters just discovered a secret hidden society or a prophecy that predicts your hero will cause the world’s destruction. Either way, this new information should be essential and change the direction of the story.

Remember, even though you’re revealing a twist with this cliffhanger, the twist should not be random or come entirely out of left field. No matter what the twist is, there should be subtle clues and red herrings that we’ve gotten along the way, so when a reader goes back and reads it again, the clues make sense with the story you’re telling. Keep in mind that while red herrings are primarily used in mystery novels, you can use them in other non-mystery genres as well.

You can also have a character withhold crucial information or a secret from another character. This builds tension in a story (more on that point next) and raises questions for the reader. Why is this character keeping the information a secret? What are they up to? How do they plan to use this information in the future?

The ticking clock

Another great way to use a cliffhanger is to build up the tension in the scene and end it when the tension is high or at its peak. There are many ways to do this, like what was suggested above, but another way to ramp up the tension is by using a “ticking clock.” No, your hero doesn’t have to be carrying around a literal clock, but by having some sort of countdown or deadline that forces your characters to do something before time runs out, it provides readers with a sense of urgency.

There are two ways you can do this that work well when ending a novel on a cliffhanger. You can either use the ticking clock as the setup for your sequel, which means the countdown will begin at the start of the next book–or if your characters are going to fail to complete their task, you can use a ticking clock in your current novel and end your story once the clock runs out, but before we find out the consequences for your character’s failure.

Use internal conflict

Characters make a good story great! When crafting a cliffhanger ending, it’s easy to focus on just the external conflict and show what’s happening in the story to your characters. But don’t forget about the internal conflict your hero or heroes are also going through. If you’ve done a good job creating characters readers will love and care about, then they’ll be just as invested in their internal arc as they are with the story's plot.

Use this to your advantage by ending the story at a point where their internal arc seems uncertain. While the primary external conflict will be resolved by the end of the story, the internal journey of your hero may end with the “all is lost” or the “dark night of the soul” beat. This leaves readers wondering, are they really going to learn the lesson/theme? Can they truly change? If readers love your characters and are rooting for their success, they’ll be compelled to continue with the story to find out. This works even better if you’re writing an anti-hero,  a negative character arc,  or a redeemable villain!

Ready to write a cliffhanger that keeps readers hooked?

Remember, resolve the primary conflict, set up the sequel, reveal or withhold a new piece of information, use a ticking clock and internal conflict. Master these techniques, and you’ll craft cliffhanger endings that leave your readers desperate for more!