Anatomy Of A Cliffhanger / Happenings In The Outhouse 19-Dec-2025

My wife and I watch a lot of movies and shows as we wind down each night (if we're not playing games, of course).

Most shows, obviously, if done well, have scene breaks that leave you hanging . . . wanting to stay until the scene returns.  In some cases of the old TV cable days, it would be a commercial break.  Not for us.  We severed the TV cable a few years ago and have not regretted it.  At this point in the show, I usually point at the TV and say, "Cliffhanger."

My wife has now caught on to what a cliffhanger does--not that she didn't know before, and more than likely did except maybe didn't quite know the word for it, but being married to a writer, I'm prone to this type of thinking of how a story is set up.

Whether your story is in written or visual form, cliffhangers are set up to . . . well, leave you hanging, wanting to either keep reading or watching.

Check out your favorite movies or books, and see if you can spot the cliffhangers.  More than likely, now that you know what to look for, they'll be easy to spot.