And Then He Turned and Said--

            Cliff hangers.  They’re everywhere:  At the end of chapters in a book, right before TV commercials, at the end of movies whose producers want to have a sequel. Even radio programs tease us with, “And in the next hour we’ll tell you what the alleged bomber told reporters, just outside the courthouse.”

            We want people to stay with us.  We want our readers to keep flipping pages.  Even more, we want them to be unable to put our books down. 

And then she opened the closet door. 

He stopped the car.  That couldn’t be her, walking down the street.  Could it? 

The girl stared into the policeman’s face.  “But I know who killed him,“ she said.

Her cell phone rang and she checked the caller.  Jim?  Wasn’t he dead?

As last lines in chapter books, these make you want to keep reading, to find out what was in the closet, who was walking by the car, who was the murderer, and if a dead person was really alive.

When you’re writing a book, whether it’s a crime novel, a funny chick-lit book, a romance, or a western, you need suspense.  This doesn’t mean you have to inject a mysterious plot line or a police detective into a story about a struggling artist.  It just means that you keep the reader on the edge of his or her proverbial seat.  Keep them fascinated, eager to see what happens next.

When you’re outlining, which I told you about here, take time to arrange cliff hangers before the chapter breaks.  Don’t just lump actions together until it seems you have 10 pages’ worth or so.  Plan the dance.  At the end of each chapter, ask yourself, “Why would a reader want to keep reading at this point?”  And give them a reason. 

Slow down.  Don’t reveal everything you know as quickly as you can.  Reel the reader in gradually, drop hints, promise more to come.  Will you do it with dialogue?  With a physical discovery?  With a sudden, unexpected event?  Vary the techniques you use.  You don’t want every chapter to end with, “Detective Barnes couldn’t believe what happened next.”

Cliff hangers don’t just happen; we craft them.  It’s part of what professional writing is about.  So make sure you use them.  Unless…

Check out my three most recent novels—Jungle, Pinholes Into Heaven, and Sisters  in the Mix.  They’re fiction in completely different genres, but each one uses suspense.  And, dare I say, they make wonderful Christmas gifts.