tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413956056720605439.post6425219622456406779..comments2023-12-19T04:47:36.037-08:00Comments on Wringing out Words: The Wrench in a Writer's Tool BoxShannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16847466837385726846noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413956056720605439.post-22707711726946841452011-06-23T12:42:30.223-07:002011-06-23T12:42:30.223-07:00For me, cliffhangers at the ends of chapters are o...For me, cliffhangers at the ends of chapters are okay if used sparingly. Cliffhangers, if over-used, start to seem like cheap tricks. It starts to seem as though the author doesn't trust that she has the full attention of her reader and so must dangle a carrot on the end of a stick.<br />I used to be totally anti-cliffhanger when it comes to the ends of novels, but the Left Behind series by LaHaye and Jenkins changed my mind — sort of. The way they constructed their endings left no doubt that there was more to come, but I wasn't left in complete limbo while waiting for a new hardcover to hit the shelves. However, I've seen other work where the author may as well have just broken off in mid-sentence.<br />Short answer — since I can ramble a bit when it comes to the mechanics of writing — cliffhangers work for me if they aren't overly dramatic. For instance, if a character jumps, unprepared, from an airplane, the novel shouldn't end with him free-falling! That would just be mean!!!Tanisha Rulenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413956056720605439.post-21385323486588617402011-06-14T03:57:18.045-07:002011-06-14T03:57:18.045-07:00I don't mind cliffhangers as long as I know wh...I don't mind cliffhangers as long as I know when the resolution is coming out. I also think there could be some debate as to what can really be called a "cliffhanger"--what about books where there's some closure (like, a major battle fought and won) but one thing left undone (the hero captured by the opposing side so the heroine has to journey off to rescue him in the next book)? Or is it pausing right at the edge of major action? Is anything left undone considered a cliffhanger?Sarahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06636585111057799728noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413956056720605439.post-78239362962848133572011-06-13T21:39:19.824-07:002011-06-13T21:39:19.824-07:00I enjoy a cliffhanger so long as it is the type th...I enjoy a cliffhanger so long as it is the type that makes me want to read the next book, but I'm definitely frustrated by them if I feel that a book is just cut off without a proper ending. Most of the books I read are standalone, so perhaps that is why intense cliffhangers in a series bother me more. But Harry Potter, for example, I thought had perfect hanger endings. I was always satisfied with that book, but definitely excited to continue on with the characters and get the answers to lingering questions.<br /><br />Best of luck with the novellas!L. Hildhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08784087836474776222noreply@blogger.com