SUSPENSE
TECHNIQUES
Review from Grade 8
Foreshadowing
• Foreshadowing – hints about what will happen in the future
Cliffhanger
• leaving the reader guessing at an emotional high point in the story
Mystery
• an unusual set of circumstances
Moral Dilemma
• a choice between two undesirable alternatives
Flashback
• learning what occurred in the past to lead up to the present
See-saw
• a sequence of favorable and unfavorable events
Vigil
• a long wait – the reader must wait until the end to find out what
happens
Indeterminate Ending
• not being sure what the end result was
Reference to the Supernatural
• reference to, or being above or beyond what is natural
Dangerous Situations
• character is uneasy, and is put in a place of
potential danger
Equality of Forces
• strengths and weaknesses are equal between potential forces