Another way authors create suspense is through the use of foreshadowing, subtle details that hint at events that will occur later in the story. Suppose you read a story in which the main character catches several glimpses of a mysterious young woman leaning out of a car window with a camera. What questions would go through your mind? If the detail was meant as foreshadowing, those questions would be answered by later events. And the purpose of the scene would be to make you wonder.
Read the passage from "The Woman in the Brown Dress" again. This time, look for details that might foreshadow, or hint at, events to come in the story.
Glancing up from her cart, then, she noticed a woman looking at her. As soon as their eyes met, the woman, who was dressed entirely in brown, quickly turned away and rolled her shopping cart around the corner to the next aisle.
Weird, Laila thought. I could have sworn I saw that same woman looking at me before.
In truth, Laila had had the oddest feeling of being watched ever since she'd come into the store. But that was just silly. She hadn't seen any familiar faces, and since she had only recently moved into the neighborhood, it was unlikely that anyone would recognize her. Sure, some guy might be checking her out, but guys usually weren't subtle about doing that. And besides, she hadn't noticed many young guys in the store today, and she generally had pretty good radar.
Laila moved to the next aisle and selected several kinds of pasta for her cart. She was comparing jars of sauce when she suddenly had that feeling of being watched again. She looked up and down the aisle, but saw only a young mother with her three-year-old and an elderly couple.
She shook her head. You're getting paranoid, she told herself. A moment later, though, she was sure she'd caught a glimpse of a brown dress. Frowning, Laila pushed her cart down the aisle and turned the corner. Near the end of the next aisle, she saw the woman again, carefully studying a box of breakfast cereal.
Question
What foreshadowing does the writer use in this passage?
Laila feels as if she's being watched, and a stranger in a brown dress appears to be following her.
Question
How do these details create suspense?
They make readers wonder who the woman in the brown dress is and why she is following Laila.
