Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing is a hint early in a story that only fully makes sense once something later has happened.
It can be almost anything: a line of dialogue that sounds like small talk, an object left lying around, a dream, a chapter title, a recurring image, even the weather. What makes it foreshadowing is that it works on two levels. On a first read it’s just part of the scene. On a reread you see what it was pointing to.
Foreshadowing is what makes a big turn feel earned. Readers will go along with almost anything if the ground was laid for it. When someone says “that came out of nowhere”, they usually mean the setup was missing, and the event itself would have been fine with it.
It has two close relatives. Chekhov’s gun is foreshadowing that comes with a promise: if it’s shown, it has to pay off. A red herring is a hint that points the wrong way on purpose. Working out which is which is half the fun of rereading a book you already know the ending of.
Foreshadowing: common questions
What is the difference between foreshadowing and a red herring?
Foreshadowing hints at what’s really going to happen. A red herring deliberately points you somewhere else so you don’t guess too soon.
How do you spot foreshadowing?
Look for details that get more attention than they seem to deserve, like an object described in a lot of detail, a comment the story lingers on, or an image that keeps coming back.