Foreshadowing
Hints or clues an author plants early to suggest what will happen later.
Foreshadowing prepares readers for future events, making outcomes feel inevitable rather than arbitrary. Writers use subtle details, ominous remarks, or recurring images to build suspense and reward attentive reading. On a second reading, foreshadowing often reveals how carefully a story was constructed.
Example
The villagers gathering stones early in the story quietly foreshadows the brutal ending, a clue easy to miss on a first reading.
The Lottery ยท Shirley Jackson
See it in action
Analyses on StoryBites that use foreshadowing:
The Story of an HourKate ChopinA Rose for EmilyWilliam FaulknerThe Yellow WallpaperCharlotte Perkins GilmanThe Tell-Tale HeartEdgar Allan PoeThe Cask of AmontilladoEdgar Allan PoeThe Murders in the Rue MorgueEdgar Allan PoeThe Masque of the Red DeathEdgar Allan PoeThe Open WindowSakiAn Occurrence at Owl Creek BridgeAmbrose BierceThe Monkey's PawW.W. JacobsThe Most Dangerous GameRichard ConnellThe NecklaceGuy de Maupassant