WhatsApp-style cliffhanger text story: Part 1: the door
A ready WhatsApp-style chat for a cliffhanger that sets up Part 2, eight messages long and about 25 seconds as a video. Load it, change the words and export it as a labelled, fictional mock-up.
The full script (8 messages)
The first four messages open on the Free plan; the rest need a paid plan.
The script: Part 1: the door
Load Part 1: the door and you get eight messages: Marta starts with "There is a new door in the corridor.", Ibai closes with "Wait. Wait for me.", and the read-through takes roughly 25 seconds.
Look at message 1, "There is a new door in the corridor.", which runs 8 words, then at message 4, "Is it locked?". Two of the lines are questions, and each one pulls a reply out of the other side.
How the WhatsApp look carries the story
WhatsApp-style chats put your messages on the right in green and theirs on the left in white or dark gray, with the time tucked into the corner of every bubble. WhatsApp is one of the looks open to everyone on the Free plan. Switch on typing dots, read marks, reactions and an online status when you build the scene. A small date chip such as "Today" floats above the first message, a good place to hint at when the story happens without writing a line for it. This look has its own drawing in the editor.
Writing notes: cliffhanger
Finish with a clear "To be continued" in the caption, not in the chat. The chat should end like a real chat that was interrupted. Keep it fiction with invented adults, and do not use real events or real people as the mystery.
What the Free plan shows
The Free plan opens the first four messages and two people, so Part 1: the door would stop at "Is it locked?". The other four, through "Wait. Wait for me.", need a paid plan with a higher message limit and up to four people.
Tips
- Hold message 5, "It is open. There is light inside.", a beat longer than the rest.
- Put "Part 1" in the title and link Part 2 in the caption and the first comment.
- Change one word of Ibai's closing "Wait. Wait for me." so the ending is yours, then caption the video as a fictional chat.
- Rename Marta and Ibai to keep the story original, and keep every character an invented adult.
- Read Ibai's answer "You mean a closet?" out loud; if it takes more than two seconds, trim it.
Questions
Can I use Part 1: the door on the Free plan?
Yes for the look, with limits. The WhatsApp look is on the Free plan, and the editor loads the first four of the eight messages and two people. The rest of the script needs a paid plan. Exports on Free carry a visible ChatsRat watermark.
How long is Part 1: the door as a video?
About 25 seconds at a comfortable reading pace, counting eight messages with a short beat between them. Add a second or two for the ending card and a little more if you use a typing indicator before the last line.
What if I do not know the end yet?
Write the answer first, then cut the story just before it. A cliffhanger without an ending is only a loose thread.
Is this WhatsApp-style chat a real conversation?
No. It is an invented story between Marta and Ibai, made as a mock-up. ChatsRat is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by WhatsApp, and the name describes a style only. Label the video as fiction.
This is fiction. The people and events in this story are invented. ChatsRat makes mock-ups and fictional conversations for creators, designers and teachers. Do not use it to pass off a made-up conversation as a real one, to impersonate a real person, or as proof of anything. See the Acceptable Use policy.
About the watermark. Exports on the Free plan carry a visible ChatsRat watermark, and every export carries an invisible mark that the verify page can read. Plans list what changes on paid plans.
ChatsRat is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any messaging app. App names on this page describe a style only.
More like this
All chat storiesStory script libraryAbout the WhatsApp-style chat page