Concept

Open loop

You might say: question to the end, teaser, dramatic question

A specific question raised now and answered later. Close small loops as you go and keep one big one for the end.

What it does

Gives the viewer a reason to watch the next section.

Ask

Which question is open right now, and when do I close it?

Trouble

Nothing is open in the middle, so viewers leave; or every answer is withheld and viewers feel strung along.

What to look for

1. Small answers closing while one large question remains
2. A later section resolving the earlier question

Pattern

Setup and payoff

Sources

1. American English, Presenting Ideas through Digital Storytelling in the English Language Classroom, slides 17–20 and 29What is the key question that holds the viewer’s attention until the end of the story?
2. Kidd & Hayden, The psychology and neuroscience of curiosity, Information-gap theory and partial knowledgeGeorge Loewenstein (1994) described curiosity as “a cognitive induced deprivation that arises from the perception of a gap in knowledge and understanding.”

Use it on your project

teardown-apply: hold "Open loop" (open-loop) from the teardown at https://teardownatlas.com/content-creation/ against my project

Paste it into a coding agent that has the teardown skills.

An AI agent wrote this map with the teardown skill. It can contain errors: check the sources before you rely on a part. About and legal