Chekhov's gun

Hi there, do you remember the last time you were reading a story or watching a movie and you noticed something that seemed unimportant or irrelevant at first, but later on, it turned out to be really important to the story? That is called Chekhov's Gun.

Imagine if someone in a story mentioned a gun hanging on the wall, and then the story went on without using the gun. Later in the story, the gun was never used, and it didn't matter. You might wonder why the writer mentioned it in the first place. Chekhov's Gun is about avoiding this type of situation.

Chekhov's Gun is a principle or rule that says that every element in a story should be necessary and serve a purpose. It means that if an object, a character, or a detail is mentioned, it should have importance later on in the story. The object or character should play a role or be essential in a significant event that happens later.

For example, if a character receives a diary from his grandfather, but the diary is never mentioned again, it would be distracting and frustrating for the audience. Instead, if the character reads the diary and discovers a secret about his family, it should be important to the story in some manner.

So, when you see or read something that seems out of place or like it doesn't matter, keep an eye on it. That little detail might be Chekhov's Gun, and it could come back to play a big role in the story.