Figure 1
User interface while drawing suspense line at the very beginning. The turquoise portion of the text is already rated for suspense while the black text is not.
Figure 2
User interface while drawing suspense line. (Note the progress line below the text box and the changed coordinates at the upper left corner of the line drawing box).
Table 1
Mapping of abbreviations to English translations.
| ABBREVIATION | ENGLISH TRANSLATION |
|---|---|
| story_int | I found the story interesting |
| easy_draw_line | It was easy to depict the perceived suspense through the line |
| distract_line | I was distracted by having to draw a line |
| diff_match_txt_line | It was difficult to align the line with the text |
| no_susp_draw_line_as_should | Although I didn’t find the text suspenseful, I could see where it should be and drew the line accordingly |
| no_susp_draw_line_as_expct | Although I didn’t find the text suspenseful, I drew the line as I thought the text would expect from me |
| read_fun | Reading the story was fun |
| line_as_authr_intnd | I drew the line as the author might have intended the suspense |
| judg_susp_txt_strctr | I judged the suspense based on the text structure |
| spont_feel | I judged the suspense based on my spontaneous feeling |
| line_avg_prsn_draw | I drew the line as I think an average reader would have |
| line_exp_readr_draw | I drew the line as I think an experienced reader (expert) would have |
| diff_concentrate | It was difficult to concentrate on reading |
| difficulties_imagining_scenes | I had difficulties imagining the story |
| self_Assess_difficult | I had difficulties to evaluate my feeling of suspense |
Figure 3
Suspense lines with different levels of granularity.
Figure 4
The answer means and standard deviations given to the questions for each cluster of participants, ordered by discriminatory power (strongest to weakest).
Figure 5
Suspense arc for the two participants’ clusters.
Table 2
Story composition and plot.
| LINE NUMBER | TEXT PART | PLOT |
|---|---|---|
| 0–24 | exposition | Marshall King is the prospective sole heir of a very wealthy uncle, but currently he is facing bankruptcy. |
| 25–395 | main part | Marshall visits the estate of his cousin Everard. Everard treats him favorably while Everard’s wife is hostile towards him. Everard promises to help Marshall avert bankruptcy. In a stormy night, both men visit a dungeon-like room on the estate that houses the cage of a large cat of prey. Everard locks Marshall up in the dungeon. Marshall begs for help. |
| (244) | Everard opens to the cage of the cat of prey, using a mechanism from outside the dungeon. Marshall vainly tries to keep the cage door shut. But the cat of prey does not attack. Marshall manages to climb on top of the cage. The cat attacks and hurts Marshall. He eventually manages to get into the cage and close the door behind him, but the cat wounds him. Once in the cage, he passes out. | |
| (382) | The next morning, Everard enters the dungeon. He is killed by the cat. Servants find Marshall lying unconsciously in the cage and kill the cat. | |
| 396–440 | ending | Several weeks later, Marshall recovers. He subsequently learns that Everard’s wife tried to save him by acting hostilely. Marshall also learns that his wealthy uncle died the very night he spent in the dungeon. It was Everard’s plan to kill Marshall in order to inherit the money instead of Marshall. |
Table 3
Probability/Suspensefulness.
| LINE NUMBER | EVENT | CONDITIONAL PROBABILITY (LIKELIHOOD) OF UNDESIRED OUTCOME/SUSPENSEFULNESS |
|---|---|---|
| 233–253 | Marshall wants out but Everard opens cage from outside | + |
| 281–286 | Marshall realizes protective candlelight will soon fade | + |
| 287–295 | Marshall reaches a relatively safe position | – |
| 299–307 | Cat is not aggressive | – |
| 308–310 | Protective candlelight fades | + |
| 312–330 | Time passes, nothing happens, cat not aggressive | ? |
| 332–341 | Cat becomes aggressive | + |
| 343–347 | Marshall tries to close the cage from above | – |
| 349–355 | Cat attacks (jumps) | + |
| 356–361 | Marshall blinds cat with jacket and keeps closing cage | ? |
| 361–363 | By mistake, Marshall gets close to the cat | + |
| 364–366 | Cat attacks again | + |
| 367–371 | Marshall is in cage with door closed behind him | – |
| 380–396 | Everard enters the room and is attacked by the cat | ? |
Figure 6
Predicted suspense vs. measured suspense.
| QUESTIONNAIRE BEFORE MEASUREMENT | ENGLISH TRANSLATION |
|---|---|
| Teilnehmer*innen-ID | Participant ID |
| Alter | Age |
| Höchster Abschluss | Highest Level of Education |
| Wie viel liest du? (z.B. “sehr wenig”, “wenig”, “durchschnittlich”, “viel”, “sehr viel”) | How much do you read? (e.g., “very little”, “little”, “average”, “a lot”, “very much”) |
| Welche Buchgenres liest du? | Which book genres do you read? |
| Bist du Links- oder Rechtshänder*in? | Are you left or right-handed? |
| Kennst du “Die brasilianische Katze” von Sir Arthur Conan Doyle? | Are you familiar with “The Brazilian Cat” by Arthur Conan Doyle? |
| Hast du eine Farbfehlsichtigkeit? (Zum Beispiel Rot-Grün-Schwäche) | Do you have any color vision deficiency? (e.g., red-green color blindness) |
| Bist du dyslexisch? | Are you dyslexic? (reading and writing difficulties) |
| QUESTIONNAIRE AFTER MEASUREMENT | ENGLISH TRANSLATION |
| Ich hatte Schwierigkeiten, mir die Szenerie vorzustellen | I had difficulties imagining the scene |
| Es war einfach, die empfundene Spannung durch die Linie abzubilden | It was easy to represent the perceived suspense through the line |
| Ich fand die Geschichte interessant | I found the story interesting |
| Marshall ist verheiratet | Marshall is married |
| Es hat mich abgelenkt, eine Linie zeichnen zu müssen | It distracted me to have to draw a line |
| Es war schwierig, Linie und Text aufeinander abzustimmen | It was difficult to coordinate the line and text |
| Obwohl ich den Text nicht spannend fand, konnte ich sehen, wo er es sein sollte, und habe die Linie entsprechend gezeichnet | Although I didn’t find the text suspenseful, I could see where it should be and drew the line accordingly |
| Obwohl ich den Text nicht spannend fand, habe die Linie so gezeichnet, wie ich dachte, dass der Text es von mir erwartet | Although I didn’t find the text suspenseful, I drew the line the way I thought the text expected me to |
| Das Lesen der Geschichte hat mir Spaß gemacht | Reading the story was enjoyable |
| Ich habe die Linie so gezeichnet, wie der Autor die Spannung beabsichtigt haben könnte | I drew the line as the author might have intended the suspense to be |
| Ich habe die Spannung nach meinem spontanen Empfinden beurteilt | I rated suspense based on my spontaneous feelings |
| Ich habe die Spannung anhand der Textstruktur beurteilt | I rated suspense based on the text structure |
| Die Geschichte spielt in Brasilien | The story is set in Brazil |
| Ich fand es schwierig, mein Spannungsempfinden zu beurteilen | I found it difficult to assess my sense of suspense |
| QUESTIONNAIRE AFTER MEASUREMENT | ENGLISH TRANSLATION |
| Es war schwierig, sich auf das Lesen zu konzentrieren | It was difficult to concentrate on reading |
| Ich habe die Linie danach gezeichnet, wie durchschnittlich erfahrene Leser/innen sie meiner Meinung nach gezeichnet hätten | I drew the line as I thought averagely experienced readers would have drawn it |
| Ich habe die Linie so gezeichnet, wie erfahrene Leser/innen (Experten) sie meiner Meinung nach gezeichnet hätten | I drew the line as I thought experienced readers (experts) would have drawn it |
| Hattest du Probleme mit dem Experimentsetting und/oder hast du weitere Anmerkungen oder Ideen? | Did you have problems with the experimental setup and/or do you have any additional comments or ideas? |
| Wie würdest du “Spannung” definieren? | How would you define “suspense”? |
| Nenne besonders spannende Geschichten, die du gelesen hast (egal welcher Art)! | Name particularly suspenseful stories you have read (of any kind)! |