Narrative Pace & Goldilocks: Too Hot, Too Cold- Just Right.

"Narrators, and the authors behind them, also make choices about the pace at which they tell a story, speeding up or slowing down some parts, and omitting others all together"  (Hamilton 170).


It is easy to relate narrative pacing to the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears since Goldilocks encounters porridge that is too hot and too cold.  Just like the porridge, sometimes narrative pacing can be too slow and too fast.  How many books have you read that seemed to drag on... and on.... and on?  I have read a number of books like this.  It seems as though the author could have sped up the pace to keep the reader interested.  On the other hand, there are books I have read where I think the pace was too quick.  It seems like some books with a fast pace have so many good ideas and story lines that I feel rushed reading them.  An inbetween pace moves slowly enough to feel comfortable or at ease reading and also moves quickly enough to maintain interest.  Goldilocks prefers a narrative pace that is just right.

Additionally, though the reader may not like it, the author often creates a slow or fast pace to create a tone.  A slow pace can give the reader a sense of boredom, lengthiness, and according to Hamilton can "replicate the inescapable suffering" (Hamilton 172) whereas a fast pace gives the reader a sense of urgency or a feeling of being rushed.  It is clever of authors to do this because it gives the readers the same feelings as the characters and is effective at pulling them into the story.