You started your story with a strong hook and you’ve captured the reader’s attention. Now, you have to carry the story along, lead the plot towards a resounding climax and keep readers on the edge of their seats till the end. Then, something falls flat. What happened? Did you follow too many tangents? Add too many sidelines and differing episodes? Introduce too many characters? Do the scenes in the middle continue to be explosive and exciting? Or are they dull and ho-hum? Are you droning on and on? Or, perhaps it’s quite the opposite, and you’ve given the reader nothing current, nothing relevant to lead the plot along?

There are so many reasons why the middle of any story can suddenly fall flat. Sag. Drag. Die. What you need to do is look at the middle part with a critical eye. Perhaps even have someone else read it – critically. Insist that they be genuinely honest. It might require a total rehash of the middle. A major amputation of parts. But if you’ve kept the reader through the opening, you don’t want to lose them in the middle.

Here are some tips to help improve your middle section. Imagine you’re the reader and the reader is asking the story, many times over, ‘what if?’ You want to complicate the plot without complicating it. Suggestions? Keep current with the news: newspaper, TV/radio, online. There’s definitely a lot going on in the world to spark an interesting sideline idea, to give you another ‘what if’ scenario. But don’t drone on and on.

Take, for example, the idea of a puppy mill. Another one has been discovered and is shut down. If the story has an element that connects the main character to dogs, perhaps there is a ‘what if’ sub-plot you could add about this main character actively saving these poor, four-legged victims. There are a wide range of possibilities and ‘what if’ ideas you could weave into the middle as mini-scenes. Just be careful not to go too far off on a tangent. Make whatever you add relevant. For example, the main character might be a crime stopper super-hero who loves dogs and takes the time to help out in the shelter that rescues these puppy mill victims. And, perhaps the antagonist is also a dog lover and is currently helping out in the same puppy mill.

The important thing is to maintain a strong plot. You can’t write a story based on a 'Mom died. Then Dad died.' plot development. Too ho-hum and, besides the tragedy of the two deaths, there’s nothing to excite the reader. It’s a weak, malfunctioning plot at best. What you really want to present to the readers is an insight into a possible, plausible storyline:

Mom died suddenly from cancer. Dad passed away shortly after of a broken heart. Those who loved them realized that, after sixty-one years together, they were never meant to be separated and Dad’s heart just stopped.

The reader now has a sense of ‘why’ the two deaths happen. It’s a logical, but causal sequence of events. How the author presents these events and complications in the characters’ lives will either encourage or discourage the reader to continue.

Keep the reader aware of the importance of the characters. Without characters, there is no plot. Remember, stories are about characters: people, animals, even robots. There has to be a sense of connection, the possibility of a connection, between the reader and the characters. The characters move the plot and the plot moves the characters, through the character flaws and weaknesses, and even how they change.

Don’t lose track of what your story is about. This is essential to maintain a consistent flow of ideas and a comprehensible plot development. Remember what the characters are trying to do, trying to accomplish, trying to achieve. Keep the theme in mind. If you have an outline (which is always a good idea), keep studying it to maintain a sense of direction, to keep you on track with your plot development.

Some things you might want to consider employing to move the plot along and keep it from sagging:

Foreshadowing – dropping hints on what might eventually happen. This creates tension and helps intensify the conflict as the plot moves closer to its eventual outcome.

Stream of consciousness – provide the protagonist’s thoughts through interior monologues throughout the developing plot. These thoughts don’t have to be sequential or linear, but they allow the reader to experience both external action and internal thoughts and feelings about the story’s action. Incorporating a character’s private thoughts reveal not only detailed aspects of the character but also some intentions and ideas that may be developed later in the plot. This adds a whole new texture to the novel. However, use it sparingly. Some editors/publishers don’t like internal dialogue and the reader doesn’t want to know everything all at once.

Missing crucial information - you’re writing an important scene and you realize that you need a specific fact, like a date, but it’s impossible to find or too costly to hire someone to find it for you. What do you do? Make up a date. Highlight it so that you can return to it later and correct it. Then move on. Don’t stop writing just because you’ve met a tiny little roadblock like this. You’ll lose your momentum.

Action drags - it’s a common problem amongst authors. You’re writing an action scene that’s even starting to bore you, the author. The story appears to be moving forward, but it feels cumbersome. Don’t pack in more detail and make it too involved. Instead, tighten up what you’ve already written and move on. Sometimes an action scene just needs to move at a quicker pace.

A character suddenly appears lackluster - don’t get too close and personal to your characters. Sometimes you get too careful with a character, especially if you’ve based him/her on yourself or a close friend or relative. If this seems to be the case, consider adding weirdness. Give the character an obsession, like a very strong desire to eat chocolate whenever things start going awry. Obsessions are great because they’re simple enough to drop into a character’s personality, and you can use them repeatedly to spice up your plot.

Don’t overdo the information download - you’re at a turning point in your novel and there’s one character who is revealing information to another or making connections in his head as the puzzle starts to fall into place. It just doesn’t feel natural. Maybe you’re writing too much narrative. Turn the information narrative into a dialogue. Don’t underestimate the reader’s ability to infer, generalize, and make connections. Scope around for a handy character and reveal it through dialogue, questions, and answers. 

Roadblock – you don’t know what to write next. You’ve arrived at a critical point in your novel and you’ve been following your plot outline very carefully. You’re very pleased with how the plot is developing, but all of a sudden you have this feeling that perhaps something isn’t right and you don’t know what to write next. Brainstorm. Make a long list of possible ideas, solutions, and developments. I do my best brainstorming when I’m out walking the dog. Find some activity that inspires brainstorming moments.

Your plot suddenly becomes too complex and the resolution sounds forced – it happens to all of us. Now what? Do you tie up all of the loose ends and solve all of the complexities of the plot? No. Leave some loose ends. Suspense is always a good ending. Suspense builds and brings the plot to a satisfying climax and conclusion. So, keep the suspense. Only resolve what needs to be resolved.

The main thing to remember is that your first draft of anything you write is just that: a first draft. It requires work. Editing for more than just spelling and grammar and typos. Editing with a highly critical eye. Be hard on yourself and continually ask yourself if you’ve really captured the essence of what you were intending to write about in the first place. Writing is a journey – a long one. And no one wants to be stuck in a sagging middle in what could potentially be a really good story.