Today, we’re going to discuss how to write a compelling middle for a story. Have you ever heard the phrase “saggy middle”? It typically refers to a story with an intriguing beginning, a satisfying conclusion, and a middle that’s just there, somewhat spongy and difficult to get through.
On my YouTube channel we’re currently in the midst of a series where we discuss how to write various elements of a story. The inspiration for these videos comes from a writer’s retreat I attended. I’m borrowing ideas from one of the speakers, Morgan L. Busse, because I believe it’s important to teach these concepts to internalize them. She’s an excellent writer and I highly recommend checking out her work here.
“Saggy middles” are a real problem. Almost universally, the middle of a story is its weakest point. As writers, we often have exciting ideas to start stories and sometimes equally exciting ideas for how to end them. However, very few writers have fantastic ideas for what happens in the middle of their story.
The number one thing we can do to tighten a saggy middle is to write what we want to write, and not just that, but what excites us. You might be thinking, “Seth, isn’t that what you’re supposed to do all the time?” Well, yes. But when we have a preset beginning and a fair idea of the end, or maybe we’ve already written the end, it’s crucial that the middle part of the book keeps us excited. If we find it a slog to write, our reader will inevitably find it a slog to read. If we aren’t excited about it, we need to change it. If we’re thinking, “I wish this chapter was over, let’s get on to the next thing,” then our reader is likely to feel the same way. Those are the chapters in books that people skip. Sometimes it’s not just one scene, but chapter after chapter. We don’t want to write like that. We want to write books that grip readers from beginning to end, dragging them along whether they like it or not. The only way to write a book like that is to write what excites you.
If you’re writing and you find yourself dreading to continue, then it’s a clear sign that you need a change. You need to make something different happen. That might mean rewriting plot points, shifting the flow of the story, introducing new characters, removing characters, killing someone off, or blowing something up. It’s up to you. You’re the author, after all.
I remember Stephen King telling a story about how he wrote an exciting beginning for a book and had a great end in mind. But when he got to the middle, he realized there were too many characters and it was starting to drag as he tried to deal with all of them. He arranged for all of them to meet up at the same building and then he blew it up, immediately eliminating 90% of his cast. That’s a simple way to change the situation.
I was reading a book recently where something similar happened. One of the characters, high off their success after completing a big mission, returns to find their entire nation plunged into war. The thing they thought was a success now doesn’t matter because everything has moved in a different direction. That’s an author who looked at the middle of their book and decided it wasn’t fun. So, they introduced some chaos to make it more enjoyable.
We can do exactly that by asking a simple question: “What needs to happen? What is the thing that has to happen to get me from point A to point B?” And then, whatever that is, we find the most unexpected way to go from point A to point B.
Consider a story about someone who walks out their front door needing to go to work. You could just have them get in their car and drive to work. That would be a saggy middle. It’s not very interesting. But think about how many obstacles you can put in their way. Think about the circuitous route they might have to take to go from home to work. Almost anything could happen during that time. So, make it happen. Don’t get so stuck in your head that the character has to go from here to there that you forget that you are in charge of what they experience and see along the way. You can make it fun. A little bit of chaos never hurt anybody in a book, except for the protagonist and maybe some of the side characters. But as a reader, it’s delightful.
Don’t be afraid of introducing a bit of chaos into your story. Don’t be afraid of taking a left turn when they should have taken a right. Don’t be afraid of blowing everything up. Because if it’s not fun for you, it’s not going to be fun for everyone else. So, make sure that you’re having fun with it.
That’s really it. That’s how you fix a saggy middle. That’s how you tighten up a story that seems to drag along. Don’t take the normal route. Take a completely different route. Inject chaos into your story. And most importantly, make sure that you are having fun.
YouTube Video Link: https://youtu.be/h1CHwGTaBK8
Thanks for reading and watching.
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