Plot Fixes for When Your Romance Isn’t Working

You’re writing, but somehow, the story isn’t working. The pacing is weird. The characters are flat. The romance doesn’t have the spark it promised at the start.

If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Every writer, even the seasoned pros, sometimes experiences this issue. Heck, I’m experiencing it now after nearly a 100 books.

The good news is that you don’t have to trash the story. Most of the time, what your story needs isn’t a total overhaul, but a small, strategic shift.

These are quick, powerful techniques that help you re-align your romance, refocus your characters, and rebuild narrative drive without derailing everything you’ve already written.

Diagnose the Problem First

Is it the plot, characters, story core, or the execution?

When a romance novel starts to wobble mid-draft, it usually comes down to one of four key areas: plot, character, the emotional core, or execution. If you’re not sure what’s wrong, taking a step back to assess can help you make targeted fixes instead of spinning your wheels.

Plot problems often show up as a lack of direction or momentum. Maybe your characters are just drifting from scene to scene without clear stakes or consequences. Maybe you introduced a central conflict early on and then forgot about it. Or the romance is happening, but it’s not driving the story forward.

Character issues can make even a solid plot fall flat. If your leads aren’t changing, learning, or pushing back against their circumstances, readers won’t feel invested. Maybe your characters are too passive, or their motivations don’t hold up under pressure. Are their goals clear? Do they have emotional wounds that are affecting their decisions? While characters can have unlikeable tendencies, readers need to see aspects of characters they can root for.

The emotional core is the heart of the romance. Readers need to be invested in the characters, but also in their relationship. If the chemistry feels forced, the stakes feel hollow, or you’re not emotionally connecting with what’s happening, chances are your readers won’t either. Sometimes the story’s premise is fine, but the emotional journey needs recalibrating.

Execution problems can come down to structure, pacing, or scene work. Are scenes dragging when they should snap? Is there too much setup and not enough payoff? Are you spending too long in transition or description without movement? These issues often build up subtly until you realize the story has lost energy.

Quick fix: Try the “because of that…” test. Take your plot and summarize it beat by beat. After each action or decision, ask: “Because of that, what happens next?” If your answer keeps being “and then…” instead of “because of that…,” your story might be missing a strong cause-and-effect chain. Strengthening those links can help everything fall back into place.

Fix #1 – Turn Up the Tension

Sometimes the problem is that your lovers are getting along too well.

It’s tempting to let your romantic leads settle into comfort once the initial sparks fly, but tension is what keeps readers turning pages. If your story feels like it’s dragging, chances are the stakes have dropped or the conflict has fizzled out.

Conflict doesn’t have to mean shouting matches or breakups. It can be internal doubts, emotional baggage, or circumstances pulling them apart. External pressure can also reignite momentum, such as a jealous ex, a high-stakes event, or a family secret suddenly coming to light.

Consider adding a ticking clock or urgent deadline. Maybe one character is about to leave town. Maybe a decision must be made before something is revealed. Time pressure naturally raises emotional intensity.

You can also introduce a twist that flips the dynamic, such as a betrayal, a miscommunication, or a shift in power that throws the characters off balance. Reversals keep the relationship and the readers on their toes.

Quick fix: Combine forced proximity with an emotional bombshell. Put your characters in a situation where they can’t escape each other, such as a road trip, a storm, a shared mission, then drop a truth neither of them was ready for. The emotional fallout will ripple through the next few chapters and spark new tension organically.

Fix #2 – Revisit the Midpoint

Many authors struggle with the midpoint beat, cruising through it without considering what’s supposed to happen, which can lead the dreaded sagging middle.

If your story feels like it’s losing steam around the halfway mark, the issue may not be pacing, it might be your midpoint itself. A weak or unclear midpoint can make everything that follows feel aimless, no matter how strong your beginning or end.

The midpoint is a pivot. In a romance, it’s often where something shifts in a big way. This could be a major reveal, an irreversible decision, or a moment of intimacy or betrayal that changes how your characters relate to each other and the world around them.

It’s also a great place to deepen internal conflict. Maybe the characters finally admit their attraction, but it terrifies them. Or they sleep together and immediately regret it for emotional or external reasons. The midpoint should raise the emotional and narrative stakes.

If your second act feels like it’s just meandering toward the climax, stop and ask: what has truly changed since the inciting incident? The midpoint should reframe the story and make the characters confront something they’ve been avoiding.

Quick fix: Ask yourself, what major truth, decision, or complication can hit here to change everything? Whether it’s a romantic turning point, a devastating lie revealed, or a personal breakthrough, your midpoint should make your characters and your plot take a new direction.

Fix #3 – Check the Motivation

I just wrote an entire post on how crucial character motivation is in a romance. Flat motivation = flat plot.

When a story starts to feel sluggish or repetitive, one of the first things to check is your characters’ motivation. If your leads no longer seem to want anything other than each other it can make the plot feel empty. If they’re already together, why read the rest of the book?

Characters need drive. Whether it’s landing a dream job, protecting a secret, avenging a loss, or healing a wound, your hero and heroine should each have a personal goal they care deeply about. These goals give your story momentum and help shape their decisions, even in the middle of a romantic arc.

Importantly, the goals shouldn’t always align. In fact, the best romantic tension often comes when falling in love complicates what each character wants. Maybe one is trying to prove their independence while the other wants to protect them. Maybe they’re on opposite sides of a cause or harbor beliefs that clash at the worst moment.

When individual motivations are strong, readers become invested in the characters and read to find out how they’re going to resolve their goals and still find love.

Quick fix: Add or reinforce a personal goal that creates natural conflict with the romance. If your heroine is trying to win custody of her niece and the hero is the lawyer for the other side, every interaction carries extra weight. The result? Built-in stakes, deeper emotion, and a more compelling plot.

Fix #4 – Reverse a Trope

When in doubt, flip expectations

Sometimes a story stalls not because it’s broken, but because it’s too predictable. If your scenes feel like they’re just going through the motions or if you can guess what’s coming next without much effort, it might be time to shake things up. One simple and effective way to do that is by reversing a trope.

Take whatever setup you’re working with and flip a key element. What if the “grumpy” character adopts a puppy or the “sunshine” character has a secret grudge? What if the fake dating arrangement starts with real feelings instead of none? In fact, what if the “fake” arrangement proposal reveals that one doesn’t have feelings, breaking the heart of the person who does? What if the one who was left behind during the first chance is the one hesitant to try again?

You don’t have to reinvent the trope, just subvert it in a way that adds tension, surprise, or depth.

Even a single reversed beat in a familiar setup can create fresh emotional layers. Maybe the brooding hero doesn’t push her away after a vulnerable confession. Maybe the bold, flirtatious heroine suddenly clams up when feelings get real.

Quick fix: Reverse the expected reaction in a key scene and see what emotional layers come up. If your character would usually lash out, make them go quiet. If they would normally run, make them stay and deal with the consequences. Small shifts like these can create big emotional impact and re-energize your plot.

Fix #5 – Jump Ahead

Cut the scene you’re dreading

If you’re dragging your feet through a chapter, there’s a good chance your reader will feel the same. Sometimes, the best fix for a sluggish draft isn’t rewriting the scene. It’s cutting it entirely.

Not every moment needs to be written out. If a scene doesn’t shift the plot, reveal character, or deepen the romance, consider skipping it. Instead of forcing a transition scene, a mundane interaction, or a “necessary” explanation, jump ahead to the next emotional or plot beat. Readers are smart. They’ll fill in the blanks if you pick up with characters reacting to or referencing what happened off-page.

This isn’t cheating. It’s editing with intention.

If you find you do need a scene there, writing ahead can often help clarify and deepen what before had been meh.

Quick fix: Start a new scene in media res (right in the middle of the action or emotional fallout) and fill in the skipped details naturally through dialogue or memory. You’ll maintain momentum, keep readers engaged, and possibly surprise yourself with what happens next.

Fix #6 – Add a Secret

Nothing fuels tension like what isn’t said

If your plot is missing momentum or your romance feels too easy, try adding a secret. Secrets create instant tension, especially when they exist between romantic leads. They introduce questions, raise stakes, and keep readers emotionally invested as they wait for the truth to come out.

A secret could be personal, like something from the past, a hidden motivation, or a lie by omission. Or it could be situational in which one character discovers something about the world, the conflict, or the other person and chooses not to share it. The key is that the secret matters. It should affect how the characters relate to each other and what they’re willing to risk.

Secrets introduce push-pull tension. The character keeping the secret feels the pressure of hiding it. The other character senses something’s off but can’t quite name it. Readers will feel that unease and turn pages to see when it all explodes.

Quick fix: Give one character a new secret that will be revealed at the worst possible moment. Think about what would shake the relationship just as it’s gaining ground—or force one character to question everything they thought they knew. The fallout can deepen the emotional arc and set up a powerful climax or turning point.

Fix #7 – Layer the Subplots

Not every plotting issue comes from the romance itself. Sometimes the relationship arc is working just fine, but the rest of the story feels too thin to support it. If you’re struggling to sustain momentum or hit a satisfying word count, it might be time to layer in a stronger subplot.

Subplots are threads that weave your romance into a richer, more believable world. Whether it’s a career dilemma, family tension, a personal mystery, or even a brush with danger, a well-chosen subplot can raise the stakes, reveal character depth, and increase emotional intensity.

The best subplots don’t distract from the romance, they interfere with it. They force your characters into decisions that test their feelings, beliefs, and vulnerabilities. That added pressure can make romantic breakthroughs more satisfying and setbacks more painful.

When writing romantic suspense or mystery, killing someone or putting your character(s) in danger, is a great way to create excitement for the reader.

Quick fix: Use a subplot to force your leads to deal with their emotional baggage. A parent shows up uninvited. A dream job creates long-distance tension. A secret comes to light through a shared investigation. By tying the subplot to the emotional core of your romance, you’ll create a layered, compelling story that keeps readers hooked from start to finish.

When your story feels off, it’s easy to feel defeated and want to quit or toss the story and start over. But most of the time, you don’t need to scrap your draft. You just need to steer it back on course. These plot fixes offer small, strategic adjustments that can breathe new life into your romance. So take a breath. The story’s still there, waiting for you to give it a little nudge in the right direction.

To help, Write with Hart Members can grab the free Plot Fix Checklist in the members area to help you troubleshoot your draft and move forward with confidence. Not a member? Join free here.

What about you? What part of your story feels stuck right now? Or do you have other tips for fixing a flat story? Share your struggles or ideas in the comments below.