If I had to boil it down to one thing—the single most common issue I see when I’m working on manuscripts—it’s this: There’s no real reason for the story to keep going.
That usually shows up as weak stakes, low tension, or a situation where the protagonist could, quite reasonably, just… stop. And nothing meaningful would happen if they did.
That’s a problem. Because story is driven by necessity. Not convenience. Not coincidence. Necessity. If your character can shrug and go home, they probably should. And if they should… why aren’t they?
I was recently working on a manuscript where this showed up very clearly. Without naming names, there’s a moment early in the story where the protagonist is presented with a situation that should compel action. Except it doesn’t. Not really.
There’s no ticking clock. No meaningful consequence. No emotional or external pressure that forces a decision. The character could walk away, go back to their ordinary life, and—crucially—nothing truly bad would happen. So why don’t they?
That’s where the story starts to wobble. Because readers feel this, even if they can’t articulate it. They sense when a story is moving forward because it has to, versus when it’s moving forward because the author needs it to.
Strong stories close doors. They remove easy exits. They create situations where the character must act—not because they want to, but because they have no other viable choice.
That’s stakes. That’s tension. And without it, even beautifully written prose won’t carry the weight.
So if you’re looking at your manuscript and something feels a little flat, a little “off,” ask yourself one simple question: What happens if my character does nothing? If the answer is “not much,” you’ve just found your problem.
— Mark