The middle

Bythe"middle" of the paper I mean the main section, after you've introduced your topic and stated your argument. The middle is where you actually make the argument, step by step. The middle is a minefield, where every step could shatter the delicate bond between your intended argument and your reader's understanding and sympathy.

　　Mediocre writers assume they'll be understood and blame the reader when they're not. Good writers realize that making a sustained argument and holding a reader's attention is as hard as juggling while walking a tightrope. The reader doesn't have your strategic, bird's-eye view of the whole essay. He's stuck on the ground, slogging through a morass of words, sentence after sentence, never knowing where the trail is leading and what lies over the next ridge or on the next page.

　　Thus as you write you need to keep thinking about your reader. Where will he think the argument is taking him, step by step? What needs emphasis or repetition? What must be explained, and what can be left implicit because it's obvious or has already been mentioned? What questions need to be answered? What objections need to be anticipated? Have you done all you can to weave together a coherent and sensible argument?