When I'm writing, what I'll do is imagine my plot as wave on the ocean. There is a constant flowing current underneath, a steady stream of life, that is pushing things up and over, cresting and then collapsing. Your story is an oceanic world that is constantly moving, whether your reader and character(s) can see that movement or not.
For example, you may have a collapse scene where the action has risen to a peak and you're able to give your characters a small break amongst all the turmoil. Yes, your characters can have a moment of relaxation, bonding, and character development, but underneath all of that, your world is still turning. The current is still flowing. The forces that are causing these events to happen aren't going to take a break just because your characters need one, they'll keep going.
This can allow for a more realistic feeling world. Everyday we go about our lives as others are living theirs. Everyday someone makes a decision that can in some way impact ours. Decisions have a ripple effect that can cause change miles down the length of chain. Humanity is just an interconnected web of stories created by the choices we make.
Extreme example off the top of my head, but hey, I'm a writer; (TW car crash)
"Leslie sat at the traffic light, the midday summer heat beating down on her old oven on wheels. Even with all the windows open, the breezeless day did nothing to cool her skin or agitated nerves. The ticking sound from her blinker matching rythmn with the vein under her eye. Syrupy air cloyed it's way into her lungs as the traffic light laughed at her plight. Even time seemed to slow down to a crawl in effort to enhance her suffering.
Finally the light turned green. As she pressed down on the accelerator, she heard it. The wail of rubber on black top. Her head snapped to the left. A shimmer of metal. The cold crunch of glass. Her old beater suddenly shifting to an angle it shouldn't. Pain. Lots of Pain. Blackness.
Headline for an article in Tuesdays newspaper reads- "28 year old woman fatally injured in drunk driving incident""
As I said, extreme example, but it just goes to show that the world keeps turning even if the reader and character don't see it. Leslie wasn't expecting the driver to hit her, especially not in the middle of the day, but forces had already been set in motion for the event to take place. The person in the other vehicle had already made the choice to drink and then made the choice to drive. Furthermore, that choice has far reaching consequences. For the driver, for Leslie, for the people who know both of them, and for those who don't. Perhaps because of this Leslie's daughter grows up to become a prosecutor who is especially hard on DUI cases. Perhaps a reader for the article sees it and puts down the bottle in their hand, changing the course of their story. Again, just examples, but I hope it helps you in your writing journey.
