I like to catch crappie. Because I live close to it, I primarily fish the Arkansas River at Toadsuck from the bank. I'll guess that, after 25+ years of fishing the area, I catch crappie on only 50% of my trips.

Fishing below the dam here is different almost every trip due to water flow conditions: they like to adjust the gates frequently. Also, you might be surprised by how much the currents change when barges are locking through. High water or fishing the current requires different lures or techniques than low-flow conditions.

Depending on the season, the time of day is as important as water flow. I prefer to fish as the sun comes up but year-round I think I catch more right at dark. I might fish at daylight for an hour. If I don't have any luck I leave and come back later, maybe in the morning or early afternoon, maybe in the evening maybe in a day or two. I just keep after them!

Like others have mentioned, keeping a calendar or log is helpful. After a couple of years, you'll be able to see when your fishing generally picks up and falls off. Those are indicators that (1) you need to learn new techniques or use a different bait for that time of year, (2) you need to find a different place to fish at that time of year, or (3) you need to stay home and put new line on your poles that time of year, etc.

PS- I don't get discouraged by only catching crappie on half of my trips, most of those other trips I've caught at least SOMETHING. When fishing the river, you NEVER know what you are going to catch next! I use a lot of 1/16 oz jigs. Besides crappie, I've caught a LOT of bass, white bass and hybrids, drum, skipjack, bream and misc. sunfish this year. I've also caught stripers, channel, blue, and flathead catfish, longnose and spotted gar, and a few sauger.

Keep learning and Good Luck!