It seems like most years I'll have mostly good fishing trips for the bulk of the month of June. Then, I have a period where I have a few days where I get less than half the bites I had in June - and I catch most of the fish in deeper water. Every year is a little bit different. In fact, sometimes July is better than June - and some years the June pattern carries through most of July. But I consider mid summer to be unique enough for its own pattern.
July is a good month for big fish. In the late evening, I do well on the mid lake humps and points on Carolina rigs, spoons, tail spinners, drop shots, and crankbaits. After dark, we catch most of our big fish on plastic worms and craws. I catch most of my night fish from about 10 to 20 feet of water in July. I will anchor my boat on a good spot and wait for the fish to move in. If they aren't already there feeding when I arrive, they will usually move in eventually. I have had nights where I would sit in the same spot for an hour without much action and then catch 8 or 10 good fish in a couple of hours. There are times, however, that the fish don't move around much. On those nights, I cover lots of water. It doen't usually take more than a half hour to find out if they are moving around. If I hit a spot and get bit right away, but nothing happens for the next half hour, I will try another spot. Sometimes that is the pattern. Go to a spot and only give it 15 or 20 minutes and try another spot. I don't like those kind of nights, but moving around can make a 20+ fish night out of what would normally be a slow night.