When reading, we make inferences through the author, the text and our response. The first step to reaching a conclusion of the intended meaning of a writing is to look at the author. You should spend time reading the author's biography. Look at his/her other works and see what they have in common. Also, look at the historical and cultural context of the writing. This will help give you a background of the writing that you can use in the next step of reading.
After you have taken time to read about the author, you are ready to start to read the writing. Your goal as you read is to make conclusions. These conclusions are not stated, but you should read between the lines to understand what the author is trying to say.
As you read, make guesses. Try to guess what will happen next in the story, what a character may say or think or even what other characters not in the scene are doing.
Next, ask questions. Why are the characters acting a certain way? What are they thinking? Where are they going? What are they feeling? What do you already know? What is missing? Why is the author not including information?
After this, you should make predictions. What do you think will happen next? How will a character react? What will the outcome be?
Finally, you should find connections in the details. After you have made predictions, see what is missing or stated in the details and make connections. Fill in the missing information using your questions, guesses and predictions.
When you finish reading the text, you should take time to fill in between the lines by looking at your response and experience. Take time to review the guesses and predictions you had made and see which ones are correct.