Oh No You Didn't

I'm still stuck in Chapter 3. Why? Because my characters just will not cooperate.

With what I had hoped to be the end of the chapter rapidly approaching, Character C is crying and Character A is comforting her. Everything was going according to plan. Then...

Me: Okay, A, here's your window to reveal your past, answer all of her questions, and clear this up.

A: But she's really sad. I didn't know she'd be this sad.

Me: Don't worry. If you say your lines comfortingly enough, she'll calm down.

C: **sniffles against A, oblivious to the whole conversation**

A: Yeah, I don't think that's going to work.

Me: Please, just say it.

A: But then I'll seem like a callous jerk. I don't want to be the callous jerk. That's Character F's job.

Me: Fine. We'll do this your way. What've you got.

A: Well, I was thinking we could just [yet another scene, though admittedly a fairly nice idea]

Me: Fine. I'll just resent you for five minutes and then do it.

(At this point, my sister, who reads things over my shoulder, says that talking to my characters makes me schizophrenic. In my defence, none of that was said out loud. If it had been, the nice person next to me on the flight might have demanded a change of seat.)

My characters don't often protest my ideas. When they do, I choose to succumb. It just seems to go so much easier that way.

For other good reading on the subject, click here.

What do you do with your wayward characters? Do you have internal conversations, too?