Taming the Muse

There have been times in my life when my creativity has totally closed down. I think it happens to conserve energy when you are seriously ill. But now I'm just a little run down with a virus and fibromyalgia flare up, and the characters in the novel I'm currently writing don't care that I'm sick. They want me to tell their story and they want it told now.

Every once in a awhile a truly pushy character can make you feel like you are being held hostage. For me that character is Agnes. She has spent her life being a caregiver and deferring her own pleasure. But now she's found a man she wants and she is relentless in her pursuit of him. This is most inconvenient when I'm trying to sleep and she wants me to advance the story.

My characters are generally a pretty considerate bunch. But I've written about a few who are as pushy as Agnes. Ten years ago I had shoulder surgery. It is not a procedure conducive to sleep. You spend months afterwards sleeping fitfully in an upright position. I didn't sleep much at all because I had a frantic character keeping me awake. The only way to truly tame him was to finish the novel.

Any advice for dealing with Agnes? I'd really like to have a nap this afternoon without listening to her raspy voice.