How to Know You Have Fictional Character Withdrawal

My fictional character withdrawal symptoms started Saturday.

My fictional character withdrawal symptoms started Saturday.
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First, a reader friend posted a picture of her print copy prize of CROSSROADS which had just arrived.

Then another reader friend PM-ed me on Facebook to tell me she’d just finished the book and how much she loved it.

Strike three landed when yet another reader friend posted on my wall to let me know she’d just received her copy and looked forward to reading the latest addition to the Miller’s Creek novels.

Please don’t misunderstand! True glee and satisfaction bubbled inside at each interaction.

But…

…glee and satisfaction also brought along an unwelcome friend.

Gangrenous-green, with an odd resemblance to the Grinch, it slithered up my spine.

Gangrenous-green, with an odd resemblance to the Grinch, it slithered up my spine.
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Fictional Character Withdrawal – Symptom #1

I instantly recognized the symptom #1 of fictional character withdrawal.

Pure jealousy.

Fictional character withdrawal. Symptom #1. Pure jealousy…
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“Hold on a second,” you object. “You mean to tell me that after months of  grousing ad nauseum about how hard it is to write a book and how the characters never cooperate and how you were so ready to type ‘THE END’ and imprison the characters forever within the pages, you have the gall to now suggest that you miss those characters?”

With my head hung in semi-shame and embarrassment, I carve a circle in the carpet with the toe of my shoe. “Um…yeah…I do.” My heart takes over as sentences I never intended to voice tumble from my lips. “I miss the way Carter takes care of Mara, even when she pushes him away. I miss the way Mara always knows the right thing to say to Chloe. I miss the way Ashton speaks as if she’s twenty-four. I miss Chloe’s compassi–”

“For crying out loud! They’re fictional!”

Taken aback, I slide my hand across my mouth. “Well, yes and no.”

Your eyebrows swiftly arch upwards and then crumple into a uni-brow over a reproachful glare. “You’re delusional.”

Your eyebrows…crumple into a uni-brow over a reproachful glare. “You’re delusional.”
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Fictional Character Withdrawal – Symptom #2

Check. Delusional. Symptom #2.

I fidget with the collar of my shirt and give a half-cough to fill the awkward silence. “When you spend a year with those character’s voices in your head, they become…real.” My words tiptoe out in an unconvincing whisper.

The sad shake of your head reveals concern for my psychological welfare. “Have you considered–?”

I wave my hands wildly as a maniacal giggle erupts. “That’s not necessary. Really.”

Your frown deepens. “What’s not necessary?”

“You know, psychiatric help.”

Check. Delusional. Symptom #2 of fictional character withdrawal.
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Fictional Character Withdrawal – Symptom #3

Like some weird dream from which I can’t awaken, you burst into a raucous belly-laugh that reminds me of Mara, the heroine in CROSSROADS. “No, silly. I was trying to ask if you’d considered letting them go to find new characters for the next book.”

My shoulders square and my chin raises perceptibly. Symptom #3. Defensiveness. “Let them go?”

My shoulders square and my chin raises perceptibly. Symptom #3. Defensiveness. “Let them go?”
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You swallow. Hard. And the look in your eyes changes from mirth to fear. “Well, not completely.” A nervous laugh escapes, and you bring both hands to your chest in a protective pose. “More like–you know–moving on.”

A fire ignites in my belly and shoots a burning challenge from my eyes. I step closer, fists clenched.

You lurch backwards, and your fingers fumble with the door knob. “I–uh–just remembered that I–uh–left a pie in the oven.” In a split second, you yank the door open, jump outside, and slam the door behind you.

I move to the window, a Grinch-y grin on my lips. Between the slats of way-too-dusty blinds, I watch you half-run, half-stumble down the steps to your car. In far less than a minute, you crank the engine and back from the driveway.

And me?

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Crossroads
by Cathy Bryant

Giveaway ends May 07, 2015.

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Fictional Character Withdrawal – The Cure

First, I retrieve a spoon from the silverware tray in the top drawer of the kitchen island. An idea hatches in my brain. Yes, this needs to happen.

Next I step to the freezer drawer and procure a gallon of Blue Bell Pecan Pralines ‘n Cream, the perfect side dish to my quickly-evolving plan.

Moving to the living room, I drop the spoon and gallon container to the coffee table, my mind on one thing and one thing only.

I hurry to the bookshelf, quickly scanning the rows of books until my eyes come to rest on the object of my desire. Yes, it’s time for this. I’ve worked hard for it. Sacrificed hours of sleep. Endured an aching derriere and numb feet. Stared at my computer screen until my eyeballs screamed for mercy.

I pull the tome from the shelf, turn it over in my hands, and then raise it my nose to inhale deeply. Does anything smell as yummy as a new book?

Yes, I have many things I should be doing. Good grief, the Facebook Launch Party is this coming Thursday, and I’m nowhere near ready!

Good grief, the Facebook Launch Party is this coming Thursday!
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I release a cleansing breath, my focus once more on the book. For now–if only for a short while–I will give way to my cravings. I will scoop into story world and taste again the flavors of fictional creation. I will savor each delectable morsel of Miller’s Creek. And I will settle onto the couch with the CROSSROADS characters I’ve missed so much.

So what if my lengthy to-do list of tasks goes undone for characters that only exist on the pages of a book?

Reading is the only cure I know for fictional character withdrawal.

Reading is the only cure I know for fictional character withdrawal.
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Have you ever suffered fictional character withdrawal? What were your symptoms? Tell us about it in the comments.

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