[WP] You know something is wrong when you see the fictional character you wrote sitting in a cafe.

"Your father was a poacher, a sad soul who felt he'd been born in the wrong century. Fashioned himself a frontiersman who lived off the land - too bad he was shot by a Park Ranger resisting government takeover for a state park extension."

Joe looks up from the newspaper to find a man in a windjacket and cap, a laptop tucked in his arms.

Who're you? How do you know that?

"This bored into you a perennial hatred for badge-toting government thugs who do nothing but harass honest, tax-paying citizens and turn them into criminals with legal trickery. Isn't that why you do what you do?"

A waitress places a coffee on the table, her badge says Joan. She smiles at the mysterious stranger.

"Your mother - I presume you still haven't called her. She still keeps knitting sweaters for you. You should help her out, but I know why you can't."

Pause.

"It's because you're dangling on the hopes of this last job going through. Let me tell you, it won't go well."

"Listen very carfully-" the man finally said, anger in his voice.

"You're already thinking of ways to kill me. The dark alleyways at this hour sound attractive to you - don't worry, I've made it so you get no chances. There will be a patrol car circling around all night because of anonymous tip about an assasin."

The man sits back studying his visitor. For a man used to being in control of the situation, this was unnerving.

"Do you ever wonder why you know nothing about your wife?"

Silence.

"Because I haven't written her story yet. She doesn't exist. You and your life is nothing but a bundle of words in my computer. And my story is still incomplete. "

"You see, as a writer it is only my job to define the setting and create the characters. Once these characters find their own voice they are no longer under my control. They chart out their own course- straddlng through whatever thematic motivations underpin their existence, fulfilling whatever role they serve for the story."

"But, you see, I have put you in a terrible spot. If you assasinate the Governor tonight, your contractor, the rich businessman backing a rival politician, will betray you and you will be killed without getting a penny.

He finishes his coffee in one long gulp. "I have a deadline, I cannot go back and edit in some details to make you stop so I had no other option but to enter the story and stop you personally. My publisher doesn't like it when the main character dies without redemption."

"So if I don't kill the governor you get published?"

"Yes."

"And what do I get?"

"Besides getting to live? I can make you win the lottery and you can live happily ever after like your father wanted to live.."

"You really are a terrible author."

"I know.. it was worth a try, anyway. Do what you gotta do, good luck" The author waved as he walked away.

"Hey," he called out to the author as he was almost out of the cafe. "Joan over there is kinda cute. Set it up so we hit it off and maybe I'll forget about this killing business." The author smiled and walked out.

/r/WritingPrompts Thread