Structure
Maps
A final warning: I'll be giving full spoilers for The Farmhouse and Kane's cases…
Let's go.
The Farmhouse is a playground. I have a well-defined start and ending, but in between I only put in blocks: locations with specific scares/scenarios that could happen. I'm equipping the POV with a predefined toolset and he has to cross through the playground with what he has or finds. That's the outline of the story. Moving from start to finish will be a discovery process. I prepared a lot of traps, but I try actively not to think about how he could handle them so I can see what I can come up with at the moment.
This will be a living document, so I'll edit this a lot in the coming weeks.
Derrek will start his case at the site of an accident, a few hours before dark. A truck slipped off the road and its load, thousands cups of pudding, splattered everything nearby, including an enormous oak tree. Over the top? That's what I'm aiming for. I want people to know what they're getting into. I'm not going for a realistic story, I want something fun you don't have to take seriously.
He's there to keep people away from the scene, the extra on line duty. When a call comes in about screams at a farm, his chief sees him as the most expendable and sends him off to handle it.
Derrek arrives at the neighbor's house, the one who made the call. He talks to him, learns the family living at the farm should be on vacation since a few days and the screams stopped just a few minutes before he arrived.
Derrek also spots the road toward the farm is one big mud-pile. He'll never get through with his car. The neighbor tells this is because of the harvest they transported over the past few weeks and the rainfall kept it juicy. The neighbor has spotted no traffic up or down the road. The road to the farm should be about 5 minutes on foot, so Derrek goes to his car and prepares his equipment (which I'll get back to later).
Here ends the defined start for The Farmhouse. I expect this to be 2 chapters. Here on out, Derrek enters 'the playground'. But first I'll give you the main storyline so you get the perspective.
Derrek is an unlucky cop who gets dragged into a situation he doesn't want to be in and others didn't want him to be in. The Farmhouse is one big set up and lure for a cop. The big terrible evil: a, for now, unnamed cult is looking for a victim to curse. They targeted a specific cop and took months of preparation to set up the Farmhouse. Even the pudding truck was set up to keep the cops distracted. But they didn't target Derrek, he got sent instead of their target. He's just an unlucky guy.
The cult is not directly present at the scene, they hired people who hired people who hired some teens to scare the cop at an isolated farm. The only thing they did at the scene was set up the curse, but more on that down below. Some of the hired people set up scary scenes at the farm: ritualistic scenes, music boxes with sensors,…
They hired the teens to engage with the cop. They are young enough to only see the thrill but not the dangers in scaring a cop. I see these a bit like the masked people from The Strangers. At the moment of writing, I have 5 of these teens: 2 girls and 3 boys. The Farmhouse will be mostly about them putting the cop through scares, but they'll get captured by Derrek eventually. I hate in most horror movies how the villains/antagonist seem to teleport or just disappear easily. It's almost like they are always fully equipped with night vision. I don't know about you, but if I wear a mask for Halloween, I don't see shit. This is something I want to exploit. Derrek will use hiding, light and natural night vision to his advantage to overcome these teens. He'll turn some traps against them.
Before entering the Farmhouse, Derrek will have to move through the outside. He'll arrive by the road but on both sides fields surround it. This will be perfect for some creepy scares. Some traps I set up outside:
I plan some event will be a bit too much for Derrek and he'll call in help. But the police chief doesn't take him seriously and sends Chip. Chips is a redneck cop who's been suspended a lot of times already. He'll drive in after a while (toward the ending) with his big pickup truck and floodlights. He'll not be a big help, but Derrek will use him as a perfect distraction.
When Derrek caught all teens, they'll quickly spill the beans that they were hired to put some scares to a cop but mostly harmless fun. They'll give names and numbers for their contacts and a further investigation will open into them. They'll be found eventually and confess it was just to annoy a cop but no one will say anything about the cult. They've been paid (and threatened) enough for that.
Derrek will be a bit angry, but he'll not look any further into it.
I planned one special trap in the house: a perfect pentagram-like drawing on the ceiling. Derrek will spot this and think something like: Damn, their shoulders must hurt. He'll not be putting any more attention on it but in the reports later, this pentagram will not be present anywhere. I plan to have this revealed as a report made by a colleague only the readers see, as an epilogue. Derrek will find out way later in the series.
I will put the curse on Derrek from that point on. My first idea is to have this make him go crazy over time: hallucinations, weird thoughts, nightmares,….
The cult would use the curse to awaken something and they'll pull Derrek to more scary situations, new cases, to strengthen the curse. This would put a fantasy spin on the story.
Any input on this? Shoot!
Let's go.
The Farmhouse is a playground. I have a well-defined start and ending, but in between I only put in blocks: locations with specific scares/scenarios that could happen. I'm equipping the POV with a predefined toolset and he has to cross through the playground with what he has or finds. That's the outline of the story. Moving from start to finish will be a discovery process. I prepared a lot of traps, but I try actively not to think about how he could handle them so I can see what I can come up with at the moment.
This will be a living document, so I'll edit this a lot in the coming weeks.
Beginning
The Pudding Truck
Derrek will start his case at the site of an accident, a few hours before dark. A truck slipped off the road and its load, thousands cups of pudding, splattered everything nearby, including an enormous oak tree. Over the top? That's what I'm aiming for. I want people to know what they're getting into. I'm not going for a realistic story, I want something fun you don't have to take seriously.
He's there to keep people away from the scene, the extra on line duty. When a call comes in about screams at a farm, his chief sees him as the most expendable and sends him off to handle it.
The Neighbor
Derrek arrives at the neighbor's house, the one who made the call. He talks to him, learns the family living at the farm should be on vacation since a few days and the screams stopped just a few minutes before he arrived.
Derrek also spots the road toward the farm is one big mud-pile. He'll never get through with his car. The neighbor tells this is because of the harvest they transported over the past few weeks and the rainfall kept it juicy. The neighbor has spotted no traffic up or down the road. The road to the farm should be about 5 minutes on foot, so Derrek goes to his car and prepares his equipment (which I'll get back to later).
Here ends the defined start for The Farmhouse. I expect this to be 2 chapters. Here on out, Derrek enters 'the playground'. But first I'll give you the main storyline so you get the perspective.
What's the story?
Derrek is an unlucky cop who gets dragged into a situation he doesn't want to be in and others didn't want him to be in. The Farmhouse is one big set up and lure for a cop. The big terrible evil: a, for now, unnamed cult is looking for a victim to curse. They targeted a specific cop and took months of preparation to set up the Farmhouse. Even the pudding truck was set up to keep the cops distracted. But they didn't target Derrek, he got sent instead of their target. He's just an unlucky guy.
Antagonists
The cult is not directly present at the scene, they hired people who hired people who hired some teens to scare the cop at an isolated farm. The only thing they did at the scene was set up the curse, but more on that down below. Some of the hired people set up scary scenes at the farm: ritualistic scenes, music boxes with sensors,…
They hired the teens to engage with the cop. They are young enough to only see the thrill but not the dangers in scaring a cop. I see these a bit like the masked people from The Strangers. At the moment of writing, I have 5 of these teens: 2 girls and 3 boys. The Farmhouse will be mostly about them putting the cop through scares, but they'll get captured by Derrek eventually. I hate in most horror movies how the villains/antagonist seem to teleport or just disappear easily. It's almost like they are always fully equipped with night vision. I don't know about you, but if I wear a mask for Halloween, I don't see shit. This is something I want to exploit. Derrek will use hiding, light and natural night vision to his advantage to overcome these teens. He'll turn some traps against them.
The Playground
Toolkit
- 2 Flashlights + batteries
- Gun with rubber bullets
- Real gun with live bullets
- Pepper spray
- Tiny crowbar
- 2 Flat screwdrivers - 1 small, 1 big
- Wire cutter
Outside
Before entering the Farmhouse, Derrek will have to move through the outside. He'll arrive by the road but on both sides fields surround it. This will be perfect for some creepy scares. Some traps I set up outside:
- Fields - Scarecrow: The classic, but I'm adding a motorized head
- Fields - Chase through grain
- Livestock - Encounter with teen: I prepped one teen girl to be at the shed. She'll be a smaller girl in a dress with loose, long black hair. She will try to get Derrek into the shed and lock him in. This is based a bit on The Ring but mostly on Alma Wade from the game F.E.A.R.. This is pure nightmare fuel for me so for Derrek too.
- Fields - Tractor with floodlights, manned by a teen boy
- Livestock - Squaling animals through audio box
- Old waterwell
- Rooftop watcher - Teen boy who stares at Derrek in a scary suit
- Fake gunfire from the house - This is a bit much I think. This would force Derrek to go with live bullets
Inside
- Creaking doors
- Kitchen - Rotten food in fridge
- Basement scream, probably another teen here
- Chase through the house
- Television randomly playing
- Flashing lights
- Ritualistic scene in living room, pentagram, candles,… Possibly a hooded teen here too
Ending
Calling in help
I plan some event will be a bit too much for Derrek and he'll call in help. But the police chief doesn't take him seriously and sends Chip. Chips is a redneck cop who's been suspended a lot of times already. He'll drive in after a while (toward the ending) with his big pickup truck and floodlights. He'll not be a big help, but Derrek will use him as a perfect distraction.
Case closed
When Derrek caught all teens, they'll quickly spill the beans that they were hired to put some scares to a cop but mostly harmless fun. They'll give names and numbers for their contacts and a further investigation will open into them. They'll be found eventually and confess it was just to annoy a cop but no one will say anything about the cult. They've been paid (and threatened) enough for that.
Derrek will be a bit angry, but he'll not look any further into it.
Future as a series
The Curse
I planned one special trap in the house: a perfect pentagram-like drawing on the ceiling. Derrek will spot this and think something like: Damn, their shoulders must hurt. He'll not be putting any more attention on it but in the reports later, this pentagram will not be present anywhere. I plan to have this revealed as a report made by a colleague only the readers see, as an epilogue. Derrek will find out way later in the series.
I will put the curse on Derrek from that point on. My first idea is to have this make him go crazy over time: hallucinations, weird thoughts, nightmares,….
The cult would use the curse to awaken something and they'll pull Derrek to more scary situations, new cases, to strengthen the curse. This would put a fantasy spin on the story.
Any input on this? Shoot!
Any feedback?
Part of the Creation process
What will happen in the story: beginning, middle and end. This will contain full spoilers for The Farmhouse and any possible follow-up to Kane's cases as a whole.
V1 - alpha