A Story Idea Each Day for a Month — Day 24

This is the 11th year in a row I’ve run this series in April. Why a story idea each day for the month? Because the best way to come up with a great story idea is to come up with a lot of ideas. And the best way to come up with a lot of ideas is to be proactive in sourcing story ideas.

Today’s story: Family is found living in a remote farm with no contact with the outside world for nine years.

A family of six was discovered inside a remote farm in the Netherlands, where it is believed they lived in isolation for nine years.

The father and five children, ages 18 to 25, were found in the small village of Ruinerwold, in the northeastern province of Drenthe, Dutch police told CNN. A sixth adult child had left and was the one who alerted police.

Although the village has just a few thousand residents, no one knew the family was there.

Police arrested a 58-year-old man who rented the property. Authorities said they are still trying to determine the link between the detained man and the family, and they believe the family has been living there since 2010.

Aerial images of the property show three rooftops. Some of the doors on the buildings are covered with overgrown greenery.

The home was accessible by a bridge over a river that neighbors said was always gated and locked, NOS reported. One neighbor told NOS he once tried to get closer but turned back when he saw multiple cameras on the property.

Neighbors said they never saw the children — only one man who regularly drove by in a car.

Crazy to think that a large family could live somewhere near a village and in effect be invisible to the local community, but that’s what happened here.

What can we do with this story conceit?

I’m going to go horror.

Meet Jenny. She is one week shy of her 13th birthday. When we meet her, we see she lives on a farm. She is the oldest of five siblings — three boys, two girls. The youngest is 5 years old.

At first, the farm seems normal. Neat trim rows of vegetables. Chickens, goats. Farmhouse. Barn. A third building which as we learn is where the children sleep dormitory style. That’s a bit weird…

Then there are the trees. The entire place is surrounded by trees laid out to create a perfect square, as if planted that way decades ago. Also weird…

At the corner of the square embedded in the tree’s branches, so unseen by passersby, video cameras. That’s really weird…

There is only one entrance to the property and that is at the end of a bridge which crosses over a slow-moving river. There is a gate. With a video camera. The gate is locked. The metal gate is topped by a figure. Weathered and worn, it’s hard to know exactly what it is, but it looks like some sort of inhuman creature, jaws wide open, sharp teeth, angry piercing eyes.

Most. Definitely. Weird.

Jenny goes about her chores. She’s dressed in a simple work dress designed almost as if to do everything possible to shroud her female figure.

She peers around. Her siblings are all at work doing chores. Similar attire. Nobody says a word.

Then the sound of heavy footsteps. The children all stop at once. They turn. Emerging from the farmhouse is a tall, gaunt man with a beard reaching down toward his abdomen. He reaches up. Rings a bell hanging from the porch roof. A single clang.

Everyone waits for the bell to echo to silence. The man turns. Reenters the farmhouse. One by one the children shuffle toward the front door, eyes cast to the ground, wordless.

A stark dinner. Meager food. While the family eats, Jenny reads from a worn leather-bound book. Handwritten pages. The words evoke a kind of scriptural feel, yet as similar in sound to the Bible as they are, the text differs.

And the Lord sayeth unto the Family, Thou art born of God, Thou shalt die of God. Thy sacrifice is what shall save Thee from the Abomination of the Dark Angel.

When Jenny stumbles over the word ‘abomination,’ everything stops. Children hold their breath. Hands freeze in place. Eyes shift toward the Man. He purses his lips. Presses his eyelids shut as if in pain. Then casts his gaze at Jenny. She shudders. This exchange means something. We don’t know what.

That night, the children sleep in the dormitory, side by side in wooden cots. There are thirteen of them. Only six children.

Then… a sound. Trees shaking. A strange scratching of the earth as if claws dragging through the dirt.

Petrified, the younger children turn toward Jenny. She slips out of bed, sliding silently to the floor. Crawls to the window. From outside getting closer…

Shake. Scratch. Shake. Scratch.

At the base of the window, Jenny inches up just getting her nose above the ledge. Eyes flicking back and forth trying to pierce through the murky darkness. And there… a shadowy figure looming through the night. Darkness against darkness, outline barely visible. The Man emerges from the farmhouse. Edges toward the figure. Silence. Then —

THWACK!

The figure backhands the Man, a mighty blow. Sends the Man toppling to the ground. The figure brings down its fist onto the Man’s head.

SMASH!

The Man groans. Waits. The figure straightens. The Man wobbles to his feet, holding his head. A moment, then the figure turns and shuffles away.

Unconsciously, Jenny has lifted herself up several inches. Suddenly realizing she is making herself visible, she sucks in some air. A tiny noise, but —

The figure whips around. In her direction. She dives down.

The figure has seen her.

There you go, my 23rd story idea of the month. As I was writing this, a story was unfolding in my mind. I pretty much knows what’s going on here… and it’s some weird, twisted shit!

What would YOU do with it?

Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Day 8
Day 9
Day 10
Day 11
Day 12
Day 13
Day 14
Day 15
Day 16
Day 17
Day 18
Day 19
Day 20
Day 21
Day 22
Day 23

Each day in April, I invite you to join me in comments to do some brainstorming. Take each day’s story idea and see what it can become when we play around with it. These are valuable skills for a writer to develop.

See you in RESPONSES to hear YOUR take on this story idea. And come back tomorrow for another Story Idea Each Day For A Month.