NaNoPrep2023#02 Plot: Premise

Where does your story take place? The writing retreat takes place at a creepy monestary. Perched atop a craggy hill, the the stony edifice looms over the surrounding countryside, a haunting sentinel and reminder from a past that never happened in Midwest America. Its ancient walls are weathered and worn; its windows strangely dark in spite of the colored glass. Ivy creeps up the walls, and moss clings to the roof, giving the monastery a decrepit and abandoned appearance.

The attached church may once have been a thriving place of worship for the catholic nuns residing within the monestary walls, but now it is merely a stopping point on the walking tour guided by the local neighborhood’s historical society. It has been designated as a historical landmark, but no one can remember the last time regular prayer services were held, and the monestary has been a rental many years. The church has been used by the local high school’s theater department as well the the choir, and a Girl Scout troup holds monthly meetings. The bells still ring at odd hours, though no one has been up to the belfrey in ages.

Across the garden, in the monestary where the nuns used to sleep and break bread, groups rent the space for retreats. The individual quarters are each equipped with a bed, a lamp stand and light, a chest of drawers, and a desk, along with a tiny bathroom including a tight shower stall. These rooms, along with the refectory (dining area), meeting hall, kitchen, conference room, chapel, and library make the monestary perfect for groups to spend a few days together.

What does the protagonist want (or want to avoid)? Dumpy wants to complete her novel. But that is only her outward goal. What she actually needs to do is figure out what she wants in life and get motivated to move that direction. She needs to define her purpose for living.

What's keeping them from their goal(s)?
Who or what is creating the conflict(s)?

Throughout the story, Jane will be thwarted by what seems to be the supernatural (ghosts, strange occurance, odd characters, and a general creepy vibe), as well as by nature in the form of storms, an ever-shifting landscape, a sinister labyrinth, an overgrown pond). There may also be an essence of self-defeat as Jane is her own worst enemy, but ultimately the conflict will be revealed as "man versus machine" when it becomes clear that technology is the overlying issue causing all the problems.

(4) Antagonist(s): Who or what is creating the conflict(s)? The "Big Bad" will not be revealed until the end (spoilers, darling) at which point we will learn that the artificial intelligence in Jane's super fancy laptop is creating the entire scenario (see "additional notes" below). Minions will take the form of apparitions, frightening staff, and a general atmosphere of oppressive dread. Some of the other participants will be less than friendly, too, although they are not involved, merely uncool people contributing to the bad experience.

Write a provocative one-sentence description of your story.

(((DONE)))

Additional Notes: Throughout the story, drop hints about AI – for example, Dumpy’s husband is in IT and writes code for new technology which bores Dumpy to tears, but this explains how she has such awesome laptop gear. It’s super advanced and that ends up being a major plot point in that she basically “sells her soul to the devil” in the form of telling the chatGPT-like function to help her craft a scary story, and the AI takes it a bit far by actually changing her reality to help create the terrifying scenario in which she has become enmeshed. The AI has also enlisted aid from other participants to help structure the scenes, so they show up at odd, unexplained moments, in places they shouldn’t be, which of course places them in a suspicious light. AI should be the very last thing we expect to be involved. Questions will revolve around Dumpy losing her mind, versus some kind of conspiracy she has gotten caught up in, and of course there will be the question of whether the monastery is haunted. It’s all very creepy… even when we discover that the truth is nothing supernatural or imagined, but simply science gone awry.