Writing prompt: the Old House

Ruin near Rankins Springs, NSW

On my trip to Sydney earlier this year, I took a somewhat circuitous route to get there. I wanted to spend some time in the Lake Cargelligo area to do some birding. You can read about that trip on my other site Trevor’s Birding. I have fond memories of a visit to this area some years ago. The route I took went through the large towns of Mildura and Hay. Just before reaching Lake Cargelligo I went through the small village of Rankins Springs. This is a lovely area and is a mecca for birders like me.

An old house

Just north of Rankins Springs, I stopped in a roadside rest area near the edge of Jimberoo National Park. I didn’t have time to fully explore the area, so instead, I walked a short distance along a dirt track. After a few minutes, the open forest took me to a spot overlooking some farming land. In the middle of the nearest paddock was the ruin of a house, shown in the photos above and below.

A peaceful scene

This peaceful scene set my writer’s mind whirring. Here are some thoughts I had which you might like to use as writing prompts.

Writing prompts:

1. Write a fictional account of the discovery of this area and how one farmer had the vision to build this house.
2. Write a short story about the building of this house and the difficulties of constructing it.
3. Write a story from the point of view of the old house. What did it see and hear during its early days? How does it feel about being left to decay? Who was its favourite occupant? Why was it abandoned?
4. Choose a fictional character who once lived in the old house. Tell their story as it relates to the house.
5. Relate the story of a tragic event that once occurred in or near the house. Was it a sudden death? A murder? perhaps death by drowning in a nearby creek? A violent robbery?
6. Imagine that the house was built for a newly married young couple and their wedding was held in the house or in the hills nearby. Write a story about their joys or heartaches that followed.
7. Imagine that you grew up in this house in the 1800s. Write a story about the delights or hardships of living in this isolated house.

Ruin near Rankins Springs, NSW

Conditions of use:

• Feel free to use any of the story starters listed above.
• Change anything to suit your needs.
• Give it your best shot.
• Edit your work carefully before sending it off to a publisher or posting it on your blog.
• Let me know in the comments section how it went.
• If you publish your story on your web site or on your blog let me know so I can make a link to it for others to read.

Good writing.

Trevor