SPOOKTOBER 2024!

Spooktober is a 31 day event of coming up with original horror ideas based on prompts my writing group voted on.  Carrying forward from last year we’re having optional sub-themes and I’m trying to do them all like Debbie do Dallas.  Book covers made with midjourney and photopea.

SPOOKTOBER DAY #17 — PSYCHIC
(× Lifetime/Mom Movie or Lighthouse or Amnesia)

TITLE:  Olivier

PREMISE:  Thérèse works and lives in the lighthouse (Lighthouse) with her special little child, a working single mom (Mom Movie).  Little Olivier is barely able to move, perhaps muscular dystrophy?  Hard to know; she doesn’t get to hospitals.  Too busy.  She doesn’t know why she doesn’t have a second adult in the building to trade shifts with.  She doesn’t remember giving birth to Olivier and doesn’t remember his father (Amnesia).  She just knows that her little guy is precious and weak and will just die if she doesn’t help him in every little way.

HORROR ELEMENT:  Olivier isn’t an immaculate conception.  He was just born with a spiritual mutation that crippled his body and expanded his mental powers.  He is psychic (Psychic), and having underdeveloped empathy and ability to care for others, has used those powers selfishly.  Anything that might keep maman away has been suppressed or erased.  The memories were easy.  But what did Olivier do with the other lighthouse keeper?

If I did this one, I’d emphasize that Thérèse’s love is not forced; it is real.  And Olivier will grow up to be capable of unselfish love as well.  There is room in the world for creepy kid stories but it’s not my preference.  I think there’s still room for a lot of terrible horror content while still retaining kiddo’s humanity.

–