How Rural Characters Pick Their Home

How do you choose the perfect rural home—especially when the stakes are fictional but the realism matters? This episode is a goldmine for fiction writers crafting off-grid, survivalist, or post-apocalyptic settings. We break down the gritty essentials: building materials, natural disaster risks, wildlife encounters, food sources from game fish to foraged greens, and how to scout the ideal garden spot. Plus, we dive into trade routes, terrain advantages, and defense strategies your characters would actually consider. Whether you're writing cozy homesteads or prepping for societal collapse, this episode helps you build worlds that feel lived-in, logical, and loaded with story potential.

Transcript

What makes a rural home not just livable—but makes your worldbuilding unforgettable? In this episode, we explore how fiction writers can craft compelling homestead settings by diving into real-world considerations: building materials, natural disasters, wildlife threats, food sources like game fish and foraged greens, and the all-important garden placement. Whether your characters are pioneering, off-grid, modern farmers, or surviving post-apocalyptic chaos, we’ll unpack the questions they’d ask to find fertile soil, defend their home, and even tap into trade routes—all to help you build worlds that feel grounded, realistic, and rich in story potential. Learn about all of this and more in today’s episode. 

Welcome to Writing Rural with Alley, the fiction writer’s inspiration station for rural life and lifestyles, from historical to post-apocalyptic, helping you bring your rural stories to life! I’m Alley, and this is episode #112, How Rural Characters Pick Their Home. Stick around to the end to find out all the ways things could possibly go wrong in your story. Now, let’s get into this.

My kids love the game, Would You Rather. Normally, this is just a silly game. Something like, would you rather have a pink rhinoceros, or a flying zebra? This week, they asked the question that sparked this episode. Would you rather live in a cabin by the lake or a cabin in the mountains? 

I didn’t have an immediate answer. I had questions, like how often is there flooding at this lake, and what’s the growing season on the mountain look like? Which made me realize that rural people pick and choose where to build or buy homes differently than people in the city, so today, we are going to go over them. 

The first thing people throughout history, and even builders today, weigh the risks or dangers in the area. These include many things. Historically, this included threats from wildlife such as predators like wolves, lions, jaguars, lynx, and even wild dogs. It also included aggressive animals like moose and bears. These will attack people but don’t actively hunt them. At least in most cases, bears do not hunt humans, but in rare cases they have been documented hunting humans. Even historically, an animal that hunted humans was hunted and killed so it would not pass this onto any offspring, making humans no longer the top of the food chain. 

Speaking of food chains, if your characters have livestock of any kind, they need to think about the predators to them. Mountain lions (also known as cougars) will hunt cattle. Bobcats sometimes hunt goats. We have all heard of foxes in the henhouse, but did you know raccoons will break in and kill off an entire chicken flock? Weirder yet, if a skunk gets in, they will bite off the head of a chicken so they can suck the blood out. It sounds fake, but I’ve literally caught them doing this red-handed. Or red pawed? 

Another important one historically is danger from any enemies or hostile tribes or people groups. Most people do not want to place their families at risk, so anyone going to live in hostile territory was most likely to be a single male. That’s not to say it never happened. Only that if your character knows they will likely be in danger, they will not want to bring anyone that could slow them down. Well, unless the character secretly hopes to off them by letting the hostiles deal with them. Basically, the scumbag character. 

On the same note, there is a danger assessment between where they come from and where the home might be. They could be fleeing a war zone, have lost their home and/or land in a wildfire, running from bad guys, or trying to avoid being sentenced to the Isle of Perpetual Tickling! (Yes, that was a cartoon reference. My kids will be thrilled!) All of these things might be considered more dangerous than where they want to build their home. 

Another big thing that is likely the first concern of modern characters is natural disasters. Fire, flood, volcano, earthquake, avalanches, blizzards, tornadoes, droughts, quicksand, and so much more. Famine is another thing to think about, but is not technically a natural disaster. If you want more information about famines, droughts, or flash floods, I have episodes about all of them. 

Now, there is a phychological thing to consider when writing characters. People tend to feel safest with what they know. My best example of this is a dear friend of mine and myself. She lives in wildfire territory, and I live in tornado alley. My normal natural disaster is tornado’s, and hers is wildfires. We know what to do, what to watch out for, what to worry about, and went not to sweat it. The idea of being even vaguely close to the other worries both of us. Stepping into new natural disasters can be intimidating to your characters too, and will be weighed when they are finding a place to live. 

Speaking of nature, your character will want to know what type of resources there are. Historically, they would want to know what building materials are local. Are there enough trees or rocks to build a home? Do they need to bring in materials from somewhere else? Even if there are enough logs, what about stone or brick for a fireplace? While log homes can be built without a fireplace, they would require a different building blueprint to ventilate the home when using the fire for cooking, heating water, staying warm, or any other reason. And yes, there are many more types of building material. If you are writing about a specific place in history, you’ll need to do some research into local materials, or how they had materials imported. 

Another material you’ll need to think about is fuel. Most cultures had some form of fuel. This could be logs for a fire, dried cow dung (crazy, I know, but it works), oil for oil lamps, or even cooking. Olive oil is something that has been used since ancient times for cooking, preserving food, and in oil lamps. Natural resources that are multipurpose are high-value items that will factor into your character’s decision. 

Other natural things ancient people thought about were local resources. Some of the minerals and rocks include iron, copper, obsidian, flint, or even salt deposits. Other things could be clay for pottery (such as water jugs), reeds for basket weaving (and a ton of other things), or even willow trees, which were used as a way to make a herbal aspirin. 

Then there are the wildlife migrations. In Africa, it’s the wildebeest (sorry if I killed the pronunciation); for Native Americans, it was the buffalo. In modern times here in the US, geese are hunted during their migration south for the winter. 

This brings us to the next topic, food resources. Having plenty of game to hunt is a big plus. In modern times (at least here in the US), deer, moose, turkey, ducks, squirrels, and rabbits are the main groups hunted.  Fish can be tossed in as another food source. Historically, your characters will want to know how plentiful the animals are. Places that do not have many animals will be less appealing.

This usually comes with land in modern times, but historically, game wandered wherever they wanted until the dominant predators affected this. An example is that foxes do not live (at least in high numbers) where coyotes or wolves live, as they both hunt foxes. Now, this may have been different in history, as there was more open land, but it is definitely the case today. 

Another food source to think about is plants. This can be foraging. Being able to find plentiful food in the forest that your characters can both eat and save for winter will be important. Also, knowing that there will be plenty all year is important. What I mean is that some plants are harvested in the spring, some in the summer and some in the fall. These can be saved for the winter. However, there are bonus points for winter food such as conifer needles, tree sap, and even rose hips can be harvested in early winter. 

Then there is the very important garden. There are many questions that your characters will have. 

* Is there enough room for a garden that will feed your character and their family all year? If your characters live in a forest, they will need to clear land to make a garden. 

* How good is the soil? Some plants do well in sandy soil, and others need nutrient rich soil. 

* Are there many rocks? I’ve lived in rock country, and it’s a pain in the butt to try to grow gardens in rocky soil. It’s also a common punishment to have kids pick up rocks out of the garden. 

* What does the growing season look like? This is the amount of time in the year plants have to mature and bear fruit. Some plants take longer than others, so this is important to know. 

* What plants grow in this growing zone? Oranges don’t grow in Alaska because it’s too cold. Many plants, like tomatoes, do not do well in humid environments. 

* How much rain does it get? It’s always nice with the rain waters plants for you, but not so much that the rain drowns the plant. 

* Will it need irrigation? In some places, irrigation is needed because it doesn’t rain enough. 

* How far away is the closest water source? Your characters will need to irrigate from this location or haul the water in themselves to pour on the plants, and depending on the size of the garden, this can be exhausting and time-consuming. 

* What animals are likely to eat the garden? Rabbits and deer are the most commonly thought of, but raccoons will also eat the garden. Dogs sometimes dig it up, and armadillos are horrible; destroying large areas of garden in a very short time! 

* What weather elements will they need to contend with? Hail can destroy an entire garden in moments. High wind affects the garden, and too much water will drown plants. 

* When are the first and last frost each year? Most plants need covered in the early weeks if there is frost so they do not freeze. Later in the year, when the first freeze comes, is the time the plants start dying off, or going dormant for the winter. 

Now in modern times or even in history, many of the staples (meaning flour, sugar, ect.) come from the store. How far will your character need to travel to get these? My local grocery store is about a half-hour drive from my home. In history, they might have had to travel by horse for a week or more to get to a trading post or village. 

There is another thing that needs to be considered. Water! Water is needed for life, so this is important everywhere! First up is access to water. 

* How far away is it? Historically, they need to carry the water or set up irrigation, or aqueducts. In modern times, they need to have a way to get water from the location to their home. This can be a well or even a modern aqueduct. If the water comes from a stream, it likely needs filtered to make sure it is safe to drink. 

* Are there multiple places to get water at? Nomadic people will need to know this. However, in places like where I live, there are many places to get water. My last home had a river about five miles away, a fresh spring less than a mile away, multiple wells, and a dozen ponds within a mile radius. 

* what is the quality of the water? River water needs filtered. If there were a nuclear bomb, the water could potentially be radioactive. Utah is famous for its Salt Lake. All of these things need to be taken into consideration. 

* What water storage is available? Storing water means your character doesn’t need to spend long hours every day hauling water back and forth, and can worry about other important things. Historically, things like cisterns were used to store water. In modern times, water towers are used in rural areas. There is also the option of rain barrels. Historically these were normally wine barrels used for rain, or clay pots. 

* How much rain does this place get? Knowing how much rain a place gets per year will help decide how accessible water might be. Florida gets over 50 inches of rain per year, while places like Arizona get just over 12 inches of rain per year. 

* If close to a river, how far above the river in height is it? This is important as all rivers will flood. My in-laws lived miles away from a river, and their home was flooded because the land was flat and their home was not high enough above the water level. I have friends who live 200 feet from the river bank, but their home is at the top of a steep cliff. Even during the worst floods, the water never came near their home. However, the road to leave their home was a whole other story. 

Remember, in modern times there are no water lines to a rural home. Your character will likely have a well in most places. The only water lines they will have are from the well. I have several episodes about wells if you’d like to learn more. 

Since we are on the topic of water, an advantage of living near a river historically is that it is likely to attract others to it. This means trading for your characters. They can buy and sell what they need. They might also be able to move up or down the river to a village that has medical supplies or experience they need, as many villages were built close to rivers for this very reason. 

Now if you are writing about people who need defensive points, say after the apocalypse, they will be looking for a few things. Higher ground, so they have better vantage points. If you ever watched Swiss Family Robertson (one of my favourites as a kid), steep inclines can be used to set defensive traps on. Like rockslides! Natural barriers like dense forests, bogs, tar pits, or every Gen-Xer’s favorite, quicksand, can hold off enemies, or at least give your characters extra time. Choke points like natural bottlenecks, are also a great option. 

Remember, each character and family group will likely place certain things as higher priorities than others would. Not everyone will agree on what is most important, and this can lead to tension, or even the splitting of groups, or even families. I’ve seen doomsday prepper groups completely implode over these types of arguments. This kind of fallout is something that was recorded happening on the Organ Trail. 

Fun fact: As of the time I am writing this in 2025, it is estimated that roughly 23 million households in the US use well water. 

One quick reminder before we get to all the ways things could go wrong in your story. 

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Now, for everyone’s favorite part, what could possibly go wrong in your story? 

Likely to go wrong: Your character built a home next to a stream. They didn’t know it floods in the spring and goes dry in the summer. 

Likely to go wrong: Your characters build a home on hostile land. They will need to be on alert because they could be attacked. 

Possible to go wrong: A storm with hail hits your character’s home, and destroyed their crops. They must salvage what they can and find a way to prepare for winter, or they will starve. 

Possible to go wrong: Your character moves to a rocky location and struggles to grow crops in the rock-filled soil. 

Unlikely to go wrong: Your character builds a home on a mountain. However, they didn’t know that the area is earthquake prone. When an earthquake happens, it triggers an avalanche, and the house is destroyed. 

Unlikely to go wrong: Your characters move to a lake they have heard of. It’s only once they get there they learn the lake is saltwater, and they need to find a new source of fresh water. 

Improbable but still technically in the realm of possibilities: After the nuclear fallout during the apocalypse, your character uses a well for clean water. Years later, they start to show signs of radiation poisoning, because the radiation has finally reached the underground water. 

Improbable but still technically in the realm of possibilities: Your characters build a new home in a valley close to a mountain. When spring comes, the winter snow caps start to melt, and floods the new home, destroying it. If they do not get to high ground quickly, this could be deadly. 

Thanks for listening! Until next time, happy wordsmithing.