Andy Farmer, a sportswriter with dreams of being a great novelist, moves with his wife to the New England countryside in order to write his novel with no distractions. Of course, distractions are all Andy finds. The birds sing too loudly, there are snakes in the lake, and it costs 20 cents to make a call from the pay phone in the kitchen. Over time, Farmer grows withdrawn and bitter, and when his wife decides to take a stab at writing, it becomes unclear if their marriage will be able to survive life on the farm.

Andy Farmer, a sportswriter with dreams of being a great novelist, moves with his wife to the New England countryside in order to write his novel with no distractions. Of course, distractions are all Andy finds. The birds sing too loudly, there are snakes in the lake, and it costs 20 cents to make a call from the pay phone in the kitchen. Over time, Farmer grows withdrawn and bitter, and when his wife decides to take a stab at writing, it becomes unclear if their marriage will be able to survive life on the farm.