I think the only things they knew for sure was that there were 2 ghosts, a dead kid buried in the woods, and a gypsy named Magda had cursed someone.
I wish we could see the writer's notes on what they were planning to do.
Think you're probably right about the bare bones of the plot. Maybe a few more things: Quentin was a rascal who came to a bad end, he was PISSED, he had an affinity for children, there was an 1897 werewolf that someone knew how to protect against, and the female ghost died wearing a wedding dress (that last is a guess, based on the mostly very appropriate costuming, and my running into the clone of Beth's dress on a Victorian costuming site, with the provenance given as an 1890s wedding dress).
Yeah, wouldn't writers notes on intentions be a wonderful thing? Course I'd also like to see the character sketches the actors made up to get a handle on their characters, but that's just me.
Hey as long as you want the impossible, you might as well wish for multiple impossible things before breakfast.
Jeannie