In honor of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing, I'm sharing the "Tranquility Base" chapter from Cross Country. This chapter was not actually in the book when I originally planned out the story and started writing. But I got to a point where the story started to feel darker and heavier than I wanted. Bets was supposed to be going on an adventurous trip across the county with her good friend Emmie, riding in a cool VW camper! Instead, she was dealing with racist, abusive Seth, feeling guilty about leaving her parents, and weighed down by all that was happening with the war in Vietnam.
I needed something to lift the story up, and the moon landing was a perfect fit. In the same way I needed a positive to counter all the negatives I was throwing at Bets, the moon landing seemed to lift our country up, during a troublesome time. It made perfect sense that experiencing the moon landing would inspire Bets and give her hope.
I had fun researching for this chapter, learning more about the Apollo 11 mission, and listening over and over again to the audio from the landing and first steps. Most of all, I enjoying imagining the perfect way to experience this amazing historic event!
I needed something to lift the story up, and the moon landing was a perfect fit. In the same way I needed a positive to counter all the negatives I was throwing at Bets, the moon landing seemed to lift our country up, during a troublesome time. It made perfect sense that experiencing the moon landing would inspire Bets and give her hope.
I had fun researching for this chapter, learning more about the Apollo 11 mission, and listening over and over again to the audio from the landing and first steps. Most of all, I enjoying imagining the perfect way to experience this amazing historic event!
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