Tag Archives: NASA

Moon Quest, Cut Material

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I am one of those writers who writes without outlining the novel ahead of time. The outliners out there are shaking their heads at me. My first drafts are long and meander all over the place that requires large portions to be cut during the following drafts. Sometimes cutting whole, or several chapters, is hard as I love them. What matters is whether they are needed to move the story forward. After a draft or two, it is easier to realize some of this material does not do that.

Writing this way allows me to get to know my characters, their backgrounds and motivations and where they want to take the story that I have not been able to flesh out whenever I’ve tried to outline. Just like an iceberg, there is more below the surface than one reads in a novel.

I hinted about the scene posted below in the published novel but felt the reader didn’t need to read this to figure out some of the difficulties one of my main characters, Debra, has.

Orbital Logistics held a press conference to introduce to the public the first two crews of their manned space flights. Win stood off to the side and let Adeline, his vice president of marketing and public relations, introduce the fourteen astronauts and give their background before coming to work for Orbital Logistic.

When she opened it up to questions, a reporter from Space.com got the first one. “Commander Taggart, how’s it feel to get chance to fly into space again after Nasa terminated you after your accident?”

Debra pasted on a smile. “Great. I’m honored to have this opportunity.”

“Did you ever imagine you’d get to go into space again?” A reporter from the New York Times asked.

Adeline threw Win a glance, as if admitting he had been right. Win had been on the fence about having this press conference.

“No, I didn’t.” Debra’s expression was now a grimace.

“Maybe a question for somebody else,” Adeline said to the reporters. “We have thirteen other extremely qualified astronauts here too. Major Cooks has also been in space.”

“Ms. Taggart, do you have the trust of your crew to command this mission?” A Washington Post reporter asked.

Win stepped up. “We have complete faith in Commander Taggart’s abilities, or we wouldn’t have her commanding the second mission. But I must ask, you call yourself reporters and grill an American hero about the worse day of her life without first researching what caused her accident. You want some headline producing news, look into that. Are there any questions for our other remarkable astronauts?”

Relief swept across Debra’s face.

“Commander Taggart, it was reported you flew an unairworthy aircraft that caused your accident. Is that not true?” A reporter from Bloomberg asked.

“If that were true,” Win said, “we wouldn’t have hired her. Now if you don’t have any questions for our other astronauts, we’ll conclude this and thank you all for coming.”

A reporter from Aviation Week and Space Technology, who had run a series of articles on Win’s accident over a decade ago asked, “Mr. Swift, did you hire Commander Taggart because you have similar histories?”

Smiling, Win said, “Really, Ms. Hunt, do you think so little of Orbital Logistics ’s hiring that we only employee those who have experiences similar to mine. What boring unimaginative company that’d be.” He gestured to one of the mission specialists. “Commander Judy Murray was an executive officer of a submarine. I’ve never done.” He pointed to another mission specialist. “Dr. Summers summited Mt. Everest while on he was on sabbatical from getting a doctorate in geology. I’ve never done that either. Maybe I shouldn’t have hired you guys.”

Luther Bronder, a mission specialist, raised his hand. “I was in a car accident once. It wasn’t an aircraft accident, but does that count?”

“Yeah, I was too.” Scott Holt, a mission specialist beside him said.

“I had to cut an airshow short because of a rough running engine,” Heather Langston said. “Can I keep my job? I really like this company and what we’ll accomplish.” She, like Win, had been on the U.S. Aerobatic team.

The pilot, or who would be the second in command on Debra’s flight, Craig Malone, pulled up the pant leg of his flight suit. “I scrapped skin off my leg when my motorcycle went out from under me. I think have the scar to prove it.”

Win couldn’t help but smile from this group sticking up for one of their own. A quick glance at Debra showed her beaming.

“Maybe you shouldn’t have hired this group,” Adeline said to Win. Turning to the reporters, she said, “So, unless there any questions pertaining to our upcoming missions or for any of the other crew members, we’ll conclude this and thank you for coming.”

“Mr. Swift, what will be the most difficult aspect of the first flight?” The Space.com reporter asked.

“Ask Major Cooks,” Win said. “He’s the one flying it. I’m just writing the checks.”

The stories the media published were favorable, doing a decent job of explaining the first two missions and the difficulties the crew would experience. Several, though, reported that “Orbital Logistics’s disgraced former NASA astronaut Debra Taggart avoided questions about her troubled past.”

If you want to find out why the reporters were so interested in Debra’s history, you can download or order the novel here.

Reading and Reflections on Life

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The International Space StationI recently finished astronaut Chris Hadfield’s book titled, An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth. If interested, see my book review below. It was an engaging read and reawakened my fascination with space and the space program.

Like Hadfield, I too watched Neil Armstrong’s walk on the moon and thought there had to be nothing cooler in the world. The dreamer in me fantasized about becoming an astronaut. As I grew into my teens it was a dream that I knew would never be fulfilled. There were too many obstacles I’d never overcome.

At that time, only military test pilots became astronauts. I’ve worn glasses since I was ten. The military did not train individuals to be pilots unless they had perfect eye sight, hearing, and no other physical limitations. Strike one.

Later, NASA accepted candidates to become astronauts who had PhDs that could benefit the space program in some way. I was a disillusioned young man at that time and didn’t finish college. I could not see the purpose of what I termed, “the bullshit courses,” that had nothing to do with one’s major. Now that I’m older and hopefully wiser, I see the practical aspect of those courses and regret I didn’t finished college. Regardless, at the time I began flying lessons which I consumed myself with. College got shoved aside while I concentrated on becoming an airline pilot. Strike two.

Over the years of doing self-reflection, and after reading Hadfield’s book, I also realize I wouldn’t have made a good astronaut. Other than being with my wife, I prefer my time alone. That’s a good characteristic for an author, but not one for an astronaut who will be cooped up with three to six others on the International Space Station. Although I feel I work well with the other pilots I fly with, there are times I’ll let a first officer’s personality bug me. I can put these differences aside for a four day trip. How well would I do on a six month mission in space? Strike three.

But, my fascination with space and astronauts, and my passion for crafting engaging thrillers can work together. I have several threads of ideas rumbling around in my head for stories I’d love to write that revolve around the space program. To make them believable, they’ll take extensive research. The thought of sitting down with an astronaut and discussing their career, training, fears, and how they balance career and family, or visiting the training facilities at the Johnson Space Center have me squirming in my seat.

In the meantime, I can read more about the fascinating career astronauts have and the many ways the space program advances life on earth. I’ve read several great novels I enjoyed years ago I’ll be reading again even though I remember the characters and plots very well.

The first was a novel titled, Gravity, by an author that became one of my favorites: Tess Gerritsen. This book came out a decade or more ago and has nothing to do with the recent movie by Alfonso Cuaron. I enjoyed that book so much I’ve downloaded it onto my iPad and will read it again soon.

Stephen Harrigan also wrote a novel titled, Challenger Park, about a female astronaut, which I’ll be reading again.

After reading Hadfield’s book, I realize how well these two novels had been researched; setting the bar for the investigation I’ll have to do.

What about you? Any dreams or aspirations you may never fulfill, but are at peace with?