Drafting My Senior Capstone Project

The title page of my story. (photo/Kasy Long)

For the past few weeks, my mind has been devoted to my senior capstone project, which I discussed in a previous blog post. Since that blog post was written, I have completed ten pages of my creative nonfiction story (or as my professor prefers to say, “essay”).

The articles I reviewed for my story. (photo/Kasy Long)

I spent my spring break reviewing newspaper articles, quotations and reading stories about Abe Silverstein, the scientist I have devoted the past few months of my life to for this project. Just in case you are unaware of Silverstein and his work, he was a mechanical engineer responsible for designing the space rocket that took astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins to the moon as part of the Apollo 11 space mission.

The books I reviewed for my story. (photo/Kasy Long)

It is very important for people to recognize this man and his work, for if it weren’t for him, it would have taken NASA much longer to complete President John F. Kennedy’s dream of going to the moon. Americans may have lost to the Russians in the space race of the 1960s. Scientific history changed because of this man, and I am going to tell his story! 

I ask in my story, “Why me? Why am I so fascinated with this man?”

In short, I am very intrigued with NASA’s Apollo space program. In my opinion, the time that the program existed was one of the greater highlights of American history.

But it’s so much more than this curiosity and fascination that has propelled me to write Silverstein’s story for my capstone project (which I will also include in my grad school applications next fall). It’s so much more. Silverstein is from my hometown of Terre Haute, Ind. He attended the same school, Rose Polytechnic Institute (now Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology), that my father currently works for as the Executive Editor and Director of News Services.

My draft, describing Silverstein's history in Terre Haute, Ind. (photo/Kasy Long)

He stepped foot on the same land I grew up. His heart was in Terre Haute, where my heart is right now. The city of Terre Haute definitely does not credit Silverstein for his scientific achievements. Instead, the city has a huge statue for basketball legend Larry Bird, who (I apologize to the sports fans reading this post) simply put balls in a hoop.

Silverstein put man on the moon. Silverstein took men to the land of possibilities—the space of discoveries and imaginations. Traveling to space is a brave and bold decision, and I have always considered astronauts to be heroes. Without Silverstein’s talented and intelligent mind, Scott Kelly would not have spent his year in space.

So here I am—completing my draft for my nonfiction writing course. I will workshop my story with my peers next week. I hope they enjoy the story, but of course I will take into consideration each suggestion they offer. A creative writer is always looking for help. 

A draft of my story. (photo/Kasy Long)

This blog post may have been about my capstone project, but I think it’s about something larger. It’s a homage to my fascination. As a writer, I have never grasped the knowledge of mathematics or chemistry. But this—the study of space and the history of NASA’s exploration programs—clicks for me.

I am determined to turn my capstone project into a full-length novel. Who knows, you may see it on a bookshelf in a few years with my name attached to it. That’s a dream of mine, but you never know. This is the kind of story that people are inclined to read, that Hollywood likes to make movies about—stories about real people who changed the world.

I nod my pen to you, Abe. Thanks for inspiring me. Thanks for everything you did for NASA. But most importantly, thanks for being a fellow Hautian.

-KJL-