Z on Location

Seattle, WA – 2017
Michael Frost
Author J.J. Howard
Cover Photo Michael Frost for Scholastic
Originally Published © 2017 American Girl
ISBN 9781338137064

Summer Adventure

Z and Lauren are hanging out at the Beanery on their first day of summer vacation. This’ll be the last time they’ll get to hang out before Lauren leaves to go to soccer camp in San Diego. Just then, Z gets a notification on her phone. One of her favorite video idols, Winter Costello, has just posted a new video. Winter jumps in by saying she wants to start something called #SummerAdventure challenge. In this challenge, kids around the nation will post videos of them going someplace or trying something new. At the end of the summer, the person with the most adventury adventure will be featured on her vlog.

This is an opportunity of a lifetime! The chance to have amazing summer adventures and meet Winter Costello all in one?! Z is excited to get started having some awesome summer adventures.

Later that day, Z goes on a hike with her mom, dad, and Popcorn (her dog). But she can’t stop thinking about the #SummerAdventure challenge. She keeps trying to get incredible new footage of something, but the scenery looks the same as always.

When Z and her family sit down for a picnic lunch, her mom tells her that she received a grant to do some filming for her documentary (she’s a film professor). The best part is that the research will take her traveling down the coast, and she wants Z to join her and learn from her. In addition, if all goes well, Z will have the chance to do an interview with Winter Costello at VidCon in Anaheim. Z’s other friends, Mari, Gigi, and Becka will also meet Z at VidCon.

Z is so excited to get started. This will be the best summer yet.

Z… Out!

On the morning Z and her mom are leaving, she wakes up early and makes one last video for her blog announcing she’s leaving. She takes Popcorn for a long walk, and then makes a couple cups of coffee for her folks. She’s so excited—she has tons of energy!

She settles into the RV she’ll be spending the summer in. It’s small, but it has a bed for Mom, and a fold-out bed for herself, and a tiny bathroom. No matter what, this is bound to be an adventure of a lifetime!

Roxie the Robot

The first interview stop is at the University of Washington, Tacoma, where Mom will be interviewing an eighteen-year-old named Kacey Kravitz. Kacey graduated high school two years early. She is known for inventing a robotic dog that can help children with Autism learn how to communicate and interact with others in a safe environment.

While Z starts off a little klutzy, she ends up finding her groove and being able to set up all her equipment properly. Except for almost forgetting the adapter cables under a table, she has a successful first shoot, and she and her mom celebrate with ice cream.

The Wrong Kind of Mic Drop

The next interview on the trip is a busy CEO named Calista Danvers. Due to Calista’s time constraints, Z and her mom don’t have a lot of time to conduct the interview.

But when Mom tries to hurry Z up, she keeps getting distracted by her phone, the fancy office building, trying to focus… anything but actually focusing. And when Z accidentally lets a microphone drop into the frame, well, Z snaps out of it. But it is a little too late. Z, embarrassed, apologizes after the shoot, but it isn’t quite enough.

Mom tells Z that she is bringing in somebody else to help with the next shoots. She assures Z that she still is an important part of the crew, but that they just need another set of hands to help out and help supervise.

Z gets back into the RV, disappointed and frustrated with herself. And that’s when she sees the text messages from her friends. Z’s friends call her road trip “glamorous,” and they mention the interview with Winter. Z does not have the heart to tell them the truth: the road trip is challenging work, and she seems to be letting herself and her mom down. AND she may not be allowed to even do the interview with Winter. Instead, she lets her friends keep on believing everything is going well.

Don’t Ask Me Anything

The next day, Z and Mom are joined by Nora. She’s hip, spunky, and probably Mom’s favorite student. She’ll be riding in the RV along with Z and Nora for the rest of the trip, which means Z’s been moved to the queen bed with Mom so Nora can have the fold-out bed.

The day’s interview is at the Exploratorium with two employees. Nora immediately turns out to be helpful to Mom, but is starting to boss Z around. Unfortunately, Z wants to use as many opportunities as possible to prove to her mom she can be useful.

But in an attempt to grab another camera to use, she accidentally trips on a wire and falls flat on her face. Even worse, she breaks the expensive camera lens. Without even hearing it, Z knows that she royally messed up… again.

Be in the Now

When Z, Mom, and Nora arrive at the RV park, Nora heads for a walk, and Mom tries to get Z’s attention. Unfortunately, she’s engrossed in watching videos on her phone, trying to cheer herself up.

Mom sits down, and explains that she thinks Z spends too much of her time and life online, trying to think of the best future post, or messages she got, or how to have the best videos, instead of actually just enjoying being present in the now.

Z understands the new perspective, and promises to try to do better at being in the now going forward.

Drama Queen

The next shoot is at a summer camp called Drama Connect. While Mom and Nora set up the equipment to do a simple shoot, Z manages to keep her phone in her pocket and her head in the game. But when Z asks what she could do to help, Mom tells her that the simple setup is complete.

Z offers to take some basic footage backstage, to see if anything is there. Mom let’s Z head out during the interview. But the backstage area is small, so Z takes her camera outside to talk to some of the campers.

The campers are friendly, and they gush about the coolest parts of camp, what makes this camp unique, and how the scholarship program helps bring kids who couldn’t come otherwise.

After the interview, everybody is packing up when Z’s mom realizes she forgot to ask anybody about the scholarship program. Luckily, Z says she has some footage of the campers talking about it. The footage Z thought to take will save this interview!

Overshare

The next interview is with a virtual reality company called Simulated Actuality. Josh, the founder, will be the subject of this interview. He shows them some of the new technology they’re making, and asks for no photos or videos in those rooms. Later, he’ll set up the interview and allow some footage of more projects that are already in testing.

Z’s mom gets a chance to try on a virtual reality headset and some fancy gloves. The headset shows her special footage with audio, which makes it feel like she’s transported to another world. The gloves allow her to use her hands to interact with the footage.

This is truly the first awesome place Z’s been all summer! She takes a short video and some photos, and sends them to her friends. She wants to show everybody that she’s having a real #SummerAdventure.

The interview is a also a simple one, and afterwards, Nora takes Z out for vegan dinner. Z isn’t a fan of vegan food, and doesn’t really eat much. Suddenly, Nora gets a call from Z’s mom. Z can tell it sounds serious.

When they get back to the RV, Z’s mom is furious. Apparently, one of Z’s friends took the video Z sent, and posted it online, tagging both Z and the company. Josh revoked the permission to use the interview footage in the documentary, and isn’t welcoming them back the next day. Mom tells Z that if it weren’t for VidCon and Z meeting up with her friends there, she’d be on a flight home the next day. Instead, Z’s new job will be to stay in the RV, with no phone, and no laptop, for the rest of the trip.

Reboot

The next morning, Z is feeling only slightly better. But for the first time on the trip, Nora seems to show genuine interest in Z’s feelings, and asks Z why she posted the photos. Z simply says that she wanted to prove to her friends she was having an awesome summer. Nora understands. She says that a person can’t live life comparing their day-to-day life with everyone else’s highlight reel on social media.

Nora then recommends that Z try to continue to help out, even from the RV. So, Z dives in. She takes inventory for all the equipment, which doesn’t involve leaving the RV. Then, while Mom and Nora are at the next shoot, she jumps into studying the large binder of instructions and notes that Z’s mom carefully assembled. Before Z knows it, the shoot is over already, and she’s already learned a lot. This is the chance for Z to start a reboot of her summer.

At VidCon, Z finally meets up with Becka, Gigi, and Mari, where they all met a year prior. Z comes clean and admits she’s not allowed to help with the shots anymore, and she probably won’t get to do the interview with Winter Costello. The girls are understanding, and even after Becka confesses that she was the one who leaked the VR video online, Z continues to hold herself accountable. Then Z has a miraculous idea: if there’s too many talks, presentations, and interviews to visit at once, they can split up and record different events and presentations. That way nobody has to truly miss anything!

Second Chances

Z and Becka decide to head to a panel about up-and-coming vloggers. While standing in line, a few girls ahead of them recognize Z! They even wonder if Z is planning on being on the panel herself. She explains that no, she’s just watching, but the girls exclaim that they love her channel and would like to know if she’d be okay doing a brief interview with them. Z says yes, but she’d like to ask them some questions, too.

After the panel, Z gets a call from her mom. Apparently Nora wasn’t feeling well and had to go back to the RV. And Mom can’t do this shoot alone!

Z rushes back to the interview room, and jumps in to help. She sets up the lights and cameras in record time, and even has time to get a bottle of water for the first interview subject. One of the subjects needs help opening up, and Z gives a hint about a question to ask to another. Z learns that being an assistant is a careful balance of being ready to help out with anything, but also being to anticipate what will need to get done.

Before Z knows it, it’s almost time for her interview, and Mom is ready to interview her last subject: Winter Costello. Z introduces herself as a big fan of Winter’s channel, and says she’s posted almost all of her summer adventures. Winter is friendly, and even is willing to answer a few of Z’s questions after the interview.

Z realizes that although she’d love to interview Winter, she has to keep the promise to do the interview with her fans instead. Z’s mom understands, and agrees, and Z rushes away to meet her new friends.

Girl Power

Z rushes to make the interview with her fans. When she arrives, she learns that the three girls she met in line aren’t the only Z. Crew at VidCon! There’s at least fifty girls gathered around waiting to meet Z and watch the interview.

The three interviewers ask Z what role each of her friends play in the making of the videos. Z explains that Lauren does props, Mari does fashion and costumes, and Gigi and Becka act as the critics. And when the girls ask what the hardest part about being a filmmaker is, Z says it’s being in the moment—remembering what you’re there for and what story you’re trying to tell instead of living inside the online world.

When Z’s interview finishes, she looks up to see her mother in the audience, with Winter Costello standing beside her. It turns out Winter is working on putting out a VidCon edition of her Girl Power vlog, and she’d like to interview Z for the vlog. Z is shocked, but this is truly an incredible summer adventure.

After the interview, Z gathers with her friends and they share about how they need to tell Lauren about what just happened… this was the most exciting thing to happen to them all summer!

The Best Kind

The next day, Z and her mom drop Nora back off at the airport. Finally, Nora and Z were able to bond and connect. But hopefully they’ll see each other again soon!

Z makes a final blog post for the summer all about how she’s learned to be present in the moment, instead of constantly worrying and focusing on what she’s going to post later. She reflects that although she went into the summer hoping to become a better filmmaker, she’s so lucky to have learned even more. And then, it’s time for Z and her mom to start off on their summer vacation adventure: no more working and vlogging! Z. Crew… out!

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