So much to process after this whirlwind trip to Las Vegas to attend the STLV: Trek to Vegas convention. Given my ambivalence about Trek I have never attended one of these conventions apart from one time while I was working on Next Generation, and I found it far too commercial and coming from the tradition of science fiction conventions I found it abusive to the fans.

But contact with the team from the Treksperts overcame my reluctance, and things have really changed. It’s a whole new vibe and I had an amazing time. Not just because of the wonderful fans — most of them young and passionate and fun. (Shout out to the group of your folks that rescued me at the Rio Hotel as I was desperately trying to find a place to sit down and eat dinner on Wednesday), but because…

I got to meet Amanda McBroom who played JAG Capt. Phillipa Louvois in my episode The Measure of A Man! Because of Rick Berman’s need to be constantly in control, the writers were not allowed on the set, or to go to casting or be in editing or watch dailies so I had never met this amazing woman who brought that character to life and gave my words power.

We have so much in common, Amanda is a singer, dancer, composer and actor, we’re both gingers, and we had so much fun on the Trekspert’s main stage discussing the episode.

In this we were ably assisted by Mark Altman and Ashley Miller asking us such great questions, and Amanda and I were just riffing off each other and the audience (which was large) was right there with us.

And now let’s talk about Ashley. We met in Green Room and he mentioned he was a writer so I asked what he had written and he co-wrote X-Men First Class!!! Which is my absolute favorite of the X-Men movies. So I jumped out of my chair and did the “I’m not worthy” bow. I really hope we can stay in touch because I just loved him, and he gave me some great advice about the state of the industry right now and saved me writing yet another spec TV pilot.

But before Amanda and I went on stage I did an hour and half interview with Ed Gross who along with Mark had written The Fifty-Year Mission: The Complete, Uncensored, Unauthorized Oral History of Star Trek: The First 25 Years. It was a wide ranging interview, and Ed was a terrific interviewer.

After Amanda and I finished our stint on stage we went to the booth in the vendor’s room to sign and chat with fans, and Amanda gifted me one of her CDs which I’m listening to now and it’s spectacular.

That evening a fellow writer and good friend, Marion Harmon who lives in Vegas picked me up and took me to dinner at his favorite sushi place. It was really good, and so reasonable. I was used to the prices in L.A. which leave you clutching your heart and grabbing your wallet.

After dinner Marion took me to see the Bellagio atrium which was breathtaking and then we went outside to watch the fountains. We didn’t have best view, but I had walked 6 miles that day (hotels in Vegas are huge), and I didn’t have the energy to walk down to the street level.

Then back to hotel, grab some sleep and fly home. And Tuesday I leave for the world science fiction convention in Seattle, and the weekend after that is our local science fiction convention, Bubonicon.

Whew!

All this on top of the horse show last week has me hoping I can keep going.