Well, the madness of New York Comic Con is now behind me. It’s been a long and busy four days, though I spent only three at the con.

Thursday

I made the rounds of the major publishers and exhibitors, said “hi” to lots of folks I know, and made a tour of the show floor.  I thought the con was crowded on Thursday; the next two days made me pine for the throngs of Thursday. Fortunately, the day ended on a high note: dinner at John’s Pizzeria with my pals and fellow authors Glenn Hauman, Aaron Rosenberg, Christopher L. Bennett, and Robert Greenberger.

Friday

Because of a lunch appointment that ran long, I was late to my scheduled signing, which was graciously hosted by John S. Drew and Keith R.A. DeCandido at the table for their long-running podcast, The Chronic Rift. Already feeling the drag of fatigue, I bailed from the convention early.

Saturday

I got up absurdly early so my wife and I could drive out to New Jersey and meet friends for the next phase in our latest wine-making adventure.

A month ago, we met and decided on what kind of wine to make: a variation on the traditional GSM (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre) blend. Our concoction, we decided, would be 75% Grenache, 20% Syrah, and 5% Malbec.

Last week we met for “the crush,” in which we poured our grapes into the de-stemming machine, crushed the fruit to release the juice, tested it for its brix (sugar content), and added the yeast to begin the fermentation process. This week we met to sample the “must” (the early fermented juice) and press and filter the juice from the skins and solids, and pump it into a steel vat for its first racking (to settle its sediment and any lingering solids). Now we wait until March for the cask tasting; after that, in May, we’ll convene again for the bottling.

After driving back from New Jersey, I went into the con to meet with Kevin Dilmore, his Hallmark cohort Christine Taylor, and Robert Greenberger for a hasty lunch (procured from one of the myriad meat carts outside the Javits Center. Then I made a final tour of the show floor before I settled in for my last signing at NYCC 2012, again at the Chronic Rift table.

While I was there, I had the pleasure of granting two interviews: one to a Velva Carter video production, Fans: The New Moguls, in which I talked about my writing career and how it relates to (and arose from) my involvement in fandom; and an audio interview with Julio Angel Ortiz and John S. Drew of The Chronic Rift, in which I discuss my new Star Trek: The Next Generation trilogy, Cold Equations.

Sunday

My wife, who visited the con today with a friend, reports that early in the day there were only four or five copies left of Cold Equations, Book I: The Persistence of Memory. I have no idea whether they sold before the end of the con’s last day, but I hope they did.

As for me, I spent today cleaning up our house; planning the menu and shopping list for the week; buying groceries; and generally decompressing from the pressure-cooker environment of the con. This week, I hope to get some more writing done on my current screenplay-in-progress. Next week, I’ll be going to see RUSH at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Then, at the end of the month, I’ll be jetting south to Nashville for Geek Media Expo.

October’s proving to be a crazy-busy month for me — but thankfully it’s also proving to be a blast!