TOTEH Book IV Cover Completed
May 17, 2011
"The Machine" by Carol Phillips
Unlike Book III interior art which had a number of thumbnail sketches, Book IV’s art is mostly composed of full page compositions done by Carol Phillips. These scenes have been simmering in my thoughts for so long that finally seeing them come to life is a real treat.
The previous three covers in the League of Elder series have all had a distinct fantasy look to them. For Book IV, I wanted more of a science fiction theme. I love everything about the cover, the colors, the city of Waam all around, the giant-size Princess Marilith vending machine, the flying Bondarunga statue in the background–you name it.
Waam is one of my favorite places in the LoE universe. I always loved the Fritz Leiber books of Lankhmar. A great city full of mystery and adventure, a cobbled maze of mist-filled streets leading to the unknown. I always wanted to write about such a place. The cities in the League are too demure and civilized to allow me to really cut loose and use my imagination, so I took advantage of the much-less prim and proper Xaphans and created Waam, an advanced, rather racy and highly evolved city where literally anything can happen. Fritz Leiber had his Gods of Lankhmar lurking in the city, and I’ve got my Black Hats festering in their temples.
Carol is going to take a few weeks off and recoop a bit. Then she’s going to begin work on Book V, The Temple of the Exploding Head. Oh, such fun …
Bowl Naked
copyright 2011, Ren Garcia and Carol Phillips
The Temple of the Exploding Head 
The colors and artwork are really cool, and I love simple titles–there is something startling about them, something ambiguous which tells you it may be a story which is completely different from what you believe it to be. “The Machine” sounds very exciting! Congratulations, Ren, and awesome job, Carol!
Very cool! Definitely harkens back to the old days.
Thanks Chris and Cynthia. Finishing a book is sort of like the last day of school–it’s very bittersweet. One the one hand I’m glad all our hard work is about to see the light of day, on the other hand I miss spitballing and yaking with Carol until 3:00am in the morning. I miss the thrill of creation. Oh well, Carol get a few weeks peace then it’s on to Book V. Ohhhhh, do I have plans for that one….