David Drake

The Books of the Elements are a series of four fantasy novels set in a city and empire named Carce, which very similar to that of Rome in 30 ad. I wanted to create a setting in which the myths and magic of the classical world were real, and in which classical myths interacted with those of other portions of the ancient world

The elements of the series are Earth, Air, Fire and Water; or more accurately Fire, Water; and I’m not sure in which order I’ll do the other two.

I’m pairing each element with a cardinal direction. Thus the first novel, The Legions of Fire, mixes Norse myths with classical myths about the far north. The second novel, Out of the Waters (July 2011), involves both Native American myths and classical myths about the Western Ocean. The third novel in the series is tentatively titled Demons from the Earth and will relate to myths of the east. I have notes as to how I’ll handle south, but it’s too early to seriously discuss that one.

Dear People,

I am in the stage now in which the current book (this time it’s The Road of Danger, the next Leary/Mundy space opera) moves forward about as steadily as Juggernaut’s Carriage. The process is about that graceful also, but I’ll be editing the heck out of my rough draft, as usual.

I’ve been averaging a hair over a thousand words a day since Newsletter 61, a process which I expect to continue until I get to the end of my outline. I strongly suspect the final draft will be about 130K, but I don’t swear to that. continue reading…

Cover art by Donato. Click on the image to see a larger view.

Out of the Waters is the second in the Books of the Elements fantasy series from Tor.

AUTHOR’S NOTE

Out of the Waters is set in a fictional city named Carce (pronounced CAR-see). Things occur in this novel and in all The Books of the Elements which did not happen and could not have happened in the historical Rome in 30 ad. This is a fantasy novel, not a historical novel with fantasy elements. I’m trying to keep that fact at the front of readers’ minds by referring to Carce (in homage to The Worm Ouroboros by ER Eddison, by the way).  continue reading…

The cover art by Donato is stunning. Click on the image for a larger view.

The Legions of Fire is the first of a quartet of fantasies in The Books of the Elements series from Tor.

First and foremost, The Legions of Fire is a novel about a fictional city named Carce (pronounced CAR-see) and the empire which Carce rules. It is not a novel about Rome and the Roman Empire in 30 ad, under the emperor Tiberius.

Having said that, a reader who knows a little about Roman history and culture will find similarities with my Carce. A reader who knows a great deal about Rome will find even more similarities. I’m not writing a historical novel, however, or even a historical novel with fantasy elements. continue reading…