The Rod and The Ring

In truth, it is the game that destroys the world every time it is played correctly, and thus it may be played correctly a maximum of one time.
   --R. A. Lafferty, “The Rod and the Ring”

Over the last few years there have been no small number of achievements made by the Lafferty fans who organize and make up the Ktistec Press. One of the most notable of these being the negotiating for and inclusion of the previously unpublished R.A. Lafferty story The Rod and The Ring.

Feast of Laughter 4 (featuring The Rod & The Ring)

The Rod and The Ring was the first new Lafferty story to be published in nearly 15 years. [Those interested can download a free pdf of the book from the Ktistec website or purchase a physical copy print-on-demand via Amazon.] As a member of the Ktistec team, I had access to the story prior to publication. What kind of fool would I have been to pass up the opportunity to be the first person to illustrate a new Lafferty?

Over the crust of the story is draped clear references to role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons. I drew upon this heavily, combining designs from the D&D board games and the iconic red cover from the 1983 starter kit players manual. I'll admit that I took far too much pleasure in replacing the TSR logo with my own signature. For a good 15 minutes I actually thought I was a genius. Not so much after. But I'm still very happy with the idea.

If I had known at the time that our friend Lissanne Lake, a professional artist and longtime Lafferty associate who frequently illustrates his worlds, had been a regular illustrator for Dragon Magazine and other fantasy periodicals and books, I would have begged her for an illustration to accompany this publication. I'm sure it would have been perfect. Unfortunately, I wouldn't discover this until years later.