As was pointed out in the comments, Return to Labyrinth volume 4 is now listed on Amazon with an August 3rd release date. I just want to clarify a few things here:

• The writer has no control over setting release dates on a project like this. Publishers set dates.
• For my part, I’m basically done with this volume. There will be some reviewing and revisions until close to release, but my day job is now focused on making sure that I’ve got  a NEXT project ready to start talking about once RtL4 comes out. In the meantime, I’ll still be running gobblin.net as usual.
• 15 months between graphic novel volumes isn’t ideal (I share in your frustration there as a reader and as a writer who would like more work), but it’s pretty typical for graphic novels done outside of the Marvel/DC/Manga systems.
• Frustration or disappointment about a release date is perfectly understandable and fair, especially when we’re talking about a much-anticipated conclusion to a story we’ve been following for 4 years. But this isn’t a case where fan action can make it happen sooner — it’s not a finished book, sitting in a vault on a whim, but in the middle of its creation. The publisher wants to get it out as soon as possible as that’s when they get paid.
• The only way, hypothetically, to speed up the release, would be to cut corners on art, which no one wants to happen. Volume 1 was rushed a bit towards the end, which resulted in some of the chapters having smudgy tones and inking that didn’t do justice to Chris’ pencils or the series as as whole. The publisher learned a lesson there and the remaining volumes have been much better for it! Bottom line, quality first!

Thanks for your understanding. Right now, I’m just hoping that Tokyopop will have plenty of volume 4 at San Diego Comic-con, as I plan to be there and I hope there will be books to sell and sign!

Hello, friends! It is me — Skub! Thank you, Mr. Jake, for letting me use your blog. I will try not to make it stinky. King Toby has told Skub many stories about humen holly-days. We Goblins have holly-days too! Holly-days are fun! There is Grand Toothing Day, where every goblin boy and girl takes a spikey yawbroke bat and tries to knock out the teeth of other children. The best part is, they get to keep any teeth they collect! Then there is Fast Fist Fest in which for two glorious minutes, we goblins are allowed to punch as anyone we want, as hard as we want! Actually… Goblin Holly-days are not very fun at all. Except for the Saint Glottin’s Day Feast!

Saint Glottin’s Day celebrates the life and death of Glottin, the greatest goblin eater to ever live! On the day of his great gorging, Glottin cleaned out every goblin pantry with his gobbling. Then, when he was out of proper food, he created a great deep fryer in the castle moat, and started dipping furniture, weapons and tasty looking neighbors into batter before frying them to a crisp! Glottin’s great gorging went on for 83 hours, at which point, he choked on an umbrella and died. In celebration of Glottin’s amazing run, there was much rejoicing, but then the joy turned to tears once everyone realized that there was no more food, and thus begun the Hundred Winter Famine.

Now we goblins have learned to live by Glottin’s example that when food is plenty, we eat our brother’s portion before he can, and when food is scarce, we eat our brother. So lived and died St. Glottin, and so do we.

And now, a recipe for humens! In the Labyrinth, there is a creature called the Sloggroat. It is very big and very smart. It is so smart, that it’s brain fills its entire head! (Goblin brains sort of roll about the head, like a marble, and sometimes fall out.) Some goblins say that Sloggroats are a noble race, with a culture to rival the greatest humen civilizations! All Skub knows is that Sloggroat brains are delicious! They are so chewy and purple! Skub made Sloggroat Brains for Toby, and Toby said “I know this dish! It’s Collie-flower!” Of course I was hurt at having my delicious dish compared to any kind of flower, but even though Toby is brave and smart, he does not always know about goblin feelings. Anyway, if you want to have a taste of Goblin gourmet cooking, then here is a recipe for you!

Roasted Sloggroat Brains (with garlicks)

1. Pre-heat oven to 400*
2. Extract Brain from 1 Sloggroat Head*
3. Chop Brain into yummy pieces
4. Smash 6 garlick cloves and chop finely
5. Mix up brain chunks and garlicks with 3 tabulspoons of EVOO** and sprinkle with salt
6. Spread on a cookie sheet covered with foil
7. Roast for 1 hour, stirring bits every 15 minutes for even browning and coverage
8. Eat!

*If Sloggroth Heads are unavailable at your local market, use a purple cauliflower head (which is not actually a head, because it does not have eyes or a mouth).

** EVOO is “evil” said with a warlock’s lisp. This is a spell which invokes a Grease Golem who will proceed to slime your dish with oil. If you are incapable of summoning evil beings, instead substitute olive oil.

This weekend might belong to New Moon, but nagging vampire visions and shirtless werewolves aren’t the only fantasy sex symbols strutting their stuff!  Tokyopop has revealed the cover art for the fourth and final volume of Return to Labyrinth. At long last, Sarah and Moppet step into the cover spotlight! Once again, the artwork is by manga-ka and illustrator Kouyu Shurei. Her covers have been consistently amazing, but with this cover, she outdid herself! Check out the original Tokyopop posting for a look at the pencil version as well.  Share your thoughts in the comments below!

A big thanks to Maggie for pointing it out!

Time to break the uncomfortable silence around here with another trip down memory lane to the early RtL concept art! This time, its the goblins Skub and Candlewic. With the Skub pictures, it’s interesting to see how much of a difference the eyes make. The version on the left is pretty close to the final version, while the one on the right, with the beady eyes, looks like he could have come from Froud’s sketchbooks!

This early version of Candlewic also looks a little more Froudian, but as wonderfully gobliny as he is, he’s not quite menacing yet. Going back through these old sketches, it makes me want to see Chris go wild with an all-goblin adventure!

In Return to Labyrinth volume 4, the cast of characters won’t change much, but some of the characters’ costumes will! The sketch below is a take on one of Toby’s new looks. Why so dour, Toby?

Right now I’m in the process of writing the last chapter of Volume 4, and it’s just about the toughest writing challenge I’ve ever faced. The closer I come to the ending, the more I want to pack in. Part of me feels as if this is my last chance to sneak in all the “good ideas” I’ve had for series before it’s too late! Another part of me is reluctant to give these characters the closure they deserve because someday I’d love to tell (or hear others tell) more of their stories. Writing this series has been a 4 year journey. There was always a “next chapter,” and now that there isn’t, I don’t want to say goodbye.

As a result, I’ve written many scenes that, as much as I love them, just don’t belong in the finale or go on way too long. Either they’re introducing new threads when closure is what’s needed, or their length will marginalize the roles of other characters who deserve better after this long journey. More than ever, I have to force myself to accomplish more with less.

The extra ideas, I can hold onto – maybe use them in the novel I’ve started tinkering with and need to get back to when this is done. Maybe I’ll post a few scenes here at a later date. The characters will live on, whether through new comics or film, or just in memories and the occasional fan fiction.

If I’ve been a little slow in posting this past week, now you know why. We’re in overtime with bases loaded and it’s time to take her home.

Today’s character concept artwork features a very early take on Moppet, back when she was envisioned as a more youthful incarnation of Sarah’s dreams. I really do love this sketch — it fits moppet’s name and personality perfectly.

As for the other character, Flakwort, he’s a goblin character who ended up on the chopping block. Originally, he was going to be goblin warrior, exiled to the wasteland outside the Labyrinth, who our characters would have met in a very different volume 2. His name ended up getting recycled with a slight change as “Flegwort,” the goblin shoemaker, the idea of a shamed warrior took a very different form in Skub’s back story, and a goblin-in-exile did appear in volume 3, so I guess in a way his spirit lives on. Had Flakwort survived in tact, he would have rescued Moppet from this yet-unvisited wasteland, and she, in turn, would have helped him to regain his honor. But that was a very different story, that perhaps will be told another time…

So a few weeks back I shared Chris’s second drafts of Moulin and Drumlin. At the time, I thought I’d lost the files for the first drafts, but after digging through my gmail archives, I found ‘em! Also in the mix, the first draft of Mizumi, who, as you can see, underwent very few changes at all. The daughters in this version are pretty cute, I must say — Drumlin has a bit of a Tweedle-Dee/Dum vibe, and this version of Moulin looks like she’ll cut ya if you get to close! What do you guys think?

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