I have not read any of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Mars novels. What I know about them is mostly from the illustrations and paintings other artists have done. (I read every issue of the Marvel comics John Carter series. It made no lasting impression on me. I’d forgotten it existed until I saw some cover images on the web recently.) I’m sure I’ll get around to reading the novels eventually. Every time I do read a Burroughs novel I’m reminded what a lively storyteller he was.

I felt compelled to draw something Barsoomian one day. After a couple of stabs at sketching a thark I decided to do a Martian lion instead. I’m not really happy with the result. Not that I think it’s bad. I was just trying to do something specific in the inking process (bold clear lines) and the result wasn’t satisfying. To me.