The Art of Star Trek: Discovery with authors Paula M. Block and Terry J. Erdmann

The Art of Star Trek: Discovery, out now from Titan Books. Image Amazon

DECEMBER 15, 2020 - Titan Books is rolling out another in-depth look at the Star Trek franchise with their latest book, The Art of Star Trek: Discovery. Star Trek authors Paula M. Block and Terry J. Erdmann have teamed up once again in this revealing look inside the first two seasons of Star Trek: Discovery. Speaking with SYFY WIRE, Block and Erdmann discussed the challenge that designers and artists faced in creating a prequel to The Original Series.

Block told SYFY WIRE her “greatest pleasure” in writing the book came from seeing the devotion of the creative teams involved with the series. “The artists we talked to all revealed that they want to develop effects that will make a viewer’s jaw drop in awe,” Block said.

Because Discovery predates The Original Series, the freedom to explore the unknown did come with a few guidelines, though. Erdmann discussed how design teams on Discovery were faced with the challenge of recreating the era of TOS in the 21st century. “Because Star Trek: Discovery is a ‘prequel’,” Erdmann said, “researching it meant looking closely at The Original Series. Paula and I talked to the Discovery artists about their efforts to create ‘modern’ versions of 1966 technology while not allowing it to appear more advanced.” He added, “Keeping the ‘old’ look takes careful planning.” Noting the process of ‘reverse engineering’ the look of the series, Erdmann said, “Their work is absolutely fascinating, and we did our best to adequately cover it in the book.”

With new cast and crew interviews, concept art, ship and weapon schematics, storyboard art and more, The Art of Star Trek: Discovery promises to be a fulfilling look at the series. You can purchase a copy for yourself or a loved one from Amazon.com or wherever you get your books.