Maps

[Oliveman]

For anyone who has done a map for their world before (whether it be real or of your imagination), how have you done it? Did you include it in the novel? Did you make it only at the end? How much did you change it?

I'm working on my own map right now for my world and I was wondering what everyone else's approach might be. Thanks!

[Gemsong]

My maps were orginally created for my fantasy roleplaying games. Then it just grew. So now everytime I write some based there, another realm gets fleshed out.

I guess it's a bare bones world. :)

[Neeli]

I have drawn a map for my WIP--on the inside cover of a notebook, stuffed in a cupboard somewhere. I used to use it to keep the names of places straight, but I don't need it anymore. It has changed as I got to know my world a little better, but I just redraw the lines.

I always like maps for stories that have a lot of place names, but it is much better if you can describe the relationship of places in your work instead of relying on a map. Lots of places gets just too confusing.

I hope someone knows of a good mapping software program. I'd like to try that approach if it exists. It's been at least a decade since I last used DrawPerfect.

[TheIT]

For the world in my fantasy WIP, I'm using modified maps of the US since I didn't want to have to come up with brand new geography.

For mapping towns, I'm having a little more difficulty. I've been getting some good suggestions in the "Mapping a Village" thread in the Science Fiction and Fantasy forum.

[Shadow_Ferret]

I created my map in Adobe Illustrator as I was writing my WIP because it became so involving, I had to know where every country, every city, every castle, every river, every forest, etc. was so I could say, "She went north to Moronica" without worrying that maybe I had said Moronica was actually southwest of where she was.

[KiwiChick]

I like to make maps for my novels so I can be sure how things fit together, directions, distances etc, but I try to write my books so you don't need to look at the maps to read the story. I've never felt the need to drastically alter a map as I wrote, but I do tend to add detail as it becomes important.