To map, or not to map?

[Lorn Ashby]

Have any of you reached a point where you just absolutely felt you needed a map to ground your writing?

I recently took 3-4 days off from actually writing to generate and then customize an Azgaar's map.
The action in my story takes place in a few far-flung locations, and geography is a key driving force in the world.

I had held off on doing this, knowing that - to some extent - creating a map locks you into staying within its confines. But I'd hit the point where I was no longer sure how far apart locations were, how long travel would take, whether the sun rose behind or to the side of certain mountains, or where a river originated.

Azgaar's is a great tool, I think. I spent quite a bit of time setting up the weather and biomes, and I've just added the handful of locaitons/markers I needed to reorient myself. Not planning to constrain myself by filling in all the empty spaces on the map.

 

[CupofJoe]

I am old-school and I think visually so I have dozen and dozens of pencil and paper maps for what I write.
Using them I find it far better/easier to tweak. If I use soft pencils I can just use an eraser to wipe out a town, redirect a river or move a forest.
For me A3 is about the right size and if I need more, i can always tape another sheet where it is needed.

 

[Rudolphthered]

I think it's effective to have a visual representation of your world, even if you will change it later. Some of my maps were made with Inkarnate, now I switched to digital drawing. Ctrl+Z helps a lot when making a mistake, and brushes facilitate you plenty of textures if you want to make it more stylized.

Maps are also easy to make even for someone who isn't used to draw, if you only care about superficial details that is. Delving into air currents, tectonic plates and erosion will prove harder and more demanding, naturally.

 

[pmmg]

Its one of the first things people will look for and see about your story. And many may notice if its not there. So...yeah, I think its important to have one.

I've had a map for quite a while thought. Originally hand drawn, then computer drawn, then computer drawn again. Maybe I will do it again before its all done.

 

[MSadiq]

It helps to visualize the relative size and location of your different geographies and locations, but it doesn't have to be detailed, really. The "map" that I made for my own use is a bunch of labeled triangles with different line shapes and thicknesses to mark the biomes, placed and sized relative to one another

 

[Mad Swede]

I have a sketch map of the setting for my stories, and also sketch maps of some of the towns and places where things happen. This is because I need these to keep things consistent within the stories (distances, relative positions, travel times, etc) and to ensure that the setting is reasonably believable (geography, climate, trade routes etc). But the maps don't appear in any of the books, I leave it to the readers to form their own map in their own minds.

 

[Lorn Ashby]

I am old-school and I think visually so I have dozen and dozens of pencil and paper maps for what I write.
Using them I find it far better/easier to tweak. If I use soft pencils I can just use an eraser to wipe out a town, redirect a river or move a forest.
For me A3 is about the right size and if I need more, i can always tape another sheet where it is needed.

I've done quite a few hand-drawn maps and found they just take me a lot of time, and I end up focusing on that fun exercise rather than writing...

 

[Lorn Ashby]

I have a sketch map of the setting for my stories, and also sketch maps of some of the towns and places where things happen. This is because I need these to keep things consistent within the stories (distances, relative positions, travel times, etc) and to ensure that the setting is reasonably believable (geography, climate, trade routes etc). But the maps don't appear in any of the books, I leave it to the readers to form their own map in their own minds.

Yes, that's my primary motivation as well. Otherwise, I know I'm guessing and introducing inconsistencies.