Comments on: Why Not Draw a Map of an Imaginary World?

By: Melissa Taylor

Melissa Taylor — Thu, 24 Sep 2020 14:21:38 +0000

In reply to Faigy. Love it -- you sound like a wonderful teacher!

By: Faigy

Faigy — Mon, 21 Sep 2020 23:22:55 +0000

I am an elementary school teacher and I absolutely LOVE getting my kids excited about maps. Just the other day I handed out a map key of about 30 elements of a fair/amusemnt park and they created their own amusement park – down to the paths, ponds, rides and food stalls. BIG HIT!!

By: Phillip T. Stephens

Phillip T. Stephens — Sat, 19 Mar 2016 00:56:11 +0000

I often map out the communities in my novels for my own sake, but I’m not sure they translate well into the books. I only included one, the map of Lucifer’s office, as a parody of maps inside novels in my novel Raising Hell.

Maps can be useful to follow the path of a charater’s journey in an epic story such as LOTR, but I’ve also seen a lot of maps inside novels where I scratched my head and thought, why? I know one writer who spends as much time on cartography as he does writing his novels, which seems excessive. To me, everything should have a purpose, and, yes, fun is as good a purpose as any.

But If I did add a map, I would also look for an artist who could draw good ones.

By: Robin

Robin — Tue, 10 May 2011 19:49:27 +0000

I so enjoy teaching with maps. You can use them for reading, writing, math, social studies, etc. It’s that hook of adventure that get the kids. I especially like treasure maps.

By: Micki

Micki — Sat, 07 May 2011 17:32:46 +0000

Thanks for the wonderful map ideas! My daughter would love to read The Rise & Fall of Mount Majestic.

By: Dorine WHite

Dorine WHite — Sat, 07 May 2011 01:18:06 +0000

My husband loves real maps. I love maps like on the boardgame Candyland!

By: Tabatha

Tabatha — Sat, 07 May 2011 00:55:18 +0000

Looks like fun! When I was a child, I loved to draw my dream house, which always had entire rooms dedicated to things like “ice cream.” I think I also had a “volcano room,” for some strange reason…

By: Melissa Taylor

Melissa Taylor — Fri, 06 May 2011 17:01:54 +0000

In reply to Jonathan Auxier. I'm like you, I don't bother with maps. But, one of my daughters seems to rely on the maps to orient herself in the book. Maybe she and your wife are more visual-spacial?