One day when I was a young’un, I visited the Orlando Public Library to check out some books for school. They had a small room with used books that they were selling for $1 each. I started combing through the bins and shelves to see if I could find anything interesting.

That’s when I came across a teal, hardcover book – no jacket – with a squiggly 8-pointed star inside of a diamond engraved on the cover. The spine read, “The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien.” Other than the absence of a dust jacket, it was in near-perfect condition.

As I started to flip through the book, I noticed that the pages in the back seemed to have a gap between them. That gap, as I soon discovered, was a huge fold-out map of Beleriand – the ancient coast of northwestern Middle-Earth – before the land was sundered and engulfed by the sea at the end of the First Age.

I was mesmerized.

Of course, I bought the book, and still have it to this day. Best buck I ever spent.

I still remember reading it for the first time, constantly flipping between story and appendices and map, immersed in the excitement of discovering a new world and new mythos. That was the day I fell in love with maps and realized the power they have to bring a story to life and to transport me to that other world.

It also made me want to create my own worlds, my own stories. And, naturally, maps were needed to help define those worlds. Lots of maps. Town layouts scribbled on notebook paper; battle maps and building schematics on graph paper; overland maps spread across 20 sheets of typing paper that occupied most of the floor space in my bedroom. Thanks to Tolkien, maps and fantasy played a key role in developing my imagination, which has brought me a lot of joy over the years.

So that’s my story… What’s yours? I’d really like to hear it, so I’m going to throw in a little incentive to help loosen the tongue.

How to Win a $25 ProFantasy Voucher

In the comments below, please tell me what is your favorite map, or a map that influenced you greatly. Also, share with me why you like it so much and/or how it influenced you. Feel free to link to the map if it exists somewhere on the Interwebs so we can all get a good look at it.

On December 24^th, I’ll pick one commenter and send him/her a $25 ProFantasy gift voucher that can be used toward the purchase of any ProFantasy products. It’s that easy – just leave a comment for your chance to win.

Update

Thank you all for sharing your stories, I thoroughly enjoyed reading them.

I enjoyed them so much that I couldn’t pick just one as the winner. So, in the spirit of gaming, I rolled the dice (well, virtual dice from my Gametable install).

And the Dice proclaim Anthony Toohey to be the winner.

Merry Christmas to you all, and happy mapping!

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

A Tale of Silmarilli and a Free $25 Campaign Cartographer Gift Certificate – Merry Christmas

Related posts:

1. New For Christmas – ProFantasy Gift Vouchers
2. Campaign Cartographer Discount – Only a Few Hours Left
3. Campaign Cartographer Video Tutorials

Do you have a cartographer or fantasy enthusiast in your life and don’t know what to give them for Christmas?

The folks at ProFantasy came through with a solution just in time for the holidays. They now offer gift cards so your special someone can choose their own products.

There are a few things I really like about ProFantasy vouchers:

1. They don’t expire
2. They can stack with other vouchers
3. You can use some now and some later, if you so choose

I actually had a voucher code from a couple of years ago. I had used half of it to purchase Dungeon Designer 3 and some symbol packs. About 2 years later, I wanted to get City Designer 3 and some of the Annuals. Fortunately, I still had the voucher, and it still worked. Hooray for non-expiring gift cards!

For those of you in a table-top gaming group, this would also be a great gift for your Dungeon Master so (s)he can make PC-slaying battle maps even faster.

Click here to check out the ProFantasy gift vouchers.

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

New For Christmas – ProFantasy Gift Vouchers

Related posts:

1. Would You Like to Win $100-Worth of ProFantasy Products?
2. Map-Making Competition: Win $100 Worth of ProFantasy Mapping Software

I just got back from TERRA INCOGNITA: Maps of Imaginary Worlds at the Soho Gallery for Digital Art. The gallery features lots of maps by many fantasy artists from Cartographers’ Guild.

The maps are displayed on large-screen monitors so you can get up close and really see the details. If you’re inclined to take one home on paper, prices range from $95-$125.

In addition to the maps, there are also a couple of panels displaying quotes from the artists and some writing/poems of past literary giants. This was one of the most interesting parts of the gallery in my opinion – it helped put the maps into context as part of our individual and collective imaginations.

The show has been extended to September 1^st, so if you’re in the NYC area I definitely recommend you go check it out.

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

Terra Incognita Gallery Show

No related posts.

I don’t usually do any overtly promotional posts, but I think this is too good of an offer not to tell you…

If you’ve been considering getting CC3 or any of the software add-ons, now is the time to buy!

There is a 15% sale on all software items until midnight Sunday. I assume that’s midnight London time, so if you’re in the US or anywhere other than UK, make sure you check your time zone! In all the years I’ve owned Profantasy products, I don’t remember them ever having a sale, so this is probably a good opportunity to take advantage of if you’re missing anything.

Click here to see all the discounts.

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

Campaign Cartographer Discount – Only a Few Hours Left

Related posts:

1. Campaign Cartographer Video Tutorials
2. Fantasy Cartography – Find Maps from Your Favorite Novels

I hereby grant you permission to use any map on my website (unless specifically prohibited) for any purpose whatsoever, be it commercial, personal or otherwise.

No need to ask me for permission, just copy the file to your computer and have your way with it. If you feel like being generous, please link back to my site, Fantasy Map Maker, to let other people know where the map originated.

All maps are offered “as is.” What you see is what you get. You’re free to modify them however you’d like. If you really appreciate the maps and are in a position to do so, please consider making a small donation to my website maintenance fund.

Fantasy Map Maker maps by Fantasy Map Maker are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.
Contact me if you have any questions regarding permissions beyond the scope of this license at http://www.fantasymapmaker.com/contact/.

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

Steal My Maps

Related posts:

1. New Fantasy Map Maker Blog Feature – Rate My Maps
2. Fantasy Cartography – Find Maps from Your Favorite Novels

Most of you subscribe to Fantasy Map Maker via email or RSS feeds – and for that I am grateful. If, however, you wouldn’t mind stopping by the site, I’ve implemented a new rating system for my maps and I’d love to get your feedback.

Rating the maps will help me see what you like (and what you don’t like) so hopefully I can then give you more of what you like.

At the bottom of each post you’ll see five lonely stars waiting for your sweet caress. Click on the star that best expresses how much you like that map (or post).

1 star = horrible, 5 stars = awesome.

Abuse me. Praise me. Just don’t ignore me! =P

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

New Fantasy Map Maker Blog Feature – Rate My Maps

Related posts:

1. Subscribe to Fantasy Map Maker
2. Fantasy Cartography – Find Maps from Your Favorite Novels
3. Fantasy Overland Map #6

If you love reading fantasy literature, you know that most good stories require a good map. If you’re having trouble finding a map for the story you’re reading, try the Fantasy Cartography website. They have a great collection of maps based on fantasy worlds you’re already familiar with.

In their own words:

It happens all the time. You’re reading one of your favorite novels, and you wish you had a good map to use as a reference. Here you will find a collection of maps from various fantasy and science fiction works for your viewing. I might also include other goodies from literature, the Bible (not fiction), or television programs, movies, and video games.

Check out their maps!

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

Fantasy Cartography – Find Maps from Your Favorite Novels

Related posts:

1. Subscribe to Fantasy Map Maker
2. Fantasy Overland Map #6
3. Fantasy Overland Map #7: The Five Kingdoms

Firstly, I’d like to thank those of you who frequent this website for your interest and words of encouragement. I enjoy the map-making process immensely and I’m grateful to be able to share it with you.

For those of you who are new to the site, and to those of you who come back often just by remembering the website address, I’d like to suggest you subscribe to the blog. Subscribing means you don’t have to come back every day to see if there’s a new map yet because the maps are sent to you. There’s no spam because you can turn off your subscription any time you like. There are two easy ways to subscribe – RSS and Email.

Subscribe by RSS

RSS is a technology which allows you to receive updates without actually coming to the website. If you read a lot of blogs, RSS is a life saver. Just sign up with a blog reader (my favorite is Google Reader) and then click on the “Subscribe via RSS” button in the sidebar. You may also see a similar orange RSS icon in the URL bar at the top of your browser – you could also just press that button.

Once you subscribe to the RSS feed, my maps will be delivered to your blog reader every time I post a new one. The nice thing about the feed reader is that you can track unlimited amounts of blogs from one location instead of trying to visit each site every day, which would take forever. I track a couple hundred blogs and the blog reader is the only way to make that possible.

If you’d like to learn more about RSS, I have a whole page devoted to it! Read more about RSS.

Subscribe by Email

If you’re not quite ready to adopt that newfangled RSS nonsense, email may be more your speed.

Just put your email address in the “Subscribe by Email” form in the sidebar and press the Subscribe button. Then, check your email for a message from us and click on the link in that email to confirm your subscription. From now on, you’ll get each new map sent directly to your email. How’s that for service?!

Just like with RSS, there’s no spam. If you decide that my maps suck or that I’m a deplorable wretch and not worth your attention, you can easily unsubscribe and never be bothered by me again.

Bookmarking Options

Another option is to bookmark this website. You could just bookmark it in your browser favorites, but there is a better way.

Online bookmarking services let you keep all your bookmarks in one location that you can access from anywhere with an Internet connection, which is handy if you’re traveling or spending an excruciatingly painful weekend with the in-laws. My favorite online bookmarking service is Delicious.

Other services, like StumbleUpon, combine bookmarking with community, so you can share what you discover with like-minded people.

At the bottom of each of my posts you’ll see icons for a few of these bookmarking sites. If you like the map, just click on one of those icons, sign up for the service (it’s free of course) and bookmark away.

If you have any questions about RSS, email subscriptions or bookmarking, please ask them in the comments section below. And thanks again for reading!

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

Subscribe to Fantasy Map Maker

Related posts:

1. Fantasy Overland Map #1
2. Fantasy World Map #1
3. Fantasy Dungeon Map #1

RPG Tonight has a useful list of mapping and gaming resources that I stumbled on.

Apparently, they provide a virtual tabletop environment for gamers who play at a distance. I hope to check it out soon – right now we use a combination of skype and tokbox, but it looks like RPG Tonight might do the trick.

Have you used the RPG Tonight virtual tabletop?

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

Mapping and Gaming Resource List from RPG Tonight

No related posts.

I finally scrounged up enough cash to get Campaign Cartographer‘s Dungeon Designer 3. Expect to see some PC-killin’ underground goodness coming soon.

Post from: Fantasy Map Maker

Dungeons are Coming

Related posts:

1. Doing Nothing in Thailand