How to make your fantasy map feel organic by Emily Golus
World Building
It’s kind of a huge staple of the fantastical genre of fiction.
But it’s such a huge job, and how do you really make an imaginary world feel real? What are some tips and tricks when it comes to thinking about your world and creating a fantasy map?
Well, if you are asking those questions and seeking those answers, you are in luck, because today I have a world building master (and one of my favorite authors) here at the blog to give you some insights into how she goes about infusing realism and believability into her world building!
Please give a warm Safe Return Doubtful welcome to Emily Golus, author of the World of Vindor duology and Crack the Stone!
Make your fantasy world’s political map feel organic (with chaos!)
by
Emily Golus
Let’s say you’re building a fantasy world for your next book, and you want it to feel real to your reader. You want it to be a world that—despite the occasional dragon raid or alchemical spell—feels just as authentic as ours, with realistic cultures and immersive landscapes.
Maybe you’ve already thought through your world’s environments, technology, and conflicts, have decided on your nations’ government styles, and even populated it with unique creatures.
Now let’s take a look at your map.
I’m not talking about the polished illustration you’ll eventually want to show others. I’m talking about that hot mess of a sketch that helps you keep track of rivers, mountains, cities, and territories. (Bonus points if it’s drawn in pencil because you need to keep erasing and changing things).
There’s a lot you can do with physical geography, but today I’m going to focus in on the way your world’s people (or elves, centaurs, dragons, etc.) separate themselves. The division of political territories can go a long way in making your world feel authentic.
The land of the neat and tidy
I don’t know about you, but my first fantasy map felt a bit like this:
The island of Contrivia is divided into four equal territories. The south quadrant is home to the Magman people, who live in a land of volcanos and are known for metalwork. To the west are the Aquans, who live on a series of lakes and export fish. The Arborans live in the northern forests, while the eastern Terrans farm the fertile plains …
Why does Contrivia feel so, well, contrived? It’s so symmetrical and tidy. All the nations very considerately chose one cardinal direction and one type of landscape. They named themselves in a way that coordinated with the names of their neighbors. Isn’t that neat?
But of course, no one lives in a neat world like this. Your setting will feel artificial from the very first page.
“But wait!” you cry
“But wait!” you cry. “What about Avatar: The Last Airbender? It had a map a lot like this and it is one of the most beloved fantasy shows ever!”
It’s true that there are contrived fictional lands that work well for certain types of stories. ATLA was so strongly focused on four types of elemental magic that this kind of world served it well (not to mention it had robust military history and complex cultures that made up for its more simplistic map.)
Of course, you can make an artificial-feeling land. You can take a note from Sir Terry Pratchett and place your world on the back of a Star Turtle and make an entire country full of cabbages.
But again, if your intention is to make a realistic and immersive world, you’ll want to steer away from a neat-and-tidy political map.
You’ll need to set aside the part of your soul that loves symmetry and order, and instead embrace some good, old-fashioned human chaos.
Real worlds are a mess
As with most things in fiction, you can write so much more convincingly if you borrow from the real world. So let’s look at a genuine map to see how it works:
This, my friends, is the United States of America. There’s so much to analyze here, but I’m going to focus on state names, as determined by the Official U.S. State Naming Convention Committee of 1775.*
Some of these names make sense: tropical Florida comes from the Spanish word for “flowery.” Vermont is French for “green mountain.” So far, so good.
But as you look closer, you see there are more linguistic influences at play, including names derived from Native American languages (e.g. Connecticut and Missouri). Some states are named for famous people (Pennsylvania and Washington) or for distant European locations they don’t resemble (New York and New Jersey). A little weird, but okay.
But then the chaos starts to set in. Rhode Island is not an island. There’s a West Virginia but no East Virginia. Nevada is Spanish for “snowy” but it’s a desert. You pronounce the -s at the end of Texas but not Illinois.
Very worst of all, Arkansas and Kansas are pronounced completely differently even though Arkansas is literally just “Ar” + “Kansas” 😭
That’s just the names. Let’s not even get started on the ridiculously uneven sizes of the states, or the fact that some borders are squiggles and others are boxes. Population sizes and natural resources are wildly unequal.
This is insane. What madman created this map??
Going organic
The answer is, of course, no one. No one person sat down and invented the U.S. map, and it shows. States were settled by different people at different times for different reasons. And their unique and quirky histories directly affect their names, their borders, their cultures, and more.
So what’s the takeaway? When you sit down to divide up your world, hide your fingerprints. As tempting as it is to make things neat and tidy, avoid taking that top-down approach.
Instead, consider each nation’s history and survival methods. What kind of geography would they be most likely to claim? Would they gobble up smaller territories to build an empire, or would they be content just to farm or hunt on their side of the river? This will tell you a lot about their borders.
Consider their language and culture. What would they most likely call themselves? Chances are they’re not going to check with their neighbors to make sure their names match up. I’m not saying you need to get Kansas-vs-Arkansas crazy, but a bit of diversity and mismatching will go a long way.
When you build a world this way, it feels like the nations grew organically on their own and happened to bump into each other (and fight about it, a lot). Because in many cases, that’s how human history works.
And so …
If you want your map to feel authentic, study real-world maps as much as you can. The same goes for cultures, languages, philosophies, and more. The more you understand the real world, the better you can craft an authentic-feeling world of your own.
And that’s how you build a world that feels real, dragons and all.
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*Just kidding. It is painfully obvious that there was no such committee.
U.S. Map image courtesy of Freepik
About the Author
Emily Golus is an award-winning fantasy author with nearly 20 years of professional writing experience. Her books feature diverse cultures, authentic characters, and cinematic fantasy settings.
She is the author of Escape to Vindor, which won the 2017 Selah Award for Young Adult Fiction, and two other books sent in the world of Vindor: Mists of Paracosmia and Crack the Stone.
Golus lives in Greenville, SC, with her husband, Mike, who is her greatest supporter. They have two active little boys and enjoy exploring the trails and small towns of the Carolinas.
Explore the world of Vindor for yourself with the immersive WorldofVindor.com website, and keep up with book news at EmilyGolusBooks.com and Instagram.com/WorldOfVindor.