Introduction

For more than eight years, I ran The Map Room, a blog about maps. During that time, I became increasingly interested in the use of maps in fantasy and science fiction, which I’ve been reading my entire life. I suspended that blog in June 2011, but I haven’t abandoned my interest in maps. In fact, it’s opened up an opportunity for more in-depth work that the routine of daily blogging didn’t really allow.

So I’ve started working on a research project that combines two obsessions: SF and fantasy, and maps. (Being able to do that is all kinds of awesome sauce.) The end result of this project might be a few semi-scholarly articles, convention presentations, and who knows what else. At the moment, I’m focusing on building up some knowledge.

I’m interested in three questions:

The history of map design in fantasy and science fiction literature: where does the classic fantasy novel map “look” come from, and how has it changed over time? (My working hypothesis is that current fantasy maps are the direct descendents of the work of children’s book illustrators like Pauline Baynes and E. H. Shepard.) A comparison of fantasy maps to their real-world equivalents: what, for example, do medieval maps look like compared to fantasy maps of a roughly analogous period? (So far, it seems that they have almost nothing in common with one another; a medieval map would probably be unrecognizable to a modern fantasy reader.) The use of maps within the stories themselves: as treasure maps, as portals, as symbols, as metaphors.

This page serves as the central hub for my studies. It’s constantly updated and revised as I Learn New Things. I’ll also post updates on my personal blog; see in particular the Maps category. Here are the relevant posts so far:

If you’re interested in this subject too, scroll down to the reading list. In addition, the following category archives from The Map Room will be helpful: Imaginary Places, Fiction About Maps (for item no. 3 above) and, for an understanding of pre-modern maps, Antique Maps and History of Cartography.

On the question of the history of cartography, the first three volumes of Harley and Woodward’s extremely expensive History of Cartography series are available for free online in PDF format.

Reading List

Nonfiction

These are articles about the use of maps in fiction. In some cases they are, or contain, writers’ accounts of how they used maps in the creative process. If there’s something else out there I should be aware of, please let me know.

To investigate

I haven’t seen these, but I’ve seen references or had them recommended to me. I don’t have easy access to university libraries (especially when it comes to old journals held in storage), so any help in obtaining copies of old articles would be, well, helpful.

Day, Frank W. “The Role and Purpose of the Map in Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature.” M.A. thesis, Bowling Green State University, 1979. Duane, Diane. “Cartography for Other Worlds: A Short Look at a Neglected Subject.” SFWA Bulletin 11, no. 5 (1976), pp. 10-14. Ekman, Stefan. “Exploring the Maps of Secondary Worlds.” Paper presented at the 29th International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts, Orlando, Florida, March 19-22, 2008. Hann, D. “Maps in Children’s Literature: Their Uses, Forms, and Functions.” M.A. thesis, California State University, Long Beach, 2008. Hunt, Peter. “Landscapes and Journeys, Metaphors and Maps: The Distinctive Feature of English Fantasy.” Children’s Literature Association Quarterly 12, no. 1 (1987), pp. 11-14. McDermott, Paul. “The Design of Fictional Maps.” Proceedings of the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping , Fall 1976, pp. 348-362. Petel, Claude. “La Cartographie des ‘Voyages Extraordinaires.’” Bulletin de la Soci�t� Jules Verne 123 (1997), pp. 42-44. Ranson, Clare. “Cartography in Children’s Literature.” Sustaining the Vision: Selected Papers from the Annual Conference of the International Association of School Librarianship (Worcester UK: International Association of School Librarianship, 1996), pp. 164-66. Walker, R. C. “The Cartography of Fantasy,” Mythlore 7, no. 4 (1981), pp. 37-38.

Fiction

These are short stories and novels that use maps in the course of the story, or that are stories about maps and cartography. If you know of a story like that and it’s not on this list, please let me know.

To investigate

I haven’t seen these yet: many are on this list mostly because the word “map” is in the title (yes, it was a sophisticated search) and may not actually have anything to do with this subject; others were suggested by people who know the field better than I do. I’ll track them down and see.

Websites

Fantastic Maps

The home page of fantasy/roleplaying cartographer Jonathan Roberts; includes much in terms of fantasy map design.

Fuck Yeah Fictional Maps

A tumblelog about fantasy, game and other imaginary maps.

The Maps from the Voyages Extraordinaires

A collection of maps from Jules Verne’s novels.

Acknowledgements and Thanks

Marie Bilodeau, Lila Garrott, Angela Aftanas Griffin, Zvi Gilbert, David G. Hartwell, Matthew Johnson, Marissa Lingen, Farah Mendlesohn, Emmet O’Brien, J. B. Post, Alison Sinclair, Michael Swanwick, Ren� Walling, Jo Walton, Dwight Williams.

Notes