A working map of the Static-Lands. Photoshop textured with a scan of actual paper I tortured and tea-stained. I folded the paper so that it would look like it had been a map folded up all tiny in some traveler's back pocket. I would have handdrawn it, but since I have only written about a few places around the Static-Lands and have only a few more in mind at the moment, I knew I had lots of empty land, so I drew it digitally. I have a master Photoshop file that I can change.
It was inspired by the map in the PS2 game, "Shadow of the Colossus." In that game, you start with a map that is covered in clouds, save for the Shrine of Worship - the central save-point/starter location. As you travel the land, saving around little shrines and slaying the Colossi, the clouds on your map part, showing the locations you've been. I thought it was pretty genius, so I used a similar idea for my story map. My map is covered in clouds. As I write more stories and start naming new locations/getting to know my own land, I can go back into the Photoshop file and dispell sections of the cloud layer to reveal/draw them.
The master Photoshop file is much larger - therefore, if am called upon to put anything into print, there is no problem as long as I have copies of that file and Photoshop handy to bring them up. This JPEG is just the low-res version.
Locations so Far
The Land-of-Always-Day
Fortissimo - Grand capitol city of the nation of Vale. Really not as big to the country as it appears on the map (the map is rough-locations, it's not to scale). Cited in several stories so far.
The Desert - Farthest charted part of The Land-of-Always-Day, home of the fiercesome, vulture-like Vule people.
The Edgewoods - Not named in story - just the area where Theresa of "Incurable" lives.
The Gloaming Lands
The Institute - Something planned for a story I have yet to write, "The Soulpainter." It is the ruin of a defunct old "hospital" that was... not about healing the sick. Created by the government of Vale in its dictator-days, it was where healthy undesirables were taken for things such as forced organ donation to their "betters." Also, a zombie uprising happened there.
The Land-of-Always-Night
The "Last Land" - A story I am writing now involves a tribe of pacifists who retreated to this place in the mountains to survive and to keep themselves from warfare. It's a rather pleasant place surrounded by graggy mountains and rocks as sharp as glass. Yes, the Panzau *really* wish to be left alone to be at peace.
The Old Tower - I'm thinking this may be where peace-activist Vinchente LaPaz lives. Also might be the place where the lady wizard who screwed up the night and day cycle used to live.
I realize that I forgot to include the location of the Green Plateau, which was mentioned in one of my stories. I can always draw it in there when I update the map.
Yay, map! :D Gotta say, I think "Also, a zombie uprising happened there" is one of those sentences that should be used as often as possible.
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