Looking to hire a cartographer
Hi everyone! Glad to meet you!
My name is Adam J Nicolai and I'm looking to hire a cartographer to make a map for my new fantasy novel. I did manage to make a decent-ish map for my first book, but it didn't have that professional shine and frankly, I found the process tedious and unrewarding. I'd much rather outsource the job to someone who enjoys the work and can knock it out of the park. A friend recommended the Cartographer's Guild and I'm blown away by some of the gorgeous work here.
I've checked and double-checked the TOS for a prohibition against solicitation and didn't see one, but if I'm violating TOS or posting in the wrong place, please let me know. As a gesture of good faith I also contributed to the site maintenance fund as I really appreciate what you're doing here.
About me:
I'm an independent fantasy novelist. If you're so inclined, you can check out my bona fides including my web site, my Amazon author page, or perhaps most importantly, the product page for my first fantasy novel, Children of a Broken Sky. (Please don't buy anything; I'm only placing those links so you know I'm legitimate.) I commissioned the cover art for Children (at that last link) from Adam Paquette, an artist for Magic: The Gathering. I mention that because, again, I want to demonstrate my sincerity and appreciation for great work. As an independent artist myself I want to support the community, and that means paying for quality work. I am not looking for a handout.
About the job:
I need a map of the primary continent of my fantasy world, which would be placed on my website as well as in the front matter of the e-book, the paperback, and the hardcover. I would be looking to keep all rights to the work but would, of course, accredit the creator. I have several amateur drafts made by various people over the years that can serve as a template. In browsing the site just a bit here, the best analog I've found to what I'm looking for is Yar-Zun, by Tom: a high quality map of a single continent using few colors that will show well in either full- or mono-color display. The primary deviation from Yar-Zun in my requirements is the orientation; my map will need to be horizontally oriented rather than vertically.
In an ideal world I'd be looking to get the finished product within a month, but that time frame is negotiable in advance if it's unrealistic. For a fantastic piece of work made by someone with a proven portfolio and finished in a timely fashion, I'd be willing to pay $250 - $500, negotiable based on portfolio and track record.
Perhaps even more importantly, I would love to establish a relationship with someone I can return to in the future for additional map needs. This series will be six books long, and I'm only on the second. There are a great number of new areas, including cities and world maps, that I expect to need in the coming years, and I also have a couple ideas in mind for additional maps of cities, villages, and regions even going back to the first book.
My questions:
1) Is it okay that I'm posting this here? I really don't want to get off on the wrong foot.
2) If not, could anyone point me toward the correct forum or even a different site where this kind of solicitation is more appropriate? I've never hired a mapmaker before and it's proving more difficult than I expected to tap into the right group of people.
3) What is a realistic time frame for a map of the quality level I'm looking for?
4) Are you interested or do you know anyone who is? Please feel free to respond with any questions or PM me with a link to your portfolio. I'm hoping to start the process as soon as possible.
Thanks so much for reading and, again, for fostering such a great community.
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Originally Posted by Redrobes
