No Talent Newbie

[bardsandsages]

*Waves*

Greetings and salutations. My name is Julie Ann Dawson, owner of Bards and Sages Publishing. We publish roleplaying games and speculative fiction. I stumbled across this forum while banging my head on the keyboard trying to find help with maps. I have map maker software (Campaign Cartographer) that I have used for small scale projects in the past. But to be honest, I'm a writer/designer, NOT a map maker. My boyfriend insists my inability to create a decent map is directly related to my complete lack of direction sense. There may be some truth to that.

Essentially, I've come here mostly to lurk and perhaps occassionally stalk a more talented map maker to offer them money to make maps for me. Though I love reading about processes and have found some of the discussions very interesting. If nothing else, hanging out should give me a better idea of how map makers think and approach projects, so I can give better directions when I do hire someone.

So for now I'll mostly lurk, but maybe eventually I will upload one of my horrific map attempts and you can all point and laugh.

[Larb]

It's just practice and will to do it (and check out tutorials and things). Anyone can make a good map if they really want to. My early ones were horrific too! Anyway, welcome!

[Steel General]

Welcome Aboard!

I agree w/Larb, all it takes is a bit of practice I wouldn't even call some of my early attempts maps, more like cartographic abominations!

[ChicagoMay]

Welcome to the guild! As they have said above, YOU CAN DO IT! If not, you can always put in a request and hire someone!

[bradlavario]

Just get a good set of brushes and learn to diffuse clouds and you will amaze yourself.

[bardsandsages]

You are all very kind. But if I posted an example of my "artistic talent" I might burn your retinas lol

[maxsdaddy]

This fellow newb and New Jerseyian extends greeting and salutations. (wow that sounded better in my head than it looked after I typed it but what the hay) Can't find a better place to lurk, and the tute's are first rate! Criticism is gentle but honest and you can't hope for better than that. Can you post a link to your publishing website here? I'd like to see it if its allowed.

[jbgibson]

"No Talent" my eye. Everybody's got SoMe talent. Admittedly yours could be as an editor, or a plumber, or a neurophysicist :-)... me: as a cartographer i make a great software engineer.

Seriously, even non-artists, non-graphics types are among us, making nice maps. A couple of our frequent contributors are color-blind. <shrug> Ya can do 'bout anything you put your mind to. If you see amongst the tutorials a style you like, I bet a plugged nickel that you can blunder through the steps with perseverance and come up with something presentable. Doubly so if you do some such practice in public, in work-in-progress threads, soliciting tips and advice - we try to be helpful, and we don't bite :-).

Mind you, offering commissions to established Guildspeople is a perfectly acceptable behavior too :-). We can help you out either way.

[tilt]

welcome to the guild - as mentioned above - following a tutorial, preferable in public (at least after a few attempts ) will probably result in maps that you actually will be proud of having made