I like what you have so far but I think the central area of the dark forest is having an unintended affect. Right now with how dark that central region is it looks more like a depression or an area in an unexplainable shadow. You might want to make it as light as the areas around it, more or less, but close and try playing with saturation. With the scale of the map showing a forest might not be the best idea.

As for your questions, try figuring out where your rivers are after that settelments and the rest will come more naturally.