Coastlines of Iorden: a map commission

This post is Part 2 of a series to augment the Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost available for free download. Start with Part 1 here.

This and other map commissions are gathered in my Portfolio Directory for you to explore.

Find more guest-inspired content in my Guest Directory.

After getting the go-ahead in Part 1 of this series, I worked with TOAFN creators Zach Glass and Christian Madera to start mapping their Realms of Iorden. They provided me with a thumbnail map of Iorden they'd made some time earlier.

I magnified the 300 pixel image to sculpt their coastline and apply rough topography swatches to their regions. Then I applied some quick color to differentiate all the areas of the map, and I added some basic text.

Check out this Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost for more maps!

For working off a tiny image, I feel like I did a great job! The trouble with zooming in 1100% is that some blurry areas caused a few initial mistakes.

The two big islands in the eastern sea? Those were actually tiny ship symbols. And that marsh on the northern edge of the desert? That was a swath of mini-cacti.

To help me with the next render, Zach and Christian sent me a larger version of their old map.

With it, I innovated a cactus stamp for the desert in the north, and I tested out cacti swatches until I found one that looked decent.

I also removed the islands in the eastern sea.

The TOAFN creators needed the hilly area in the south to be a marshy waste of broken stones - very specific topography I didn't have on hand.

Fortunately, I had a marsh swatch and a broken wasteland swatch, so I tried overlaying them.

After a few tests, I came up with a broken marsh that captures the eerie spirit of the land.

I also changed some of the colder southern forests from fluffy oak trees to a hardier mix of oaks and pines. They asked for some color adjustments for the northern desert and southern ice, and they asked for the South Sea to be more rugged and broken up.

They also had a few other coastline adjustments, tweaking the areas that would become river deltas and adding a nice harbor where the town of Seahold would be.

Finally, they asked me to soften the mountain transition from the western peaks to the broken stones and hills further east. After I got all the topography edges smoothed out, I added in some smaller mountains to show how the large mountains tumble into broken rock.

That's it for this post! Up Next: The shimmering White Forest of the elves...

Want to bring your own world to life? We can map your world.
You deserve a professional map you can be proud to share.

Download Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost here, or start your adventure below.

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The Glorious Human Condition: inspiration & spark

This post is part of a series to augment the Author's Manifesto available for free download.

This and other inspirations of mine are gathered in the Spark Directory for you to explore.

Find more consciousness content in my Cosmic Directory.

I am profoundly inspired by the great humanity of the world. I love that thrill in your heart when the good guy wins. People differ in how they rise to challenges and integrate past experiences. But though the content of each personality varies widely, there is a similar structure for all personalities. I love exploring this profound diversity that arises out of a remarkable uniformity.

I want to kindle that inborn sense of glory within our human condition. To delve through the wonders of our psyche, I push my characters to their very limits, and their stories evoke the triumph of human endeavor. I want to trigger your inner grandness through my characters and their adventures, the ride of your life delivered with resilient personalities arising from the trenches.

Check out this Author's Manifesto for more of my inspirations!

I love feeling like I'm in the hands of a master storyteller. So when I write, I want my readers to sense every detail toppling into place like dominoes. The story flows into each plot twist, but every turned page holds the last thing you'd expect.

My characters endure desperate scenarios, shocking culture clashes, outrageous social structures--anything where some facet of human imperfection can be explored, understood, and redeemed in the hearts of my readers.

I want my characters to lead by example, heal old wounds, impart wisdom, and reawaken the youthful wonder dormant inside so many of us. Ultimately, I hope my Tales of the Known World saga inspires people to look for the magic in their own lives.


That's it for this post! Check out my latest inspirations for more.

Download the Author's Manifesto here, or start your adventure below.

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Sordow: a map commission

This post is Part 1 of a series to augment the Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost available for free download.

This and other map commissions are gathered in my Portfolio Directory for you to explore.

This post is also Part 1 of a series about David Glenn.

I first met David when my repeat client Stephen Everett introduced us on Facebook. In a writer's group, David shared a rough sketch of his world, and Steve suggested he collaborate with me to take his map to the next level. I gave David my email address and he sought me out.

We discussed his northern isles, then called Sodow, a world still taking form. I used maps to develop the Known World, so I knew the mapping process would provide a fantastic world-building tool for David. I also remembered how daunted I felt about mapping my world before knowing where all the pieces fit.

Check out this Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost for more maps!

We decided that Sordow would be a long-term project, and that instead of my usual commission process, we'd take things an hour at a time.

This took the pressure off David to know all the details of his world at once, and it allowed him to access the phenomenal worldbuilding tool that is map-making.

Using his rough sketch, I started working on the initial render of Sodow's coastline to help him envision the finished map.

Once he felt confident in the project, David paid for his initial render and we proceeded.

Here's what he had to say about the finished map:

Wow, it looks wonderful. Thank you so much.

The woods and rivers are great.

I like the text.

In the end the geography has that feel of the British Isles.

Nice job. I like this a lot.

– David Glenn, fantasy writer

That's it for this post! Up Next: Coastlines, nations, and rivers... Soon.

Want to bring your own world to life? We can map your world.
You deserve a professional map you can be proud to share.

Download Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost here, or start your adventure below.

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Author Triumphant: inspiration & spark

This post is Part 5 of a series to augment the Author's Manifesto available for free download. Start with Part 1 here.

This and other inspirations of mine are gathered in the Spark Directory for you to explore.

Find more map-making content in my Cartography Directory.

In Part 1 of this series, I began writing my first stories. And though I'd already decided to re-draft and edit my first novel, maintaining my devotion proved difficult as life twisted and turned. Dissatisfied with my day job and life in general, I found it hard to leverage my free time into writing time.

Once again, I fell out of the habit of writing. Then I discovered Tara Swiger, who worked to help creative business owners find direction, motivation, and organization. Her idea of making a map to achieve business goals resonated with me, but since I wasn't a business owner, we passed like ships in the night. A few months later, I'd turned my knitting and rug-making hobbies into an Etsy storefront, and I joined the ranks of Tara's Starship group under the guise of a craft-business startup.

Amidst the clarity and support of this group, I decided that if I launched a creative business, it had to be based on writing stories. The Starship group supported this change of direction, and over the next year I poured myself into my creative work. I documented my writing process, honed it through trial and error, and established a weekly writing schedule that helped me meet my writing goals.

Check out this Author's Manifesto for more of my inspirations!

I also revisited some fantasy cartography tutorials I'd encountered during my gaming days, and I remade my map of the Known World. I loved the map-making process so much, I decided to make a map for each of the novel's four parts. With each map, my delight grew, and I adopted map-making as part of my writing process. A map for each of the book's fourteen chapters naturally followed.

By the time I'd finished the manuscript, the self-publishing arena had advanced far from the stigmatized vanity press from which it started. Quality works were being self-published, grabbing the public's attention, and landing post-publication deals. Rather than tacking another year onto my release date, I published the finished manuscript and maps in a single frenzied week. Then I slammed headlong into a long-avoided setback: marketing.

While I figured out how best to reach my audience of fantasy fans, gamers, and lovers of tropes the world over, I began work on the second book in my series. The Tales of the Known World saga spans centuries, continents, and at least eight impending novels, all of which cannot be written fast enough.


That's it for this series! Check out my latest inspirations for more.

download the Author's Manifesto here, or start your adventure below.

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Tips for Writing Fiction: a workshop directory

This post is part of a series to augment the Tips for Writing Fiction available for free download.

This and other writing workshops are gathered in my Workshops Directory for you to explore.

Find more content navigation in my Resource Directory.

Hello, there! Thanks for your interest in my writing tips. My name is D.N.Frost, and I'm a fantasy author, editor, and linguist. Through the course of planning, writing, and publishing my Tales of the Known World saga, I learned a lot about the work it takes to produce a great manuscript.

So why do many good storytellers never become authors? I discovered that writing is really a composite of two distinct skills: adept storycraft, and prowess as a wordsmith. To take your writing to the next level, please enjoy this collection of short tips and workshops from TotKW Books.

Download your workshop guide Tips for Writing Fiction here.

These are tips for improving specific aspects of your writing. All too often, writers approach their writing as a single dragon to be harnessed, but you can hone each skill in your repertoire individually. By improving one skill at a time, you take actionable steps toward a better manuscript, and you improve your writing overall.

This resource directory also links to a number of writing workshops and longer blog posts, so you can delve deep into your favorite writing tips. I'm proud to offer you this compilation of workshops and insights into great writing, and I hope you use this resource to enhance your own craft.


That's it for this post! Check out the latest writing workshops for more.

Download Tips for Writing Fiction here, or start your adventure below.

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T'Chak of Sheridan's World: a map commission

This post is Part 1 of a series to augment the Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost available for free download.

This and other map commissions are gathered in my Portfolio Directory for you to explore.

This post is also Part 3 of a series about Stephen Everett. Start with Part 1 here.

I first connected with Steve in Part 1 of this guest series, when we collaborated on his map of Babylon and Corinth for Sheridan's World. After finishing a second map for Minbari of Sheridan's World, Steve mentioned having a southern continent to work on next.

We chatted about it some, and he sent me a sketch and some data about the southern continent, tentatively dubbed TeChak. Unfortunately, he sent me the sketch right as I was planning to move to a new city, so we had to shelve the project for a few weeks until I could devote the attention his map deserved.

Check out this Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost for more maps!

I finished moving and contacted Steve, ready to begin our third collaboration.

But it turned out he was too busy at the time to start on the project, so we shelved it again.

Steve let me know a basic timeframe in which he thought he'd be ready, and I blocked it out on my calendar to make sure I'd be ready too.

In the meantime, I started work on his initial render using the data he'd already sent me, and I sent it off for him to percolate on in the interim.

Here's what he had to say about the finished map:

Exceptional job, IT LOOKS AWESOME!

Thanks for all the great work. Everything worked out fantastic.

You had to figure out different techniques to get the result we both wanted.

It makes the continents take on a life of their own.

It looks awesome, you are incredible. I love your place name Bay of Seals.

Great job on the maps. I need to flip a coin as to which I like more.

Here's $10,000 imaginary dollars (CDN).

Such a work of art, time, and patience. Perfection!

– Stephen Everett, science-fiction writer

That's it for this post! Up Next: Plotting the coordinates and coastlines... Soon.

Want to bring your own world to life? We can map your world.
You deserve a professional map you can be proud to share.

Download Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost here, or start your adventure below.

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Portent II of Broken: a riddle in rhyme

In the novel Broken, there are 24 portents fortelling the events of the unfolding saga.

Start with Portent I here.

These and other riddles in rhyme are gathered in the Portents Directory for you to explore.

Enjoy!

The bitter crown rejects in spite
Unwitting ward of legend spent
And turns to last surviving knight
Yet novice youth cannot relent
Nor cast his fate from timeless light
Driven to reign and reinvent
The self behind the fight

Awash in blood of early sin
Against a greatness long extolled
The mystics claim he cannot win
Thus caught in doubt's repentant hold
The dragon mage with silent kin
Broken by day and verdict cold
Without begins within

While mentor power gained denies
His land and life cannot protect
Yet master frees by own demise
Where hope and hatred intersect
Unleashed with death before his eyes
Chaos and blood as men defect
Dispatches low disguise.


Can you decode the future Tales of the Known World?

Share your interpretation!
Comment below with your take on this portent.

This portent begins Part 2 of Broken, which is titled "By Day" and deals with Jorn. His character is tainted by betrayal, but Book 2 explores the rigors of his redemption.

The portent's 21 lines mirror Jorn's 21 scenes. How do you think the dragon mage is broken by day?

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Download the Prophesy Appendix:

The merfolk culture is built on the prophetic Gift. Nearly all men produce a portent every twenty days, and they devote their lives to interpretation. For more about the role and inner workings of prophesy, check out the Prophesy Appendix above.

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Alongside every prophesy is an attribution block. This block contains a byline giving the name of the person who said the prophesy, and a dateline giving the day the prophesy was first said. Here is the attribution for this portent:

Gwnle Nnohvas Dynde V
4:1:2:6/8, 2:3:2 IX
V 3:2:2:7/5, III:IX

The portent attributed here has been interpreted, and it references multiple events that culminate on an exact date. An additional verified dateline has been added to the attribution, noting the final date when the portent comes to pass.


That's it for this post! Up Next: By night, the golem dead arises...

For the Prophesy Appendix, enter your email above.

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Life is an adventure.
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