r/mapmaking • u/pablojuega • 11h ago

Discussion Why...

Today i want to ask... Why... Why do we find it SO fascinating to create worlds, to craft stories and maps... why?

I’ve been at it since I was TWELVE years old... twelve... TWELVE YEARS! Making maps and creating fantasy, imaginary worlds... i was to little and making horrible maps and super cliche stories...

And today, with 39yo my wife doesn’t understand why I draw maps... why I come up with stories and tell her about worlds that don’t exist... and i discuss with my friends about things that never happened.

Why do you think this happens?... Dot tell me because we like it... yes of course we like it... but WHY...

Have a good week! ♥

16 Upvotes

84% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

3

u/ZookeepergameDry2158 11h ago

I wonder that too! It just came out of no where. If I really sat with it, I could probably pin point it!

2

u/Mirihim 10h ago

I've become increasingly convinced of the belief that there doesn't necessarily have to be a deeper reason. Why do we enjoy anything? If I was to try and reduce it to its most base level, all I can really say is it just fascinates my brain.

I would hazard a guess that there probably is some underlying reason as to why we enjoy the things we do but I'm not sure we yet have a complete psychological understanding.

Though that isnt really engaging with your question, so in attempt to answer; I've just always had some level of obsession with small representations or abstractions of "big" things. Terrariums, model ships, tabletop minis, maps, etc. It scratches an itch in my brain that I can't get to with any other outlet, so it's just what I have to do.

Throughout my life, the exact subject of my interest has changed. I've recently become more interested in story, and how the stories we tell help us explore and explain our world and condition - but whatever form it takes, I'm always making imagining little stories and worlds.

2

u/Logen_Nein 10h ago

I've literally been doing it for 40 years now. And I do it because it's fun.

1

u/JoergJoerginson 11h ago

For me it’s a little bit of a god complex and proving to myself how smart I am by crafting intricate little details. Mostly it’s just a creative outlet though.

1

u/Jorji-the-Trainer 10h ago

For me, I really like history and my brain can't stop thinking about things, so i suppose I really enjoy creating history for worlds.

1

u/ecovani 9h ago

I just think the wonders of stories inspired me so much that I thought about something was my own, and 15 years later I still find myself building story. Starting from Fantasy, I recently found myself making a story about the American West

1

u/Nikhil_3830 7h ago

Well for me it comes down to the desire to create something. I have a urge to create. And that is because our own world feels a bit lacking i dont know what it is but still I feel like.

1

u/BilbosBagEnd 4h ago

The main reason for me is that the real world has lost it's whimsy and I desperately try to get a fraction of that feeling back.

1

u/Ghezo_Benghe_Man35 4h ago

Cause brain gets tired of reality so you stimulate it with made up stuff

1

u/FlowerNymph234 3h ago

For me, it's to escape ours

0

u/Prince-Fortinbras 7h ago

I have always loved a good story, and quickly came to love telling good stories. I’ve been writing novels since I was 20-21, finally actually finishing & publishing one in 2015.

I’m retiring in December, and I have 22 novels to write in one fantasy world of my creation, and several others on other genres. I am very much looking forward to it.