The latest Island Writers assignment topic, Maps, may seem limiting at first. OK, we could write a story about someone who discovers an ancient pirate map, and goes off voyaging to seek the treasure. Although it’s fair to say that this scenario might not have the same freshness today as when Robert Louis Stephenson wrote Treasure Island in the 1880s, there may be a few twists left if we use our imaginations.
We’re not restricted to a particular period in history, for a start. Our story could be set in the Stone Age with a map drawn in the sand, or during Medieval times, the Victorian era, World War II, the 1970s, the present day, or even the future, with space explorers going beyond the mapped area of a planet into uncharted territory.
And the map doesn’t need to lead to treasure. The map might be to give directions for some other reason, be used for town planning, or be part of an orienteering exercise for soldiers or girl guides. Maybe it’s a team-building activity for an unwilling group of office colleagues, or a TV game show.
Examining an area more closely on a street-map, or comparing a historical map with a more recent one, might reveal a secret building or local feature such as a cave or old water-tower. Or the information shown might reveal a hitherto-unsuspected problem which could lead to a story for your characters.
Our map could be something different from the pirates’ treasure-chart or a standard Ordnance Survey map. It might show tunnels, or ley-lines, or rock strata, or the journeys of religious believers. Or perhaps it just shows places with funny names such as Fatt Bottom or Bald Knob.
If all else fails, for inspiration, try Googling, “Interesting Map Facts.” If you found geography lessons boring at school , you might not think there are any interesting facts about maps – but there certainly are!
NEXT ISLAND WRITERS MEETING:
Tuesday 19 October 2021 – for more details, use the Contact page.