Simple Acts and Consistent Repetition
The Power of Simplicity in Three Book Maps
Achieving simplicity is no simple act.
No matter the task, striving for a simple solution can be laborious. Whether you are trying to produce a minimum viable product for a client or a streamlined workflow for your team at the office, “KISS” often is easier said than done.
Yet the goal of keeping it simple is something we all strive for in our daily lives. Simple routines, simple instructions, simple acts. There is a reason you are not likely to hear a rational person say that they want more complication in their life. Life provides enough of that by default.
Jean-Georges Vongerichten showed me the value in taking away, taking things off of a plate. He always talked about two, three, four elements on a plate. That's it. The more you put on the plate, the easier it is to hide. The more you take away, there's nowhere to hide—it has to be good.
— Chef Wylie Dufresne on the value of simplicity (via James Clear)
Simple is not to be confused with easy nor with small. Waking up early to read, write, exercise, meditate, or fix a healthy breakfast is a small act on its own. Perhaps it is easily done once or twice a week, even. Having the discipline to do these small acts every single day, though, is challenging.
Therein lies the value of simplicity. Simple acts themselves are, more often than not, easily repeatable. Easily repeatable lends itself to consistency. Consistently doing anything compounds, with the formula being:
Simple acts + Consistent repetition = Compound gains in health, wellness, relationships, knowledge, wealth, etc.
So simplicity it is, and there is beauty in simplicity. That beauty often is evident in one particular medium of cartography: The book map.
Today, a simple letter. Here are three recent book maps from three different cartographers for your consideration.
Mike Hall
Mike writes:
Here's something a little different from me! ✍️🏻 Earlier this year I was commissioned by @HarperCollins to design this map for the new #fantasy novel 'Sir Hereward and Mister Fitz' by @GarthNix, published today 📚
Daniel Huffman
Daniel writes:
While I make a lot of small monochrome pieces for books, I usually have access to all the shades of grey to help me get the job done. Not so this time; the client asked me to reproduce older map styles that utilizied only black linework. It was a challenge, but a fun one.
Hans van der Maarel
Hans writes:
Map I did for @JCDuncanauthor’s “Fire of the Fallen”, always a great feeling to see my work in print! Plus I really enjoy reading this series, highly recommended!
