Licensing
You paid for the map, so the map is yours. That is very nearly the whole page, but here it is written out in case you or your publisher want it on paper.
What you can do
- Put it in your book. Any format, any print run, any number of editions, anywhere.
- Put it on the cover.
- Use it to sell the book. Your site, social posts, newsletters, ads, launch graphics.
- Print it, frame it, put it on a mug or a t-shirt, sell those if you want to.
- Keep using it forever. No expiry, no royalties, no ongoing fees, nothing to renew.
What you can’t
- Resell or relicense the map on its own as stock art, a template, or an asset pack.
- Claim you drew it.
- Use it to train a generative AI model.
No credit line required
You don’t have to credit me anywhere. I’d be glad if you did, because a line on the copyright page is how a lot of authors find a cartographer. It’s a favor, not a condition.
Who owns what
Your world is yours. The place names, the geography, the lore. None of that becomes mine because I drew it. What you get is a permanent, exclusive right to use the finished map however you like.
I keep the right to show the map in my portfolio and say that I made it. If your book isn’t announced yet, tell me and it stays off the site until you say otherwise.
About the software
Every map is composed by hand in Inkarnate, coastline by coastline, range by range. No generative AI, ever. No presets, no reused templates.
I hold the commercial license that covers client work, and your map stays private on the platform. To answer the question that goes around author groups: no, Inkarnate does not own your map, and you are not licensing it from them. The rights above are the rights you have.
If anything here is unclear, or your publisher needs different wording, ask me at Mattpivots@gmail.com and I’ll put it in writing.
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