Really interesting issue Ravs. I also am no geologist and no matter how hard I try my world maps are simply not going to be even remotely accurate when it comes to real world factors. On the other hand we do need real world concepts to stimulate us. When you read a good fantasy novel you are awe inspired by the creativity of the land that it described, and yet if you really unpack what is going on in our imaginations, whe are using real world sensory experience to decode what we are reading. Without knowledge of how a real river flows, we are unable to appreciate the beauty of the fantasy river that is being described. In my view it is the points of contact in our own experience that give the fantasy experience its richness and depth.

I think the same thing applies to fantasy cartography. If the map is just too bizarre from the "realism" point of view, it doesn't resonate strongly enough and we find it more difficult to buy into it. So a level of "realsim" is, in my humble opinion, essential for a good fantasy map.

Torq