Hi! I'm Alex and I'm completely new to Cartography. I've always had an interest in maps and very often I've scribbled down a few of my own. Recently however, I decided I'd like to take my interest a little further.

I have to say, I'm absolutely amazed by the maps I've seen here so far. Evidently, there are some very skilled cartographers on this site.

My question is: Where should I start? I've got dozens of pen-drawn maps around the house but I'd really like to pick up a few skills and make my maps a bit better. My dream would be one day, to create a map like the ones on the front page of this site.

What parts of maps would you suggest to practice? What software would you recommend? etc, etc.

Thanks very much! I'm loving it here so far.