Labs / Chapter 2
Build a reusable prompt packet from a casual request by applying CRAFT, separating prompt roles, and treating prompt revisions as design artifacts.
Chapter 2 reframes prompting as a professional design literacy. A prompt is not merely a message to an LLM; in prompt cartography, it becomes a design specification, a record of intent, and a reusable artifact that others can critique.
Choose one map idea you can use throughout the lab. Professional self-learners should choose a real work-adjacent topic. Students may choose a campus, city, environmental, public health, transportation, or social issue.
Start with the kind of prompt Chapter 2 warns us not to trust for professional work.
Make a web map about [YOUR MAP IDEA].
Save the response. Then annotate it with these labels:
Use the LLM as a study partner before using it as a production assistant. This reinforces the chapter’s language while revealing what the model understands generically.
I am studying Chapter 2 of Prompt Cartography, especially the distinction between casual prompting and directive prompting. Explain the difference in the context of designing an interactive web map. Then give me three signs that my prompt is too casual for professional cartographic work.
Compare the answer to the chapter. Mark anything that feels useful, incomplete, or too generic.
Use CRAFT as a pre-design checklist for your map idea.
| CRAFT Element | Your Draft | Question to Answer |
|---|---|---|
| Context | Example: Map for neighborhood comparison | What situation, place, data domain, or design problem does this prompt assume? |
| Role | Example: Map for neighborhood comparison | What kind of reasoning should the LLM perform? |
Starter examples only; expand this in your own notes or submission document.
Transform the CRAFT brief into a directive prompt. This prompt should ask for a specific design artifact.
Context: I am planning an interactive web map about [MAP IDEA] in [PLACE OR SCOPE]. The map should help [AUDIENCE] [DECISION, INSIGHT, OR ACTION]. Role: Act as a cartographic design advisor who prioritizes communication, usability, accessibility, and ethical restraint. Task: Create a map concept brief that includes: 1. communicative purpose 2. intended audience 3. recommended map type and why 4. 3-5 possible data layers, with cautions about over-inclusion 5. interaction ideas that support understanding rather than novelty 6. likely risks, limitations, or misleading interpretations 7. one thing users should remember after using the map Format: Use a concise table followed by a 150-word design rationale. Tone: Professional, careful, and plain-language. Do not write code.
Run the prompt. Save the response as Version 1.
Chapter 2 distinguishes prompt types by role. Simulate that structure in an ordinary free LLM chat.
For this conversation, behave as a careful prompt cartography assistant. Prioritize purpose, audience, accessibility, uncertainty, and ethical interpretation. If my prompt is vague, identify the missing information before giving recommendations.
Critique the map concept you just produced against my stated purpose, audience, and CRAFT fields. Identify: - 2 places where the output follows the prompt well - 2 places where it drifts or adds assumptions - 2 revisions I should make to the prompt itself - 1 risk that remains my responsibility as the cartographer
Create a version log. This is what makes prompting professional rather than disposable.
| Version | What Changed? | Why? | What Improved? | What Still Failed? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| v0 Casual | Example: Short note | Example: Keeps the choice defensible | Example: Short note | Example: Short note |
| v1 Directive | Example: Short note | Example: Keeps the choice defensible | Example: Short note | Example: Short note |
| v2 Critiqued | Example: Short note | Example: Keeps the choice defensible | Example: Short note | Example: Short note |
Starter examples only; expand this in your own notes or submission document.
Can you tell Ian thinks this is really, really important yet? Good. Keep going.
Do the tiny-but-mighty judgment check. If these answers are fuzzy, revise the map idea before polishing the prompt.
For use with Prompt Cartography: Interactive Web Map Design with LLMs, CRC Press. www.promptcartography.com
Prompt Cartography