How To Find A Children’s Book Illustrator – A Brief Guide!
Writing a children’s book is only half the journey, the other half is finding the perfect illustrator to make it shine!
But the question is where and how to find a children’s book illustrator?
The book illustrators are important in crafting an engaging illustration which grabs the reader’s attention, as it is a fact that visuals are more appealing to both adults and children than text. Why?
Because these illustrations help us to remember things more clearly.
Robert E. Horn from Stanford University explained this link more clearly, he said:
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“When words and visual elements are linked, we come up with something new and increase our common intelligence because visual language has the ability to increase ‘human bandwidth'”. |
We hope by now you know how the visuals and human capability to grasp the concept even more clearly with this above mentioned statement.
If you want to know more in details about these illustrations then these Whimsitoons guide will help you with:
- How to find a children’s book illustrator
- What to look for in an illustrator
- Where to find an illustrator
- Illustration pricing
- How they help in making your story come alive with beautiful illustrations.
So be all ears till the end of this blog so you don’t miss out on any important info.
Who Are Children’s Book Illustrators?
Children’s book illustrators are artists that specialize in drawing illustrations that appeal to young readers.
They bring people, situations, and emotions to life, making each page fascinating and understandable to children.
A skilled children’s book illustrator understands not only the artistic side of image creation, but also young readers’ developmental needs and imaginations.
List Down Your Preferences Before You Find A Children’s Book Illustrator
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What style do you want:
It is essential to choose the theme you want for your children’s book illustration (e.g., whimsical, realistic, cartoonish).
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What are you main requirements:
Make a list of your main requirements before you start looking for a children’s book illustrator. such as:
- Number of illustrations: The total number of illustrations you need for your book.
- Format: Print or digital format, and dimensions.
- Color or Black-and-White: Decide if you want colorful images or a monochrome look.
- Specific scenes or characters: Outline any particular scenes, poses, or character features to guide the illustrator.
This will help you find the right person, and you won’t be able to blame him later if he can’t do what you want.
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What’s your budget:
The illustration pricing varies based on the illustrator’s experience.
So, before hiring an illustrator, it is important to settle on a budget.
How to find a children’s book illustrator: Easy Tips
Below we’ve compiled a list of a few tips of how to find a children’s book illustrator.
These tips will help with your search.
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Look for illustrator portfolios:
Start with reviewing the illustrator’s portfolios to see if their work matches with your requirement.
By reviewing the past work of an illustrator you’ll be able to get an idea on their work quality.
A lot of illustrators show off their work on social media sites in a hope to get noticed and get a project.
You can find them on:
You’ll find many illustrators here who are available for work.
You can talk to them about your ideas and pay for a one-page trial illustration to get a better idea of how they do things.
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Freelance platforms
Freelance sites like Upwork and Fiverr can also help you find children’s book illustrators.
On these sites, a lot of artists are selling their services. You can talk to them and get quotes on illustrations for your children’s books.
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Hire book illustration company
If you’re not sure how to find illustrators, the best thing to do is hire book illustration company
Why?
Because an illustration company has organized ways to do things and they have many teams of illustrators with different expertise to choose from.
Opting for these companies will be a nice and less-hectic option since you’ll be able to get different options under one roof.
How Much Does It Cost To Hire An Illustrator For A Children’s Book
The cost of hiring an illustrator can depend on their experience, style, and the complexity of the project.
It also depends on how much do illustrators charge per image.
But here’s a general breakdown of rates:
- Amateur or Beginner Illustrator: $25 – $100 per image
- Intermediate or Semi-Professional Illustrator: $100 – $300 per image
- Professional or Experienced Illustrator: $300 – $800 per image
- High-Profile or Renowned Illustrator: $800 – $2,000+ per image
For a 24-page children’s book with 20-25 illustrations, here’s a rough estimate of total costs:
- Beginners: $500 – $2,500
- Intermediate: $2,500 – $7,500
- Professional: $7,500 – $20,000
Key Factors That Influence The Illustration Pricing
The cost of an illustration depends on a number of things. We’ll list some of them below so you know what to expect when.
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Illustration Style:
If you want more detailed or unique styles of illustration such as: comics, lines, caricature, cartoon, etc. Then eventually it will cost you more.
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Color vs. Black-and-White:
Color illustrations usually cost more due to the additional time and materials. Whereas monochrome style book illustrations cost less.
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Size and Format:
The larger and high-resolution images you want, the higher you have to pay for it.
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Revisions and Changes
The illustrators charge extra for revisions, so as many changes and revisions you may need, make your mind to pay more for it..
Wrapping It Up!
Bringing your children’s book to life with captivating illustrations is one of the most exciting stages in the publishing process.
And all of this depends on hiring the right illustrator that can make a world of difference to your children’s book.
Above we have mentioned all the important info which you need to know about how to find a children’s book illustrator.
We hope that our guide may help you out in finding the perfect illustrator for your children’s book!
FAQs
Q 1: Why is it important to hire a specialized childrenu2019s book illustrator?
Children's book illustrators are skilled at producing images that young readers will find appealing. They know how to write about feelings, people, and places in a way that kids can relate and enjoy.
Q 2: Where can I find children's book illustrators?
You can find artists on Upwork, Fiverr, and social media sites like Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn. You can also work with teams of expert illustrators by hiring book illustration companies.
Q 3: How much does it typically cost to hire a children's book illustrator?
Prices can be anywhere from $25 to $100 per image for new artists to $800 to $2,000 or more per image for well-known illustrators. The whole price of a 24-page book can be anywhere from $500 to more than $20,000.rn
Q 4: What factors affect the cost of children's book illustrations?
The illustration style, size, format, resolution of the images, and any required modifications or alterations are some of the aspects that affect cost.