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Category:#matsprep
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Get the last part of your FREE assignment!

Lilla here. Oh, man, you are a whole bunch of brilliant artists! You delight me with your imagination, sensitivity, and talent. I’ve loved seeing all the art you’ve created over the past couple of weeks for this #MATSprep. I love to teach my intensive live courses, like Illustrating Children’s Books, for exactly that reason: it’s amazing to see how the work blossoms over the five jam-packed weeks. The passion and achievement of our students are awe-inspiring. I hope that you’ve enjoyed taking part in this free #MATSprep as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it and seeing all your beautiful art. It gives you a taste of my teaching style, to see if it’s a good fit, and it’s also a great way to warm up and get ready for Illustrating Children’s Books, which starts THIS MONDAY, July 7th. Don’t forget, this course won’t run again until 2026 – don’t miss


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3 art tips from an art agent to boost your children’s book illustration (+ #MATSprep Part 4)

Lilla here. Today we’re going to create magic together! I’m going to teach you three great tricks to create depth (distance) in your artwork, and explain why you might want to do so. It’ll help give your work a fresh, vibrant edge and be another tool in your ever-growing toolkit. I’ve created this series of FREE assignments to help you get ready for my LIVE online course, Illustrating Children’s Books, which starts this Monday, July 7th! There are still a few places available, so if you’d like to spend five weeks with me and my co-teacher, brilliant children’s book art director and author, Zoë Tucker, learning everything there is to know about children’s picture book illustration, then book your spot now! Over the last week, we’ve created a new character and explored fantastic new worlds – if you missed out then head over to the Make Art That Sells blog


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How to give your picture book illustrations more visual impact

Lilla here. Today I’m going to make you flip out, literally. Over the past week or so, I’ve been sharing some FREE assignments that I created for you to get ready for my online course, Illustrating Children’s Books. I hope you’ll join us: class starts Monday, July 7th, so book your spot now! Today I’m going to help you make some magic that will give your picture book illustrations more visual impact. Whether it’s dreamy, moody, whimsical or witty, digging deep into a manuscript and creating all those little details is one of the most rewarding parts of children’s book illustration. Think about your audience. Children are so in touch with their imaginations: they are going to love the imaginative worlds that you create. In Illustrating Children’s Books, we spend a whole week on creating a dreamy full page spread for your picture book portfolio. Art by Make Art That


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FREE assignment: How to create a setting for a picture book (part 2)

Illustrating Children’s Books 2025 starts in just over a week, on Monday, July 7th! To help you get ready for class and warm up your creative muscles, we’re sharing a series of five FREE assignments from course co-teacher and renowned art agent, Lilla Rogers: read on for Part 2! What’s Illustrating Children’s Books? It’s an incredible five-week LIVE online course that will teach you everything you need to know to launch or boost your children’s picture book illustration career. This will be the twelfth time that your teachers, art agent and Make Art That Sells founder, Lilla Rogers, and acclaimed children’s book art director and author, Zoë Tucker, have run this course – and each time, it just gets better and better! Art by Make Art That Sells student Pamela Goodman for Illustrating Children’s Books. You’ll create a pitch presentation containing everything an art director needs to see, including a


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Open now for your FREE children’s book illustration assignment!

Our student-favorite LIVE online course, Illustrating Children’s Books, starts in just over a week, on Monday, July 7th and there’s still time to sign up! Why is this course, which is now running for the twelfth time, so popular? Why do our students take it again and again? Because it’s incredibly rigorous but also playful and fun – and it really works. Tons of our students have gone on to get picture book illustration deals, land agents, and more after taking this course (you can read some of their stories here). Plus it’s led by industry experts. Your teachers, former top art agent Lilla Rogers and renowned children’s book art director and author Zoë Tucker, will teach you everything you need to know about the wonderful world of children’s book illustration, in an accessible, step by step way that will break everything down and help you bring your A-game to


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The plates have eyes Get Part 2 of your FREE assignment!

Lilla here. Today I’m sharing Part 2 of the FREE #MATSprep illustration assignment I created for you to get you warmed up for Bootcamp Special: Character Play. Today you’re going to find out exactly how easy it is to create winning characters for some of the hottest art markets right now. Children’s books and toys and games are both huge markets for illustrators – but you could also license your characters for products like gift, stationery, partyware, apparel, fabric, greeting cards and more. (One of our students recently landed a gig illustrating children’s food packaging after taking Bootcamp Special: Character Play – read more here.) What’s more, this course really is for all levels – and it’s just £99 (2approx. $126)! Win a free place in class! First I need to remind you to join me and my brilliant Bootcamp Special teachers, Zoë and Riley, in a FREE live Zoom


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FREE warm-up exercise on creating a character

Lilla here. Today I’m sharing the first part of a FREE two-part #MATSprep illustration assignment I’ve created for you to get you warmed up and ready for Bootcamp Special: Character Play, which starts in just a few weeks, on Monday, April 7th! I can’t wait for Zoë, Riley and I to show you how easy it can be to create winning characters that you can license for children’s books, toys, games and more. Q: Hold up. What’s Bootcamp Special: Character Play? A: Bootcamp Special: Character Play is a playful, relaxed course that’s designed to boost your creativity and give you more income streams for your art, so you can make more money doing what you love. It focuses on two fabulous art markets – children’s picture books and toys and games – and is taught by two top experts. Art by Make Art That Sells student Valerie Hamill for Bootcamp


When you make art you are making peace and hope

Make art + live your best life

It feels like there’s a lot going on at the moment, right? Some of us may be struggling to stay positive when it feels like we’re constantly being bombarded with bad news and negativity. We reached out to art agent and wise fairy artmother Lilla Rogers to ask her advice on how to stay positive when it feels like there’s nothing but doom and gloom ahead, and this is what she told us. Lilla told us: “I’ve lived through many tough times, and I can tell you this: focus on what you can control, which is your art and your art career. It can be very empowering to give yourself permission to focus on something positive that you can affect. I find that my art and the courses that I teach through Make Art That Sells, are a wonderful focus that brings joy and is uplifting, and my students tell


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FREE #MATSprep Color Quest assignment inside

Lilla here. I can’t wait for my brand new course, Color Quest, which starts in just a few days, on Monday, February 3rd. I’m excited to see what you do with the assignments I’ve written for you and what they do to the way you use color – I know that my use of color has evolved and grown just from writing the course and trying it out for you, and I think it’s going to have some astonishing effects on the art that you create. Lilla here! I can’t wait for you to join me in my brand new Color Quest course, which starts THIS MONDAY, February 3rd. P.S. Can you tell I love hot pink and chartreuse? Today I’m sharing a #MATSprep warm up exercise that I’ve created for you to help you get ready for class. Your Assignment Here’s your assignment to get you thinking about color,


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FREE sneak peek of Lilla’s NEW color course: Your Free assignment inside

Get your FREE sneak peek of Lilla’s brand new color exploration and discovery course, Color Quest! Lilla’s brand NEW course, Color Quest, starts in less than two weeks, on Monday, February 3rd, and we’re so excited! It’s going to transform your art and create a wave of beautiful artwork that we just can’t wait to see. Up your color game, grow your skills, and make your art even more gorgeous in Lilla’s brand NEW Color Quest course, which starts Monday, February 3rd. Don’t miss it – sign up here. Color is one of the first ways that we respond to a piece of art, and it has a huge impact on the mood and tone of a piece. Plus even experienced artists can get stuck in a rut of using the same colors over and over again. Lilla’s unique, innovative course will change all that and help you amp up