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Get Part 1 of your FREE picture book illustration assignment!

Get Part 1 of your FREE picture book illustration assignment

Lilla here! Today I’m going to share the first part of my FREE #MATSprep for my online course, Illustrating Children’s Books.

This is the eleventh time we’ve run this hugely popular course, with dozens of students taking it two or even more times – it’s a great course to repeat even if you’ve done it before, because you get brand new texts every time and you’ll build a really powerful portfolio to help you get representation and jobs. Find out what the fuss is about – sign up here.

ICB testimonial 2023 6

What’s a #MATSprep? It’s a FREE warm up exercise to get you ready for class, and it’s open to everyone, whether you’re signed up for class or not. Illustrating Children’s Books 2024 starts in just a few weeks, on Monday, May 20th, so over the next few newsletters I’ll be sharing all three parts of this FREE assignment I wrote especially for class.

It’ll help you prepare for class, you’ll learn some useful tips about children’s book illustration, and it’s also a great way to find out a little bit more about me and my unique teaching style if you’re new to Make Art That Sells.

Your Mini Assignment

Part 1 of your FREE picture book illustration assignment: Your character

One of the most enjoyable parts of illustrating a children’s book, and one of the reasons that artists find it so rewarding, is digging deep and creating your own unique main character that readers will fall in love with. This prep will help you tune in to your own quirky self to create your own character, and it should be a lot of fun too.

FREE picture book illustration assignment

Photo: Lilla Rogers

Here’s the first part of your FREE #MATSprep! In the photo above, I’ve gathered up some of my oddities from my collections to get you started. Be sure to blow it up on your laptop or iPad so you can see all the details clearly. Which one do you feel most drawn to? Does one jump out at you? Does one seem easy to draw? Do any of them spark memories or ideas for you?

Your mini assignment is to pick one of the characters in the photo and draw them in any medium and any style you like. As you are drawing, make up a little story in your head about them. This will make your drawing have more interest, even if only you know the answers to these questions. Pretend you’re a kid playing with the item. What story will you make up? This backstory will add richness to your work.

Here are some things you can think about:

  • What is your character called?
  • Do they have a friend? Is it human, an animal, or a thing?
  • Where do they live?
  • What are they feeling right now?

RHAIDA EL TOUNY ICB10 EMOTIONS scaled

Character sheet by Make Art That Sells student Rhaida El Touny for Illustrating Children’s Books. You’ll learn everything you need to show in your portfolio to catch an art director’s eye. Book here.

Tips from art agent Lilla:

  • Your character should be around 5 years old. This is going to help you get that children’s book illustration gig because it’s what art directors look for in your portfolio. Don’t know what a 5-year-old looks like? Google 5-year-old child. Generally, the eyes are large on the face and the head is large compared to the body. This is true for a human or an animal or object.
  • If you’re drawing one of the animals, it should still have a feeling of being a child. The age doesn’t have to be obvious, but for example, don’t give it a beard and mustache! (Note: If you draw the giraffe, it doesn’t have to be a bowl. Oh and the little green character is an alien, but the shadow makes it look a little like it has two eyes on top of its head, like a frog – you can use that too if you like.)
  • The eyes of the character are really important to the art director that will hire you to do the book, so be sure we can easily see them, and that they are symmetrical.
  • Is your character likeable, appealing?

PAMELA GOODMAN ICB10 EMOTIONS

Character sheet for Illustrating Children’s Books by Pamela Goodman. Learn how to create winning characters from a top art agent and a children’s book art director and author.

When you’ve created your character, post to social media with the tag #MATSprep and tag @makeartthatsells so that I can see it. I can’t wait to see what you do! Obsessing over my students’ art is one of the best things about my job.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the first part of your assignment! You’ll learn tons more about creating characters in class, including:

  • How to illustrate emotions through facial expressions, including the most important expressions that you need to know
  • What style should you use for drawing characters?
  • How to make a character expressive, and the importance of eyes
  • How to keep characters consistent across scenes and poses

… and lots more! Check it out here.

Over the next two weeks, I’ll give you two more assignments to add to and develop your character, so be sure to keep an eye on our newsletter/blog and Instagram account. For today, have fun drawing your character!

WEEKLY ROUND UP

Lots of love

Lilla signature copy 3 Make Art That Sells Get Part 1 of your FREE picture book illustration assignment!

P.S. Don’t forget there’s still time to sign up for The Children’s Book bundle and save a tasty 20% off three of Lilla’s powerful children’s book courses! Read more here.

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#matsprep, Course: Illustrating Children's Books, Creativity