Do drawings fit in to children’s books?

[Griffin McPherson]

I know this sounds odd but lately I’ve been realizing that very few children’s books have drawings in them. Instead everything is painted, although it might not feel that way because there’s lots of illustrators that use flat colors and bold shapes which make it feel like a drawing but their illustrations have little or no lines. Take away the colors and values and there’s no illustration anymore.

I realized this because I have often heard that my style looks more like animation or graphic novels rather than picture books. When I thought about why that is I landed on the conclusion that it’s because I’m a drawer rather than a painter and when I looked at picture books I realized they’re nearly all painted these days.

I still want my style to be my own rather than mold to better fit picture books but I’m worried that my style looks too different from what’s typically published. Should I stick to what I’m doing or should I find the overlap between my style and what’s accepted in picture books?

[Melissa_Bailey]

@Griffin-McPherson yes! Drawings fit into picture books.

While there are always trending illustration styles, if you look at recently published picture books, you’ll find just about every style out there, from painterly to flat bold shapes to more intricate illustrations where drawings are the foundation.

Here are a few illustrators to check out — they all have styles that rely heavily on drawings. For most of these illustrators, if you take out the drawing, you won’t have an illustration.

1. Henry Cole. Most of his picture books are mostly black and white, sometimes with a pop of color. Some books I’m thinking of: Spot, the Cat; One Little Bag; Nesting; Building
2. Jed Alexander. His wordless retelling of fairytales: Red, Gold, and the upcoming Olive.
3. Erin E. Stead. She won the Caldecott for A Sick Day for Amos McGee. Other examples: Music for Mister Moon and The Sun is Late and So is the Farmer.
4. The Fan Brothers. Ocean Meets Sky, Lizzy and the Cloud, It Fell from the Sky.
5. Charles Santoso. He illustrates in several styles, but I’m thinking about Finding Muchness and The Snurtch. Also, Odder but that’s a chapter book.
6. Akiko Miyakoshi. Tea Party in the Woods and The Storm
7. Guojing. Stormy and The Only Child.
8. Maurice Sendak. Yes, he’s one of the most well-known children’s book illustrators, but his books are still best sellers and his style is very dependent on drawing and line work.

Regarding your question about how your style might fit with picture books… Looking at your portfolio on your website, most of the pieces look to fit more with chapter books/graphic novels. But you have two illustrations that I could see in currently published picture books: the b&w spot with the bear, mouse, and lizard at the market; and the pig spot with a picnic basket for a hat.

For what it’s worth, based on what I see in the current market, if you want to pursue illustrating picture books, your style could work. However, consider organizing your portfolio. Separate your picture book and chapter book/graphic novel illustrations. You may want to include a few more picture book portfolio pieces.

Again, this is just my opinion. Hope it helps!

[kirsten-mcg]

@Griffin-McPherson and don't forget about Will Terry! Just look at his most recent books. If that's not drawing I don't know what is! My other thought is that it's actually a good thing that your style is different from what is trendy right now. It will help you to stand out. I think the most important thing for PB illustration is that you can draw kid characters and tell a story with your pictures.

[Melissa_Bailey]

@Griffin-McPherson oh! I might have misunderstood what type of drawing you’re referring to. Here are a few illustrators whose style is more like yours: drawings with a lot of line work:

1. Jenn Harney — Swim Swim Sink and Underwear!
2. Zeke Pena — My Papi Has a Motorcycle
3. Raul the Third — author-illustrator of the Vamos! books
4. David Roberts — illustrator of the Imagineers books, Iggy Peck, Architect and Rosie Revere, Engineer, etc.
5. Brendan Kearney — illustrator of the Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast series
6. Dan Tavis — Noodle and the No Bones Day and the upcoming In a Patch of Grass
7. Tom Lichtenheld — Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site and the Stick and Stone series
8. Claire Keane — Love Is, Why?, and Paolo, Emporer of Rome

These might be more along the lines of the drawing-based style you’re talking about. I can see similarities to your style in some of these.

[Geoffrey Mégardon]

Very interesting topic as I have the same doubts about my style and portfolio (which I still need to put online!)

Anyway, your style reminds me of this book series Leo and the gorgon's curse. I think it shows that we can blur the line between a picture book and a graphic novel.

[Griffin McPherson]

@Geoffrey-Mégardon good eye! Haven’t read this one yet but Joe-Todd Stanton is one of my favorite illustrators. His style of illustration, especially how he often takes on a graphic novel-like paneling approach, is what I wish I saw more of in picture books!

[Griffin McPherson]

@Melissa_Bailey I still have a hard time seeing my work fitting in here. I can’t imagine any of these works as graphic novels or animation whereas it seems mine more clearly align with graphic novels and animation rather than picture book.
I’m still trying to figure out exactly what it is that makes an illustration look fit for a picture book. I think another part of it is that many picture book styles are more realistically rendered while my style is rendered more cartoonishly?
I think about the exercise where I surround one of my pieces with 8 pieces by pro picture book illustrators and it seems to me that mine really stands out as not fitting in and that seems like a problem to me.
Thank you for your thorough feedback as always!

[NessIllustration]

@Griffin-McPherson It's true that the lineless style is very popular these days - but you don't have to follow trends to the letter! In fact by doing something a little bit different (still within bounds of picture books) you cans stand out from the crowd better You have a differentiating factor.

[Melissa_Bailey]

@Griffin-McPherson you're welcome!

So here's my take on it: it's not about style. Picture books are illustrated in a variety of styles. It's about subject matter. Will it draw kids in? Will it interest them? That's what makes an illustration fit the picture book audience.

Usually -- not always -- picture book illustrations are about things that young kids love, are relatable to them, and/or are part of their lives. If the illustrations feature kids, the kids are usually around ages 4-8. (Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule. These are generalities.)

I think that's why your portfolio feels like it fits more in the graphic novel / middle grade genre. The subject matter of many of your portfolio pieces feels like it's for an older audience, and many of your kids in these pieces look to be 10 years or older. It's not the style. It's what is being illustrated.

This isn't a bad thing. If you are drawn to illustrating things that fit more in the graphic novel or middle grade genre, that might be something to consider. Maybe those subjects resonate more with you? Maybe that might be a better fit? (You can always do both; they're not mutually exclusive.) If you really want to be hired to illustrate picture books, think about adding more "picture book subject" illustrations: families, home life, school scenes, animals, things that would resonate with a young human...

To prove that your style CAN be a fit for picture books in the current market, I did the exercise you're talking about. Below is a screenshot of one of your portfolio pieces surrounded by 8 illustrations from traditionally published working illustrators -- all have had books published within the last year.

When I look at this, your work fits right in. It doesn't stand out as amateurish. You've got the skills. You could do this!

This is just my personal opinion and I'm not an agent or editor or art director... I think that your current portfolio isn't showcasing your work for the picture book market as well as it could. Consider adding more illustrations in your portfolio with the fun, imagination, and whimsy of this pig with the basket of kids on its head.

Another LONG reply from me! Hope you found something helpful in here somewhere...

[von_Nimmermehr]

@Melissa_Bailey said in Do drawings fit in to children’s books?:

When I look at this, your work fits right in. It doesn't stand out as amateurish. You've got the skills. You could do this!
This is just my personal opinion and I'm not an agent or editor or art director... I think that your current portfolio isn't showcasing your work for the picture book market as well as it could. Consider adding more illustrations in your portfolio with the fun, imagination, and whimsy of this pig with the basket of kids on its head.

@Melissa_Bailey i just love your responses and its sooo so nice of you to take your time and make this line up. I would second every thing you said.

And also @Griffin-McPherson i would really like to know what people say that to you? Are those people your art friends?

And also, what is the question here? Do you really want to draw Childrensbooks? Then i guess you have to do what Melissa say and make your portfolio fitting by age for your audience.
But maybe Animation or Graphic Novel is your thing and you only think you want to do picture books because you have an image of yourself in your mind being a picturebook illustrator? And i could bet thats kind of frustrating if this current state does'nt allign with what your idea of yourself is.

My idea of myself always was, i am/want to be an illustrator and i want to do picturebook. Instaed i'm a tattooartist doing tattoos not even close to picturebooks. And i had this one colleague who always told me, a am not allowed to be both, because then im not serious about tattooing. And i kind of lost myself at some point. I actually thought i had to choose one side.
I love tattooing but i really want to publish a picturebook one day, so i have to work towards that, and practicing and coming up with characters and everything, makes me kind of happy... so why did i even listen to her.
She always told me my style isn't for tattoing but i'm also not an illustrator for childrenbooks, it was kind of rediculess of her to say that. But it also was really frustrating because my idea of myself wasn't aligning with what i really was and how i acted.

I think its good to analyze whats published out there, but i also think there always is a niche for everyone.
I bet its more about figuring out what you really want and then make a plan how to work towards that goal. Maybe not by changing your style but i think (again what melissa said), then you have to make your portfolio fit for the audience you want to reach.

I follow you and a lot of other artist out there on instagram an there are so many different styles and some of them are making good money, even though they maybe don't fit into one of those cliche styles.

I hope this make sense and i hope i don't get you wrong. And if i'm wrong please corect me

[Melissa_Bailey]

@von_Nimmermehr aww, thanks so much! I'm happy to help in any small way I can.

[ArtMelC]

Eh...my impression was the opposite. It felt to me as if even the painted illustrations all have drawn lines. I usually painted without pencil lines (I drew the shapes directly in watercolour and painted over them) but I found that even the traditionally created artworks (e.g. Beatrice Alemagna) feature pencil lineworks. My linework sucks, so... I'm not sure if I'll ever join the linework bandwagon.

I don't know the answer to your question just that there are a vast number of books out there, the ones we are exposed to are just a small sliver. And that you are likely not going to find someone working the exact same way as you do, and it may be a good thing!

[Griffin McPherson]

@Melissa_Bailey First off, thank you so much for your lengthy reply! I really appreciate it!

I don’t disagree that my portfolio is more fit for an older audience do to the subject matter. It wasn’t until spring 2021 that I really started to think I wanted to do children’s books but the things I create lend themselves more towards an older audience even when I’ve tried to make illustrations for kids, i.e. the bulk of my portfolio, the end up feeling fit for older kids.

The reason I want to make picture books is because I love the format. However it seems that the stories I want to tell don’t fit in because the themes are a bit more mature. I would love to illustrate chapter books and graphic novels as well, don’t get me wrong, but I’ve been working on making a children’s book portfolio and I feel like I’ve missed the mark.

I know I technically should have more picture book subjects like you mentioned but those basic subjects don’t interest me at all and I never see those subjects in the books and works of illustrators I really enjoy. Some examples would be The Rock from the Sky by Jon Klassen, Journey by Aaron Becker, and The Comet by Joe-Todd Stanton. Kids spend their time in their imaginations and I want to tell the kind of imaginative, exciting stories I wish I had when I was a kid.

Thanks you so much for doing this comparison! This does make me feel like I can fit in and when I had a portfolio review with an illustration coach she also pointed out this piece as being the most children’s book-like. However she also mentioned that it feels like a very different style from the rest of my portfolio and I should either keep filling out my portfolio with my more dominant style or add more pieces in this style. Honestly I don’t love this piece and I’ve thought about removing it. I feel like I was trying to fit a mold when I made it.

I think what’s happening is that I haven’t pint pointed what my artistic "voice" (that term sounds snobbish to me but I don’t know how else to describe it) is for picture books but I have started to uncover what my voice is for middle grade and graphic novels.

Even just while responding to this I think I’ve started to figure out that my themes start to feel more mature once I get more invested in the story. So I think my approach for picture book illustrations should be a less detailed narrative focusing more on humor maybe? I’ve spent so much time worrying about figuring out my artistic style and now I’m realizing I also need to work on my thematic style haha.

Thanks again for your tremendous help and feedback!

[Nyrryl Cadiz]

@Griffin-McPherson having no outlines is the popular style nowadays. Now, should you also do it? I'm afraid only you can answer that. If you really want to work in Children's Books, it certainly won't hurt.

[Griffin McPherson]

@von_Nimmermehr I think you’re totally right. I need to figure out how I fit into the markets I see myself as fitting into and sort out my image of myself versus where I truly fit in. Like I said to Melissa, though I want to make picture books it seems my style has developed more towards middle grade a graphic novels. I think this just boils down to fine tuning style and themes. I need to clarify my style for middle grade and graphic novels and in turn clarify my style for picture books. An artist who comes to mind s doing this very well Nik Henderson. His picture book style looks very different from his usual style which feels a bit more mature. I think I’ll finish up my portfolio in the style I’ve mostly been working in and then do a deep dive into defining a more picture book friends style.

Regarding your question in the beginning about who tells me my work leans more towards an older audience; basically the people I interact with here on the forum as I don’t really know other artists in real life. I don’t see it as a bad or negative thing that this is how they see my art, it just means I need to continue working on my style.

[von_Nimmermehr]

@Griffin-McPherson said in Do drawings fit in to children’s books?:

Regarding your question in the beginning about who tells me my work leans more towards an older audience; basically the people I interact with here on the forum as I don’t really know other artists in real life. I don’t see it as a bad or negative thing that this is how they see my art, it just means I need to continue working on my style.

Good to know. I didn't want to have any opinion about this topic if i don't know who you interact with.
In my daily life i had a lot of people telling me where i would fit in, because many people have many opinions. And it's important to have the right people around you who at least have a good idea of what they are talking about.

Maybe if that where your style was heading at, it sounds like a nice journey finding like you say your inner voice and thats absolutely important

I am looking forward to see more of your work and i also think at some point maybe Kickstarter would be something for you, if it comes to selfpublishing a graphic novel maybe

[MirkaH]

There are lots of illustrators who draw/use lines. Matthew Cordell recently won a Caldecott and his books are ink drawings with washes of watercolor on top. I also love Kate Hindley, Briony May Smith, Emily Hughes, and Claire Powell to name a few. There is lots of room in kidlit for different styles, I think the most important thing is just to make sure you have attractive characters, and color palettes appropriate for the age group you are illustrating for.