How to become a book illustrator?
Tim Harvey
I have a friend who is very artistic and produces beautiful sketches and
paintings.
She is thinking of pursuing a career as an illustrator for books and
children's
stories. Is there anyone out there who does such a thing that could give me
some
information on how to get started in this field?
Thanks,
Tim
William O. Barrett
You might want to post this in "alt.graphics.illustrator" as well.
Terry Miura
William O. Barrett wrote:
Tim Harvey wrote:
> I have a friend who is very artistic and produces beautiful sketches and paintings.
> She is thinking of pursuing a career as an illustrator for books and children's
> stories. Is there anyone out there who does such a thing that could give me some
> information on how to get started in this field?
Assuming that you already have the skills, the first thing you need
is a good solid
portfolio. In it you need between 10 and 20 pieces of work, consistent
in style
and quality. Especially important, if you want to do children's books
or other
book illustrations that demands serieses of artwork is yout ability
to portray same
characters in different situations, lights, emotions, actions, etc.
So that needs to
be demonstrated in your portfolio very clearly. Doing a bunch of pieces
that are
each good in itself but are not consistent in style will hurt you rather
than help,
because when art directors look for an illustrator, they already have
a style in
mind. They would rather hire someone that does one style extremely
well than
a jack of all trades. In fact chances are slim that they will even
remember a jack
of all trades, because Jack has no identity to remember. Does that
make sense?
Well that's been my experience, anyway.
Your portfolio can be in any format you like, as long as it looks professional.
If you're starting out, you won't have tearsheets (actual printed jobs)
to show,
so you might consider 4x5 transparencies (shot professionally) mounted
on
black letramax or something. Iris prints are good, C prints are good.
If your
resources are limited, good quality fiery prints (color laser) are
even doable.
I wouldn't show original art in a drop off portfolio. There's no insurance
that
it won't be damaged or lost, so unless you're interviewing in person,
don't do it.
And if you ARE showing original art, make sure it's presented professionally,
mounted with flaps, etc. I also wouldn't do 35mm slides. Few
art directors bother
with those. Also, make your portfolio physically small. Big portfolio
cases that
spill over the art direcotrs already cluttered desk top scream out
"I'm a student!!!"
Also important in your portfolio are samples that you can leave with
the art director.
Postcards, fieries.. whatever. But again professional presentation
is very important.
(and don't forget your contact info on them)
After you have your portfolio all ready (make sure you have duplicate
portfolios)
Start sending out promotional mailers and cold calling. You can
find companies
that specialize in doing artist promos in the backs of art and design
related magazines.
You can also find their names and addresses on dust jackets and inside
covers of
published books...look for books that use styles that are somewhat
applicable to
what you do. It makes no sense to send samples of flower paintings
to companies
that only do horror, for example.
You can also find names and address of art directors in backs of art/design
annuals,
available at any large book store. And there are mailing list companies,
which you
might be able to find in the backs of art / design publications.
Once you have the names and addresses of your target potential clientel,
and if they
are in or near where you live, you call them to see if they have a
policy on drop offs.
Phone numbers? 411 works well. Ask for the art department, if you don't
have the
names. Ask them what the policy is on viewing portfolios. They can
tell you all about
it.
That's pretty much what I did when I started out. When you do get calls
for jobs, you
are typically required to do sketches or roughs by a certain date,
and then once that's
approved the finishes will be due at a later date. They may require
changes, or they
may not. Every job is different. As far as fees go, there's not a whole
lot of negotiating
room in book illustrations, unless you're a big time children's book
illustrator, so
go with what they offer. Most big publishers are straightforward in
their fee structure,
and they are honorable, so don't worry about it too much.
Good luck, and let me say in closing that I showed my portfolio to roughly
150 art
directors before getting a single call, so don't give up if the first
149 drop offs get
you nothing. Persistence pays!
terry miura
terrymiura.com
Terry Miura
same questions,
so I'm following up with another post.
Regarding helpful books and magazines, I have to say I don't know a
whole lot.
I tend to not look at these things anymore because I don't want to be
influenced
too much. But a few that I have seen in the past are:
Artist Market--comes out once a year, lists all kinds of markets,
clients, advice
for someone who's starting out. Gives you a good idea of what different
markets (editorial, music, computer, etc) expect from a freelancer.
CA (Communication Arts) : A monthly magazine with loads of good stuff.
They do an illustration annual comes out in...June, was it? They list
names
and addresses in the back of the annual. They also have a website. I
don't
know the URL, but it's easy to find i'm sure.
Graphis: Another good trade magazine.
Step by Step: A technique oriented magazine.
HOW: is this one still around? I don't know.
SI Annual , American Illustrators, Art Director's Annual... come to
think of it,
there are all kinds of annuals.You can find most of these at Barnes &
Noble
or any other large bookstore. Try a large art supply store as well, and
don't forget
Amazon.
I think I've seen ads for companies that do artist postcards in backs of
above
magazines, and also in fine art publications like Art News and Gallery
Guide.
Good luck,
terrymiura