HOW TO ILLUSTRATE A BOOK IF YOU CAN'T DRAW

hey there's Space Cats now here's a question how can you illustrate your book if you can't draw it's me Jules again with another video on drawing and Publishing this time I was considering what it would be like if you are absolutely desperate to get your book idea out and published but you can't draw how are you going to get those images on your page there is no right way or wrong way to make an image if there was we wouldn't have such diversity in the art world but if your confidence is really struggling then what can you do I've built up nine ways that might help some are pretty straightforward and others are well you'll have to wait and see if you've got a bit of budget then find yourself an illustrator I made a video about this a little while ago make sure you get on with your illustrator though because metaphorically speaking you are handing over your baby to someone else if your illustrator is worth their salt then they will be as invested in this book as you are so although you might have some really firm ideas about what you want listen to your illustrator because they are a professional they've probably studied for years and they're coming to your project with fresh eyes so give them a bit of leeway they might have some really good ideas that you haven't thought of don't expect your illustrator to work for nothing if you're committed to seeing this project through then you should be willing to spend some money on making it look fantastic after all it's the pictures that your reader is going to see first on the front cover usually so before even the words your words are in your reader's head it's the pictures that they're gonna see first [Applause] number two can't draw well learn there is no better motivation to learn a new skill than having to learn it perhaps you can't afford an illustrator perhaps you just want to give it a go because you want to make this book yours remember when you're a child maybe five or six did you ever say oh no I couldn't pick up a pencil I can't draw no of course you didn't little children believe they can draw because they can it's only as we get a little bit older and start feeling self-conscious about these sorts of things that we start to think we can't if you've got the ability to pick up a pencil or a pen or a paintbrush then you can draw but what if at 13 Picasso had got embarrassed well David Bowie had said oh my voice sounds a bit weird or if Michael Rosen had decided his teenage musings were too awful to carry on it can take a little bit of time educating yourself to be good at anything and let's face it aren't we lucky that we can just Google tutorials on this sort of thing [Music] number three you really don't fancy learning any of the traditional techniques that you might pick up in books then what about what a collage you don't need to be able to draw you just need imagination and a quirky way of looking at things perhaps tear things out of magazines or tissue paper and make up some shapes if you do use magazines and newspapers though make sure you don't tear out the image to use that as you might find you in Fringe copyright laws for example don't just tear around Brad Pitt and stick him in your book use the pages more like a palette rip up lots of bits and use the different colors and textures that you see in front of you press flowers and leaves and use those use ribbons um stamps fabric torn Washi Tape Christmas decorations the list is endless [Music] [Applause] [Music] number four and that leads me on to mixed media whilst I was doing research for this subject I came across a guy who says he cannot draw but I spent the last 25 years working as an artist he starts off painting a very basic shape with poster paint or something like Emulsion and then he gets found objects and places them around this initial painting just to bring it alive and make it into the image that he wants to see you could try that all you need is a reasonable sized brush some thick paper some poster paint or Emulsion and a whole bunch of stuff that you can add to it mixed media can be anything though it can be pens pencils chalk pastels paint photographs clay even food or shoe polish photograph it and then you can use it in your book all right number five I mentioned photographs you could take some snaps to illustrate your story if it's about a particular place that is close to you then why not hop on over to that place and take some photographs and maybe even put some people in it if you've got some willing volunteers then if you want to be really snazzy you could manipulate it in Photoshop or other software and if you don't have that yourself I bet you'll know someone who does it's amazing what filters will do to a fairly standard shot and you can play with the colors and crop it and add things and take things away the fun you can have with editing software is endless and you might just gain another skill whilst you're at it if you're set on using photographs you might decide you can't be bothered with all the faff of doing it yourself but before you rush off and hire a photographer you might consider using royalty-free photographs what you can't do is Google the thing you're looking for and then just cut and paste it into your book there are some very stringent laws that prevent people from stealing other people's work however there are lots of websites out there that can supply you with royalty-free illustrations and photographs this means that the copyright owner has decided to be more flexible with that image if you search for royalty free images you'll find loads of sites that do this sometimes they ask for the Creator to be credited in the publication and really that's only fair sometimes there is a donate button so you could donate five dollars or whatever you want [Music] number seven if you still say I can't draw you may have access to some software that can do some research into what's best and most affordable for you I use Adobe but I have got a friend who uses affinity and he really likes it although I don't do the initial drawings on software usually I draw it by hand and then scan it in I do do a lot of digital coloring and manipulation I know people who do use the software to do their entire drawings though so it is completely possible perhaps it's something you might like to try number eight next up is dioramas the heck is that do I need Imodium for it nope it's a story of found items arranged in a box imagine a doll's house with all the little bits of furniture in different rooms and perhaps you've got some little people that are doing cooking in one room or they're watching the TV in another room well that's kind of a diorama as an art form a lot of it is much more randomly created though so if you want to have a go at it then find yourself a shoe box and then go to your nearest charity shop and find some old toys like maybe some little figures or some bits of furniture or anything really that could illustrate what you're trying to get across on the page in your book once you've got exactly what you want then photograph it on a smartphone is fine and then you can add it to your book please number nine and the final idea if you're feeling brave and let's face it fortune favors the brave why not use some children's drawings you might be lucky enough to have some small people knocking around at home who are quite willing to draw something for your book children's drawings have a real charm of their own and sometimes they can be even more effective than having an adult drawing after all it's children you're writing for maybe getting their perspective on it is even better make sure you credit them in the book and give them something for their trouble if they're old enough you may even wish to pay them but please don't ask a team to spend hours and hours and hours of their time for just a cursory thank you you just gotta be fair really if you'd like further artist tutorials I have a variety of short courses that will help you there are real-time sessions looking at painting drawing and marker pens among others and if you're keen on producing your own book there is a more in-depth course on what you need to know about self-publishing a book with illustrations and that covers making key decisions how to make layouts and dummy books Rhythm and pacing as well as several tutorials on illustrating your book and a look at the tech you can either hop over to my website or join me on patreon for more information go on give it a go make sure you check out my courses if you're really keen on doing it yourself next week is bullet Journal time again so dust off the old bullet Journal find a pencil and a big bat of custard creams I'm after throwing myself into a giant pile of leaves I'll see you next week [Music]

Channel: Jules Marriner

Views: 33,677

Keywords: HOW TO ILLUSTRATE YOUR BOOK IF YOU CAN’T DRAW, how to illustrate your book if you're not an artist, making your book images if you can't draw, how to draw for picture books, how to be an artist for picture books, how to make book images if i can't draw, ways to make book pictures if you can't draw, how else to make book pictures, i can't draw how do i make a book, how to be an illustrator if i can't draw, help i can't draw, learn to draw, childrens books, picture books

Id: mgiXc1Y7ayc

Length: 10min 10sec (610 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 09 2020