Secret Sketches + Picturebook creative process (Patreon)

Hi you 😊

Today I´m sharing this month's secret sketches with you + the sketches and drafts of my second children's book, which I´m currently working on.

This time it´s a bit different because it´s a private book commission and not through a publisher, like my first book was, so I thought I can write a short "blog" for you about how the process was till now.

For my first book, I had complete freedom of how to draw the book and which colors to use but for this one, my client had already a very clear idea of how she wanted the book to look.

So with the text, I also already became the sketches she made and the colors theme she wants to have for the book.

About the book

The story is really cute, about a young elephant who isn´t happy with his nose and is dreaming throughout the story about having other animals' noses, while his mother always tells him what he wouldn´t be able to do when having other animals' noses because his own is the one that is the best, what he also realizes at the end of the story. 

The process I had until now

the client reached out to me through Instagram and asked if I would be interested in drawing her book that she wants to self-publish

talking about all the information I need to make an offer (illustration style, full pages or not, how many characters, how many pages, with or without layout,...)

after I got the contract signed and the deposit payment went through she send me the draft she already made with the text, sketches, and the color theme

I started by thumbnailing my ideas and compositions also already thinking of where the text should go

after I was happy with the composition I made quick sketches and afterward the detailed sketches

currently, I lay in the colors as a "draft" before sending her the sketches and color suggestions to get feedback

This is how far I am now. 

I will write a second part of this picture book process when I finish the illustrations 😊

Wish you a lovely day/evening 🧡🧡🧡