Picture book illustration

In this course, instructor Larissa Marantz will introduce you to the world of picture books. You will learn how to create stories through drawing and writing. Larissa will walk you through every aspect of picture books, including character development, choosing stories, formatting a book, and finalizing full illustrations. She will also lecture on how to get your book professionally published. After this course, you will gain the skills to bring your imagination to life through picture book making.

Week 1: Identifying Your Story
In week one, Larissa will walk you through what a picture book is and how one goes about making it. You will learn to identify the story that you want to tell. Larissa will teach you how to pull aspects of stories from the past and make them your own.

Week 2: Character Development
In week two, you will study the fundamentals of character development. Larissa will take you through her process for developing cast members for picture books. You will learn how to use shape and shape relationships to develop your characters.

Week 3: Exploring Character Designs
In week three, you will learn to design various versions of your characters. Larissa will demonstrate making model lineups and utilizing different shapes to develop your character and design clothing.

Week 4: Character Refinement and Formatting a Picture Book
In week four, Larissa will demonstrate how to create character engagements. You will learn to bring your characters to life and develop a relationship between them.

Week 5: Structuring Your Story
In week five, you will learn to structure your story using Blake Snyder’s “Beat Sheet.” Larissa will lecture on how each stage of the outline aids in developing a well-rounded narrative.

Week 6: Creating Rough Sketches from Thumbnails
In week six, Larissa will demonstrate how to develop rough sketches for your picture book. You will learn to start from small thumbnails and then progress to rough sketches.

Week 7: Character Tonal and Color Comps
In week seven, you will learn to create tonal studies of your characters. Larissa will demonstrate various tonal lineups for each of her characters. Then, you will discover the perfect arrangement of values to complement the style and purpose of your characters in the story.

Week 8: Developing an Interior Scene
In week eight, Larissa will teach you how to develop a scene into its final composition using your rough sketches. You will learn to use perspective to create the interior of a room.

Week 9: Creating an Outdoor Scene
In week nine, Larissa will demonstrate her process of refining an outdoor scene. You will learn to adjust and correct your drawing using perspective brushes, giving your scene realism.

Week 10: Refining a Scene
In week ten, Larissa will refine a picture book illustration. You will learn to develop details and line variation to bring your rough sketches to life.

Week 11: Rendering & Adding Color
In week 11, Larissa will take you through her process of completing an illustration. You will learn to add color to your final line work with the lasso tool.

Week 12: Final Details & Getting Your Book Published
In week 12, you will learn to add the final touches to your picture book illustrations. Larissa will demonstrate how to refine and self-critique your artwork. You will discover how to overlay textures and create a PDF dummy book for submission to a publisher.