Illustrations
Book Illustration Services
Illustration is not only for picture books. A fantasy map, a set of chapter-opening drawings, a clear diagram in a how-to book or a few spot illustrations in a memoir can change how a book feels in the hand. We create interior illustrations that suit your book and print cleanly.
- Illustrated by our in-house team, never subcontracted
- Consistent style from the first image to the last
- Files prepared for your printer and ebook format
- Revisions included until the brief is met
Why illustrate
What illustrations do for a book that is mostly words
In a novel, a map at the front tells readers the world has been thought through and gives them something to flip back to when the travelling starts. Small drawings at the start of each chapter give a long book rhythm and make it feel cared for. In non-fiction, a single good diagram can replace a page of explanation that readers would otherwise skim.
The risk is inconsistency. Illustrations gathered from different sources, drawn in different styles or prepared at the wrong resolution make a book look patched together. Good interior illustration is planned as a set: one style, one line weight, one palette, sized for the page it will sit on.
What we illustrate
Interior illustrations we create
Maps
Fantasy and historical maps for novels, and location maps for travel writing and memoir, labelled with fonts that match the book's interior.
Chapter openers and ornaments
A small illustration or decorative heading for each chapter or part, plus scene-break ornaments that carry the same style.
Spot illustrations
Small drawings placed within the text of memoirs, gift books, poetry collections and middle grade novels.
Diagrams and infographics
Process diagrams, frameworks, charts and step-by-step illustrations for business, education and how-to books.
Cookbook and craft art
Ingredient drawings, technique illustrations and step sequences where a drawing explains more clearly than a photo.
Character and concept art
Character portraits and concept sketches for front matter, special editions, websites and series promotion.
Not sure which option fits?
Send us the brief. You will get a scope, a timeline and a fixed price within 24 hours — no obligation.
- A style test on one image before the full set is drawn
- Sketches for approval before any illustration is finished
- A consistent style, line weight and palette across every image
- Files at print resolution, in colour or greyscale to match your interior
- Versions sized for ebook and for your website or social posts
- Placement notes for your layout designer, or placement done by us if we lay out the book
- Usage terms agreed in writing before work starts
How it works
The illustration process
1. Illustration list
Together we list every image, where it goes and what it must show. This list sets the quote and the schedule.
2. Style test
One illustration taken to finish so you can approve the style before the rest is drawn.
3. Sketches and finals
Sketches for each image, your comments, then finished art. Changes are cheapest at the sketch stage.
4. Files for layout
Final files prepared for your interior. Each project is quoted with its own timeline, set by the number and complexity of images.
Print matters
Black and white interiors need art drawn for them
Most novels and many non-fiction books are printed in black and white, which is cheaper per copy than colour. Colour artwork converted to greyscale often turns muddy, with details lost where two colours of similar brightness become the same grey. If your interior is black and white, we draw for it from the start, with clean line work and tones that hold up on uncoated paper.
For colour interiors, ask your printer or print-on-demand platform about colour printing before commissioning art. The cost difference per copy can be significant and may change how many illustrations you choose to include.
Writing a children's picture book, where the illustrations carry the story? See our custom illustration service, which is set up for full-spread picture book art.
Pricing
What book illustration costs
Illustration is quoted per project, based on the illustration list: how many images, how detailed each is, colour or black and white, and the sizes they will be printed at. A single map and a set of chapter ornaments cost far less than fifty technical diagrams. You get a fixed price before the style test begins.
Free proposal
Tell us the goal. We’ll send the plan.
Share your requirements and a strategist gets back to you within 24 hours with scope, timeline and a fixed price. No obligation, no sales pressure.
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Response within 24 hours
Usually much sooner during business hours.
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Talk to a strategist
Not a call centre — the person who scopes your work.
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Fixed pricing upfront
You approve the number before anything starts.
Prefer to talk?
[email protected]Questions
Questions about book illustration
Still unsure about something? Talk to a specialist — no script, no sales pitch.
It is quoted per project. The price depends on the number of illustrations, their detail and size, and whether they are in colour or black and white. We agree a list of every image first, so the quote covers exactly what you need.
Yes. Send us your sketch, however rough, plus the place names and any distances or terrain that matter to the plot. We draw the map in a style that suits the book, with lettering that matches your interior, sized for the page it will print on.
They will if they are drawn for it. We create line art and greyscale tones designed for black and white printing rather than converting colour art, which tends to lose detail. Tell us your interior type at the start.
Yes. Diagrams, frameworks, process illustrations and simple infographics are common in business and how-to books. We can work from your rough sketches or slides and redraw them clearly and consistently.
Usage terms are agreed in writing before work starts, so you know exactly how you can use the artwork, including on your book, in marketing and in future editions. If you need broader rights such as merchandise, raise it at the quote stage.
Yes. If we lay out your interior, we place the illustrations as part of that work. If someone else is doing the layout, we supply files at the right size and resolution with notes on where each image goes.
Works well with
Pair it with the rest of the stack
Custom Illustrations
Picture book illustration for children's books.
Learn moreBook Layout and Design
Interiors with your illustrations in place.
Learn moreCustom Cover Design
A cover in the same style as the interior art.
Learn moreBlack and White Interiors
Printing options for text-led books.
Learn moreReady when you are
Ready to work with the pros?
Get a free proposal in 24 hours — scope, timeline and fixed price. No obligation, no lock-in contract.
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