Submission Guidelines

Children's Book Illustrators

Children's Book Illustrators is a curated, invitation-led collective representing professional illustrators working in children's publishing.

We exist to support publishers, editors, literary agents, and creative directors by presenting a carefully selected group of illustrators with proven experience, strong portfolios, and an understanding of the creative and commercial demands of children's publishing.

For this reason, we do not operate as an open directory.

Our Approach to Selection

Illustrators featured on Children's Book Illustrators are selected through an editorial review process.

Each illustrator is:

• Personally reviewed
• Assessed on published work and portfolio quality
• Considered for consistency, originality, and professional experience

We prioritise illustrators who are actively working within children's publishing and who demonstrate reliability, professionalism, and a strong understanding of visual storytelling for young readers.

Invitation-Led Submissions

Children's Book Illustrators operates a selective, editorially led submission process.

While the collective is not open-access, illustrators may request consideration for inclusion. All submissions are reviewed internally and assessed against the current needs and standards of the collective.

Submission does not guarantee inclusion, and invitations are extended selectively.

Eligibility for Consideration

Illustrators requesting consideration should typically have:

• Published children's book work with a recognised publisher
• Experience illustrating for trade or educational publishing
• A consistent, well-developed visual style
• A professional portfolio demonstrating narrative illustration
• Experience working to briefs, deadlines, and editorial feedback

We are unable to consider student work, unpublished portfolios, or illustration work not intended for children's publishing.

How to Request Consideration

Illustrators may request consideration by submitting:

• A link to a professional website or portfolio
• Examples of published children's book work
• A brief summary of experience within children's publishing

All submissions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Due to the volume of requests received, we regret that we are unable to respond to every submission.

About Tier Placement

Illustrators included within the collective are presented in one of three editorial tiers:

• Featured Illustrators
• Recommended Illustrators
• Illustrators

Tier placement reflects experience, publication history, and editorial review. Placement may change over time as portfolios and publishing experience develop.

A Note on Feedback

As a curated platform, we are unable to provide individual feedback on submissions or portfolio reviews.

This allows us to focus our time on maintaining the quality, clarity, and usefulness of the collective for publishers and commissioners.

Our Commitment

Children's Book Illustrators is built on trust - between illustrators and publishers, and between commissioners and the work they discover here.

Our submission process reflects the standards of the publishing industry itself: considered, selective, and professional.