Illustrated Silent Books: Tell Stories Without Words
A course by Paula BossioDesigner, Illustrator, Author, and Teacher
A course by Paula Bossio, Designer, Illustrator, Author, and Teacher
Explore narrative techniques and illustrative possibilities to tell amazing wordless stories in a clear and concise way
Want to tell incredible stories without using a single word? In this online course, learn how to create silent books with Paula Bossio, a designer and illustrator who has worked for publishers such as Penguin Random House and PigeonHole Books. She has received the Nami Award in Korea, the Noma Concours in Japan, and the A la Orilla del Viento prize in Mexico, to name but a few.
Throughout the course, discover that the absence of words in a story is a great opportunity for the language of images to take the leading role. Go on a journey through narrative guidelines to tell your story with clarity and innovation, and explore all the fundamental elements to bring it to life through illustration. By the end of the course, you'll have produced a stunningly handcrafted silent book.
What will you learn in this online course?
18 lessons & 53 downloads
The materials
13 minutes, 20 seconds
Apply color with a dry technique
16 minutes, 20 seconds
The Sketch
14 minutes, 33 seconds
Visual rhetoric
14 minutes, 42 seconds
The shape games
14 minutes, 54 seconds
Film language
16 minutes, 4 seconds
What's included in this course?
Paula Bossio starts this online course by telling you why she has a passion for picture books, how she became an illustrator, and what have been her main sources of inspiration and her influences.
Learn about wordless books, also called silent or mute books, one of the most promising categories of illustrated literature. Through simple techniques and exercises, get some ideas for your final project.
Paula invites you to experiment with colored pencils. Then, choose your narrative idea and sketch a storyboard featuring the dramatic acts. Delve into the keys of visual rhetoric, forms, and cinematographic language.
Time to tackle the characters, their actions, and expressions; then, focus on the sequence, time, and pace of the story to keep up the tension and the reader's attention. Look at the importance of settings and story threads.
Finally, learn how to finish your storyboard, get stuck into some technical details and give your pages some color. Once everything is ready, assemble and sew your silent book, then discover how to share it with the world.
What is this course's project?
Put together a book with a short story created, illustrated, and handcrafted by you.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
Anyone who is passionate about telling stories through drawing and who dares to experiment and be creative.
Requirements and materials
You don't have to be an illustration professional, but you will need some basic knowledge to be able to express an idea clearly.
You also need a comfortable work space, paper for dry techniques, plain paper, colors, pencils, a notebook, a box cutter, and a cutting mat, among other materials.
Reviews
- 1 month ago
¡Me encantó el curso! tiene un sin número de recursos que no imaginaba que se usarían para un cuento ilustrado. Lo recomiendo un montón
- carraghereimearPLUS2 months ago
Excellent course - loads of brilliant resources and detail
- 3 months ago
Paula Bossio es una de las mejores maestras, es precisa, clara , con un enorme sentido de ayuda. Curso con nota 10 sobre 10.
- daniela_marzanoPLUS4 months ago
A detailed, engaging, well-structured, and highly practical course that also helps spark creativity. The instructor was fantastic.
- 5 months ago
Me gusta como Paula motiva y hace sentir que las cosas salen fáciles. Me anima ver lo sencillo que puede ser.
She has worked as an author and illustrator for publishers such as Penguin Random House, PigeonHole Books, Fondo de Cultura Económica, Alfaguara, GatoMalo, Usborne Books, and more, and has also worked as an illustration teacher in the Graphic Design Faculty of Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano, Universidad Areandina, and Universidad Santo Tomás in Bogotá.
Content
- U1
Introduction
- About Us
- Influences
- U2
Your silent book
- Can silent books be read?
- Prepare the story!
- The materials
- Apply color with a dry technique
- U3
The possibilities of the image
- The Sketch
- Visual rhetoric
- The shape games
- Film language
- U4
The narrative threads
- The protagonists
- Sequence, time and rhythm
- Spaces and scenarios
- Wires
- The storyboard
- U5
Finish the silent book
- The final details
- The book
- What to do with the book?
- FP
Final project
- Illustrated Books: Tell Stories Without Words
What to expect from a Domestika course
Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
Certificates
PLUSIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
Connect with a global creative community
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FAQs
You’ll learn how to create illustrations and visual narratives for children’s books, covering drawing techniques, character building, color use, sequencing, wordless storytelling, and handmade picture book creation.
The course is aimed at people with intermediate drawing or illustration skills; you don’t need to be an expert, but basic knowledge will help you get the most out of it.
You’ll need colored pencils, suitable paper, a pencil sharpener, mechanical pencils, tracing tools, waxed thread and a needle, plus basic materials for sketching and assembling handmade books.
Techniques taught include blending primary colors, gradients, subtle color transitions, hatching, layering colors, and creating custom palettes to enrich your illustrations.
Yes, the course covers wordless visual storytelling, managing empty space and silence, and how to tell complete stories using only images, especially in silent books.
You can work as a children’s book illustrator, picture book creator, collaborate with publishers, or develop freelance illustration projects and an artistic portfolio.
You’ll develop creative fluency, flexibility, and originality, learn to reinterpret everyday objects, create characters and settings, and apply visual tools like metaphors and ellipses.