Illustration and Design of Children's Books

As an illustrator and designer, Carlos Higuera specializes in children's illustration with a style that conveys a great deal of tenderness. He has worked both in advertising and in children's book publication with international publishers like Edelvives, Santillana, and Macmillan. In his previous Domestika course, Design of Kawaii-Style Characters, taught together with Azul Piñeiro—illustrator, designer, and co-founder of Estudio Kudasai—, you learned how to create adorable characters inspired by Japanese culture. This time around, Carlos teaches you how to create an ABC book from start to finish.

These books are aimed at children up to three years old and are usually printed on cardboard. Carlos reveals the process behind making them: everything from the sketch and the storyboard to the illustration and final design.

Begin by getting to know more about Carlos's work, his passion for drawing, and how he became what he is today. He also shares his influences and what inspires him the most.

Move on to exploring some of his sketchbooks and some exercises to help you shed your fear of drawing and embrace your own style.

Next, Carlos explains how an ABC book is made and how to carry out an editorial project with these characteristics.

Start by writing a simple story, which will help you to establish the narrative plot for your book. Create the main characters, choose your color palette, and select the font that best suits the style of your project.

Once you've decided on all the elements of your book, design a storyboard and a work schedule.

Then it's time to create the illustrations and assemble the book.

To finish off the course, Carlos tells you about some legal issues that you should consider when dealing with this type of editorial project.

Create an ABC book aimed at children from 0 to 3 years old using your own illustrations.

Illustrators, designers, and anyone interested in conveying stories through illustrated children's books.

You need some basic drawing and illustration skills to take this course.

As far as materials are concerned, you'll need paper and a pencil, a computer with Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop installed, and a drawing tablet.