The Best Children's Book Education Courses

The one thing I fully recommend is to never stop educating yourself in the field you choose. In the past 10 years, things have changed dramatically in the opportunity for creative. Locality is not an obstacle for opportunity. It also has heightened the talent pool for publishers and clients.
Talent is one thing of course, and passion. BUT to effectively be the best you can be, treat this as any other profession and educate yourself.
I signed up for many reasons, including a sense of community and these are some of the best Children's Book Courses to educate yourself to be a Children's Book illustrator and my, Dyann Callahan, experience with them:

* Mark Mitchell's Make Your Marks and Splashes: A Power Course on Creating Effective Illustrations for Childrens Books, Magazines and Other Media for Children

I love this course! I think for a overall experience its invaluable as to the resources and monthly open critiques. My local SCBWI (Society Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) group is mostly writers, so the critiques here are a wonderful way to learn. Each week Mark Mitchell post interviews and open streaming webinars from authors, publishers, or other illustrators and has a Wiggio open board for posts and support.

* Will Terry's Folio Academy courses and blog

I check his blog weekly for great videos such as this:

My Speech To Illustration Students - Part 1 - Will Terry

SVS- School of Visual Storytelling

Will Terry has opened the SVS- School of Visual Storytelling that is a tremendous resource. I am a student a WKU and like most colleges, they do not offer anything but studio art, 2D, or ceramics. Not even a digital painting course. The value and impact of courses like

Painting in Photoshop Power day

The combined power of FOUR instructors in ONE day.
Will Terry
Brooke Boynton Hughes
Zac Retz
Kevin Keele

Thanks for reading! If you know of any more, please add them in the comments!

Dyann Joyce

Dyann Joyce : Writing Adventures of a Children's Book Author Illustrator

Navigation through the world of Children's Book Publishing. This writing blog focuses on the writing aspect of Picture Books (PB), Chapter Books (CB), Middle Grade (MG), New Adult (NA) and Young Adult (YA) books and offers tips, insight, querying help, social media help, tax and business side, and advice as one author illustrator makes her way (as she waits for art projects to come to fruition while having queries out). Welcome and enjoy!

For more focus on the art side of Children's Books, fee free to visit my visual Children's Book art portfolio is Dyann Joyce Adventures of a Illustrator Author and my project-based blog is there with my current art projects and upcoming books I have illustrated.

"Maraldia - City of Orphans" children's book cover progression

I sent off a few articles for The Street newspaper last week and we will see if they use them. The air is changing and its hard to believe its October already! A year ago I had the pleasure of illustrating
"Maraldia - City of Orphans" for author Paul Schonschack, Amazon link here and what a treat it was. It is an amazing story full of hope and all profits go to the Zambia orphanage, Living Hope International (LHI).

I had my husband pose his hand holding a Christmas ornament for the cover of this children's book. Originally in natural colors as the story is set in a small village, think a shire like in The Hobbit, I used vegetable dye and hand purposed colors of the forest. He wanted a striped shirt, pirate style, and a golden carved ornament (the whole look of the book was to be sketchy Alice in Wonderland styled pen and inks). It seemed a bit bland, so I did a second cover for the novel in crystalline primary colors to reflect the age group a bit more and have more shelf appeal.

The last was the final used on the cover of "Maraldia - City of Orphans" and I love it!

Dyann Joyce

Dyann Joyce : Writing Adventures of a Children's Book Author Illustrator

Navigation through the world of Children's Book Publishing. This writing blog focuses on the writing aspect of Picture Books (PB), Chapter Books (CB), Middle Grade (MG), New Adult (NA) and Young Adult (YA) books and offers tips, insight, querying help, social media help, tax and business side, and advice as one author illustrator makes her way (as she waits for art projects to come to fruition while having queries out). Welcome and enjoy!