The best book illustrators for hire in the United Kingdom

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Emma 5 star rating

London, United Kingdom

A freelance book cover designer with over 10 years of experience working across a wide variety of imprints at HarperCollins and LittleBrown.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Action & Adventure, Historical Fiction, Classics, Women's Fiction, Mystery & Crime, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Little Brown
  • HarperCollins

Britt 5 star rating

Orkney, Scotland, United Kingdom

Scottish Artist and Illustrator. Studied Visual Communications at NCAD Dublin, graduated 2005. Creative freelance with flair and good cheer.

Genres: Humor & Comedy, Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Nature, Short Story, Calendars, Middle Grade, and Agriculture.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • BBC Radio Orkney

James 5 star rating

Chester, United Kingdom

Simple, but fun pencil and pen illustrator. I love middle grade, chapter books, and non-fiction for kids and adults.

Genres: Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, Middle Grade Fantasy, Business & Management, Health & Wellbeing, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Epic Fantasy, and Fantasy.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • James Warwood Books

Andy 5 star rating

Brighton, United Kingdom

An illustrator of children's picture books, Young Adult books and book covers. A humorous style with expressive characters.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, Action & Adventure, Fantasy, Humor & Comedy, and Young Adult.

Work experience:

  • Minds eye productions
  • Artworld
  • Climax
  • Beyond Reality Games
  • Self-employed

Cassia 5 star rating

England, United Kingdom

I have a passion for innovative and fun design, cooking and nature, which is probably why those are my favourite genres.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, DIY & Crafts, Nature, Home & Garden, Inspirational, and Middle Grade.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Chamberlain Dunn
  • The Detective Agency

Laura 5 star rating

Bath, United Kingdom

I am an award-winning freelance Senior Book Designer, Illustrator and Artist with 28 years experience in the Publishing industry.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, Nature, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Anthologies, Music, Humanities & Social Sciences, Short Story, Education & Reference, and Children’s Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Usborne Publishing, Wolverhampton
  • Usborne Publishing, London
  • Self-employed

Peter 5 star rating

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Publishing professional with over ten years' experience, specialising in cover design and layout for non-fiction and sport.

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, and Sports & Outdoors.

Work experience:

  • Birlinn Ltd, Arena Sport, Polygon
  • Self-employed

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Edward 5 star rating

Brighton, United Kingdom

Graphic Design professional with over 20 years experience specialising in cover design and illustration.

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Business & Management, Nature, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Thriller & Suspense, Fantasy, and Literary Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Warner Music
  • Penguin Books UK
  • Self-employed

Jack 5 star rating

St Austell, Saint Austell, United Kingdom

Book covers and visual story telling is my passion. I enjoy creating characters and worlds in the sci-fi/fantasy genre

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Action & Adventure, Historical Fiction, Short Story, Mystery & Crime, Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Land Rovers UK
  • Alderac Entertainment Group
  • Lone Shark Games
  • Self-employed

El 5 star rating

Manchester, United Kingdom

Vibrant, stand-out illustration with a lively style. Perfect for children's books, fashion editorial, and travel genres

Genres: Travel, Non-Fiction, Short Story, Fiction, Education & Reference, Children’s Non-Fiction, and Fashion & Textiles.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

An illustrator with a love for food, helping authors and publishers bring their foodie stories and recipes to life.

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

I’m a seasoned cover illustrator with more than a decade of experience, collaborating with some of the leading figures in science fiction!

Genres: Military Science Fiction, Science Fiction, Fiction, Space Opera, Epic Fantasy, and Fantasy.

Work experience:

  • Ogden Media Ltd
  • Daniel Arenson
  • Chris Fox Writes
  • Not Yet Studios

Jenny 5 star rating

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

I'm an experienced book designer and illustrator. I specialise in all fiction and non-fiction genres from kids books to cook books and more!

Genres: Humor & Comedy, Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Health & Wellbeing, Home & Garden, Art, and Humanities & Social Sciences.

Work experience:

  • Penguin Random House New Zealand
  • Penguin Books New Zealand
  • Book Design Ltd (now Smartwork Creative)
  • Pearson Education New Zealand
  • Self-employed

Children's Picture book Illustrator and Designer. I make beautifully detailed illustrations to tell your story. Booking now for Aug - Dec

Genres: Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, and Nature.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Book designer, typographer and type designer with 12 years experience, specialising in coffee-table art/design/lifestyle books.

Genres: Architecture, Non-Fiction, Design, Entertainment, Fashion & Textiles, Home & Garden, and Photography.

Work experience:

  • Quarto Publishing
  • Self-employed

Fine Artist, designer and illustrator based in London with a passion for intricate lines and painstaking attention to detail.

Genres: Cultural & Ethnic, Fiction, and Themes & Motifs.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Hi! My name is Lou, I'm an illustrator who loves creating eye-catching, and fun illustrations that capture the spirit of your story!

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, and Picture Books.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Advertising Agency

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Hire the best book illustrators in the UK

You’ve done the hard work of getting a story on paper. Now let us help you find the perfect illustrator to bring your words to life.

In many genres, particularly those for a younger audience, the words and the pictures will become intertwined. Both should complement the other perfectly. If you think back to your most beloved children’s books, chances are that you still vividly remember the art that brought the story to life in front of your very eyes. So whether you’re publishing a children’s book or a technical piece of writing, your story deserves the illustrations that can illuminate it and take it to the next level.

But how can you find the perfect illustrator for your story? It’s probably not a surprise that talented illustrators are highly in-demand. But it’s not enough to simply be gifted. The ideal illustrator should have previously worked in your genre and have years of experience in the industry. More importantly, their style of illustration must match with your own unique voice.

If you’re struggling to find the right book illustrator to fit this profile, Reedsy can step in. Our book illustrators have worked for the biggest publishers and the most prestigious illustration agencies in the UK. We rigorously vet and accept only the top 3% of talent in the industry to ensure that you’re seeing the best freelancers available. What’s more, our platform lets you browse each illustrator’s individual gallery, so that you can get a feel for their illustration style before you commit to a collaboration. So what are you waiting for? Simply sign up for a free Reedsy account today to meet the perfect book illustrator for hire in the UK who can breathe life into your story.

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Step 3

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Request quotes from up to five freelancers at any time. They’ll look at your sample pages to give you a tailored quote as well as a sense of how they work.

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