A studio service
Illustrated books for 9 to 12 year olds.
Readers between 9 and 12 have moved past picture books but still love a great cover, a map at the front and art that opens each chapter. We illustrate middle-grade books for authors and small publishers.
N° 01What middle-grade books need
What middle-grade books need
A cover that looks at home next to the books this age group already reads.
Chapter-opening illustrations or small spot art that break up longer text without slowing the reader.
Maps, family trees or diagrams when the story has a world to explore.
N° 02How we work
How we work
You send the manuscript or a chapter summary. We agree which scenes get art, sketch them for your approval, then finish them in the style you choose. You receive print-ready files and the cover for your book listing.
N° 03Which package fits
Which package fits
Most middle-grade books use the Big Book package: up to 30 pieces, which covers a cover, a map and an illustration for each chapter of a typical novel.
N° 04How it is made
How a book like this comes together.
01
Scenes are chosen before sketching
We read the manuscript and mark one moment per chapter that a picture shows better than words. Moments of change or discovery work better than conversations.
02
Chapter openers set a rhythm
An opener of the same size and position at the start of each chapter gives the book a steady pattern. The reader knows where the art will appear.
03
Spot art fills the pauses
Small pieces without a background sit at chapter ends and scene breaks. They add character without using a full page.
04
Maps follow the text
A map is built from every place name and direction in the manuscript, so the route in the story can be traced on it. Place names are set as text.
05
Art planned for grey printing
Interior art for black and white pages is planned in clear light and dark tones from the start. A colour picture converted later often turns muddy.
N° 05What goes wrong
Common mistakes, and how to avoid them.
01
Characters drawn too young
Readers of this age notice when a twelve-year-old looks six. Ages and proportions are fixed on the character sheet before any scene is drawn.
02
Pictures that give away the twist
An illustration placed before the event spoils it. We place each piece at or after the moment it shows and check the position against the manuscript.
03
A map that disagrees with the story
If the text puts the river north of the town, the map must too. We list every location from the manuscript and you check the map sketch against it.
04
A title that vanishes when small
A cover is often seen first as a small image in a book listing. The title lettering is checked at thumbnail size before the cover is finished.
N° 06Your brief
What to send us to get started.
You do not need all of it. Send what you have and we will ask in writing for anything missing.
• The manuscript, or a chapter-by-chapter summary
• Age and a short description of each main character
• The scenes you want illustrated, or a note asking us to suggest them
• Trim size, and whether the inside prints in black and white or colour
• Notes for any map, family tree or diagram
• Which of our sample looks you prefer
N° 07Peek inside
Pages like these.
Sample artwork made by Kompanie to show the kind of pages we make. Not client work.
N° 08Investment
Three packages, fixed prices.
Little Book
From $1,125
Board books, first-words books and short picture books. 4–5 weeks.
- Up to 2 characters, with a character sheet
- Up to 12 pages and 8 illustrations
- Cover illustration and title lettering
- One revision round on sketches
- Print-ready PDF and ebook cover
Picture Book
From $2,175
A full 32-page picture book. 6–8 weeks.
- Up to 3 characters, with character sheets
- 15 illustrations plus cover
- Two revision rounds per illustration
- Endpapers and title page
- Print-ready PDF and fixed-layout ebook
Big Book
From $3,675
Longer books, nonfiction, cookbooks and books for older readers. 8–12 weeks.
- Up to 4 characters plus settings
- Up to 30 illustrations
- Diagrams, maps or step-by-step art where needed
- Two revision rounds per illustration
- Print-ready PDF, EPUB and fixed-layout ebook
Before you choose
What you get
- A fixed price for the scope listed
- Sketches or a first draft to approve before anything is final
- Print-ready and editable files, yours to keep
What we don’t do
- Writing or editing the story
- Printing and shipping
- ISBN, publishing account setup or marketing
- Translation
Extra pages, slides or revision rounds are quoted before we start them.
N° 09Questions
The answers we give most often.
- Can you illustrate only the cover?
- Yes. Tell us it is cover-only and we will quote a cover package instead of a full book.
- Black and white or colour?
- Either. Chapter art for middle-grade books is often black and white to keep printing costs down; covers are in colour.
- Does a map count as one of the illustrations?
- Yes. A map or family tree counts as one of the up to 30 illustrations in the Big Book package.
- Will the characters look the same on the cover and inside?
- Yes. Every piece is drawn from the same character sheets, including when the cover is in colour and the chapter art is black and white.
- My manuscript is still being edited. Can you start?
- We can design the characters and plan the cover from a summary. Chapter scenes are best chosen once the text is settled, because we do not write or edit the story and scenes can move during editing.
Start your book
Ready to make your book?
Tell us what you're making. You'll get a fixed price and a schedule within two business days.