What do art buyers look for?

I know it must seem basic to say good drawing, good color and good composition. But -- It’s true!

Present AMAZING samples!! It’s difficult to get any illustration job if looks that you are not consistent. You must show them plenty of good pieces. Have 10-12 really strong samples on your portfolio. For children’s work, art buyers are looking for character development, interaction and reaction. The characters are “acting” in their space on the page.

I’ve talked about promoting yourself in previous posts. These might be a few other ideas for you. Arrange an 8.5x11 sheet of paper with several illustration pieces in the same style you want to present to an AD (art director). Same as the postcards, put your name and email, possibly web address on the front and send to interested art directors and editors. Another idea would be to take out an ad in a promotional directory and order the extra tearsheets to send to publishers / buyers.

Constantly study the market. Keep an eye on what publishers are buying. What makes those illustrations work? How do they flow? Look for styles close to yours and notice who publishes them. Call the publishing houses and ask for a recent catalogue. Always stay current on what is coming out.

Trends can be tricky! Timing seems to be everything when hitting a publisher with your material. Be different, dramatic and memorable. This will help your to stay on top of the buyer’s mind so that they call when they need your style. Something else that helps to stay at the top of mind awareness is the frequency of sending your promotional materials. Four times a year is good, more is better!

In closing, develop your own personal style, do it very well, practice, get criticism, study the market, and keep sending samples in the mail to art buyers. Remember to show these essential elements that buyers are looking for: Good drawing, good composition and good color!

Mailers & Postcards

I would recommend getting a copy of Children’s Writers & Illustrators Market (CWIM) and go through and choose a highly focused and selective list of about 40-50 publishers. Choose publishers that publish materials that look like your illustrations or read like your writing. Now, I realize that this is going to take some time to research. Go online and become familiar with the publishers books. Go to the bookstore and look at them in person.

After you have a solid list, design a postcard. If you are an illustrator, showcase some of your work. I would recommend one piece on the cover with your name, email and web address.

On the back, put your name again with a relevant title, like Children’s Book Illustrator, etc. List any books you have illustrated with publishers name and accolades the book has received. List your web address with something like, “to see more work…” go here. If you have an agent, list the agent and maybe their logo and contact info. If you are a member of SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators), list that. Often times, editors will give preferential treatment to members over some who is not a member. If you are a member, it just communicates that you are very serious about your work. If you happen to have another small piece of art related to the front piece, or a small portion of it, you might want to add that.

Be diligent in mailing out a postcard 3-4 times per year. Book publishers and editors enjoy getting mail with fun pictures to look at. I’ve heard that if they like your drawing and illustration style, they will pin up your postcard in their office!! That generally means you are staying on the top of their minds as they look for a project to assign you!