My Process of Illustrating the Novel

During the months of writing the novel, the characters and scenes come alive to me. Therefore, as both author and illustrator, the selection of features to illustrate becomes relatively easy. The next step is to develop a small, preliminary sketch of each proposed illustration, using either pencil or ink (image). If the concept demonstrated by the sketch seems acceptable to me, I then lay out the scene at full scale in pencil on paper. This drawing is then completed with pen and ink, keeping in mind that its final appearance will usually occur at a reduced size, where fine detail may be lost. Completion of the illustration ordinarily takes anywhere from two hours to two days, depending on its detail.