Alana McCarthy

Alana McCarthy – Designer

One stop shop for illustration, lettering and design for book covers and picture books. Award winning illustrator with 20 years experience.

Overview

Take the stress out of bringing your book to life. I provide my clients with illustration and layout design for picture books and novel covers, I also specialize in hand lettering for your book title. When you work with me there's no need to hire a separate designer - I'm a one stop shop.


I love capturing the worlds written within books. I'm extremely versatile and can go from elegant illustrated covers to animated children's book characters. I'm also well versed at hand lettering and can make your title completely unique.


I've worked with Scholastic, Penguin Books, Disney/Pixar, Adobe and many other top tier brands over the years. I'm super professional, easy to work with, respect deadlines and your time.


I'm also a magical unicorn of an illustrator who LOVES being art directed and bringing YOUR idea to life. Let's chat about your project!



Services
Fiction
Action & Adventure Chick Lit Coming of Age Humor & Comedy Mystery & Crime Picture Books
Non-Fiction
Nature
Languages
English
Awards
  • Communication Arts Award
  • Gemini Award
  • American Illustration - Chosen
  • HOW Magazine Design Award
  • Applied Arts Award
  • OCAD Illustration - AOCAD with Honours
  • Royal Dragonfly Book Award

Work experience

Self-employed

Apr, 2002 — Present

I make beautiful custom illustrations, murals, design and lettering to help brands and businesses stand out. I've worked with book publishers, editorial, advertising, marketing and design clients.

With almost 20 years of professional creative experience, and a bunch of awards, I'm an expert visual problem solver. I'm based in Toronto, but work with clients worldwide.

Some of my clients include:

• Adobe
• Taco Bell,
• Absolut Vodka
• Penguin
• Scholastic
• Berkley
• Owlkids
• Crayola
• Disney/Pixar
• Nickelodeon
• Oxford Press
• The Wall Street Journal

Portfolio

Hummingbird

Grant, Fran

Cover Design Illustration Typography
Spoilers: Essays That Might Ruin Your Favorite Hollywood Movies

Greaves, Carlos

Cover Design Illustration Typography
World's Coolest Grandpa

Golden, Lamar

Cover Design Illustration Typography Book Interior Design
There's No Such Thing As Happy Endings

Long, Aaron

Cover Design Illustration Typography
I’m Going to Be a Hockey Star

L. Wegwerth, A.

Cover Design Illustration Typography Book Interior Design
A Firefly's Journey

D'Ambola, Kat Rees

Cover Design Illustration Typography Book Interior Design
Strum and the Wild Turkeys

Daniel, Noa

Cover Design Illustration Typography Book Interior Design
ANIMAL DEFENDER

Casner, Chip

Cover Design Illustration Typography Book Interior Design

Alana has 9 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Jess A.

Jess A.

Sep, 2023

I can't say enough amazing things about Alana! From the very beginning I truly felt that I was seen and heard. She understood the pieces of my vision, and magically brought my book to life. It's better than I ever imagined it would be! As a first time author, I had NO idea what I was doing and was so nervous! Alana helped me through every step and beyond. She was incredibly kind, patient, supp...
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Alana M.
Jess was so fantastic to work with! Even though this was her first book she approached it with professionalism and grace and was open to taking suggestions. She was supportive and appreciative of m...
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Mark L.

Mark L.

Sep, 2023

I have to admit that both Alana and I pushed each other a bit out of our comfort zones, but worked to a very good conclusion on the project. Most of the complications were from my end of the communications, as I tend to converse in highly legal and technical terms, and she is the artist. As I said, the project ended up with satisfaction on my end, and I hop she will not decline any future req...
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Carlos G.

Carlos G.

Jun, 2023

Alana was fantastic to worth with! Her communication was excellent, she quickly and flawlessly incorporated my feedback throughout each stage of the process, and she added other artistic touches that I wouldn't have thought about. I would definitely work with her again!
Alana M.
Thanks so much Carlos! You were wonderful to work with too. Your humor, vision and clear art direction made this detailed cover a breeze to work on. Would love to work with you again soon!
Lamar G.

Lamar G.

Apr, 2023

Wow downright impressive what Alana can do with an idea. I would definitely hire you again for my future projects. I appreciated your responsiveness, patience and constant idea changes I had. Alana did a fantastic job and created something more beautiful than I imagined. I think her illustrations will blow my father-in-law away for his surprise birthday present. If you are reading th...
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Alana M.
Thank you so much Lamar! You were such a joy to work with. Communicative, supportive and collaborative. I hope to work with you again soon!
Aaron L.

Aaron L.

May, 2022

I promise you when I say this…Alana is the best person I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. My book cover resembles everything I’ve ever messaged her. Also, her timelines in regards to communication is unmatched—I honestly thank her so much for bringing my vision to life. It means the world to me that she genuinely cares about my story and it shows in my final cover. Alana, you are an a...
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Alana M.
Aaron was a joy to work for. He was a clear communicator, set me up with all the printing templates I needed and made my job easy. He was so in tune with describing his characters and their persona...
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