The best book illustrators for hire in the United Kingdom

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Vanessa 5 star rating

London, United Kingdom

🟡 Experienced book designer available for book cover and interior book design/typesetting. 🟡

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Business & Management, Christian Non-Fiction, Religion & Spirituality, Poetry, Thriller & Suspense, Humor & Comedy, and Self-Help & Self-Improvement.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Sarah 5 star rating

England, United Kingdom

Specialist children's book illustrator and designer, creating beautiful and engaging books and content.

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

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Pearson Education
  • John Brown Media
  • Redan Publishing

Nick 5 star rating

London, United Kingdom

I am a book cover designer with 20 years experience. I have designed everything from thrillers, crime books and illustrated womens fiction.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Historical Fiction, Mystery & Crime, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • HarperCollins

Louise 5 star rating

England, United Kingdom

Hello, I am an Illustrator living & working in Somerset. My style is honest, inviting & brings the everyday to life.

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Classics, Home & Garden, Weddings, Short Story, and Fashion & Textiles.

Work experience:

  • Ernest Journal - Tina Smith, Jo Keeling
  • Author Andrew Sutton
  • The Hunterian Museum & Glasgow University
  • Curator of 'Museum of memory', Kate McStraw,
  • Tina Smith, Dan Linstead -Immediate Media
  • Pretty Nostalgic
  • Another Escape
  • Upper Hand Press. (William Cass, Author & Ann Starr, Publisher)
  • Marbella Club Hotel & Smokes Creative

Children's illustrator specialising in comical animal paintings (actual and invented), with over thirty years experience in the business.

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

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Versatile illustrator, artist & digital sculptor for all your awesome sci-fi and fantasy art needs.

Genres: Epic Fantasy, Fantasy, Fiction, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Military Science Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic, Space Opera, Steampunk, Horror, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Freelance

Illustrator specialized in visual story telling through fantastical pictures and bold colour palettes.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, Middle Grade Fantasy, Middle Grade, Young Adult Fantasy, and Young Adult.

Work experience:

  • The Design Solution, London, UK
  • Bucharest, Romania
  • Self-employed

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Graphic designer and art director with over 15 years experience working in the publishing industry.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Middle Grade Fantasy, Children's, Young Adult Fantasy, Young Adult, Thriller & Suspense, Mystery & Crime, and Middle Grade.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Penguin Random House

Mickey is a multidisciplinary award-winning creative specialising in art direction and design. Her style is bold, colourful and playful!

Genres: Travel, Non-Fiction, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Health & Wellbeing, Cultural & Ethnic, Fiction, Humor & Comedy, Design, Contemporary Romance, and Romance.

Work experience:

  • ACNE
  • Self-employed

Book designer and illustrator with 7+ yrs in publishing. I specialise in books on art, culture, history, nature, philosophy & mythology.

Genres: Art, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, History, Children’s Non-Fiction, Philosophy, Education & Reference, Earth, Space, & Environmental Sciences, Math & Science, Nature, and Comics Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Dorling Kindersley, London
  • Dorling Kindersley, India
  • Batsford Books

Designer, typesetter and illustrator with excellent typographic skills and a quirky drawing style.

Genres: Math & Science, Non-Fiction, Entertainment, Transportation, Literary Fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Children's.

Work experience:

  • The Folio Society
  • Veloce Publishing
  • Clarity Media

J C 5 star rating

Manchester, UK

Award-winning children's picture book illustrator, designer and animator. I paint in a gentle watercolor style. BOOKED TILL OCTOBER 2026.

Genres: Education & Reference, Non-Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, and Children’s Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Catalyst Pictures Ltd
  • Aquent
  • DesignShop Ltd

Children’s picture book illustrator specialising in hand-drawn expressive, story-driven artwork full of warmth, movement, and colour.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, and Fiction.

Work experience:

  • TryHackMe
  • IncSub
  • Self-employed

Bringing 25+ years of whimsical, joyful and colourful illustration to the publishing industry. Unique, fabulous drawings just for you!

Genres: Short Story, Fiction, and Children's.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

I am an experienced freelance illustrator, with more than 40 titles published in children’s and youth literature.

Genres: Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, Middle Grade Fantasy, Children's, Fiction, Picture Books, and Middle Grade.

Work experience:

  • Germano Ovani

Experienced and multi-talented book designer who can help make your book something special. Covers, layout, typography, beautiful imagery...

Genres: Design, Non-Fiction, Architecture, Music, Humanities & Social Sciences, Entertainment, Photography, History, Travel, and Art.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Bloomsbury Publishing
  • Thames & Hudson

I’ve been an illustrator since 2008 I work in editorial, publishing and advertising.

Genres: History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, Classics, Fiction, Cultural & Ethnic, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Poetry, Steampunk, and Science Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

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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 2

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Then, browse professional profiles to find out more about their personalities and past projects.

Step 3

Request quotes

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.

Step 4

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Once you agree on terms and a timeline, you’ll start collaborating using the many communication and editing tools available on Reedsy.

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