Martina Francone

Martina Francone – Designer

I specialise in narrative cover illustration and artwork for books, film, and music.

Overview

Hi, I’m Martina!

I'm an illustrator and designer based in London, originally from Italy (with a stop in Sweden and Denmark along the way).

My illustration practice is influenced by travel, place, and storytelling. Living in different countries has shaped both my visual language and the themes I’m drawn to, which often comes up in my work.

I specialise in illustration for books and editorial projects, with a strong focus on cover design that captures the essence of a story.

I studied Design and Visual Communication at the Polytechnic University of Turin, followed by an MSc in UX Design at the University of Brighton. This design background strongly informs my illustration work, allowing me to approach book covers with both creativity and clarity, balancing visuals with composition and typography.

Since 2016, I’ve been working professionally as an illustrator, collaborating with magazines, self-published authors, and publishing houses to bring stories, characters, poetry, and ideas to life. I’ve worked across a wide range of genres, which has helped me develop a structured, collaborative process and build strong relationships with clients. I enjoy working closely with authors and editors to explore themes, define visual direction, and create covers that resonate emotionally while aligning with the book’s goals.

I’d love to hear from you, talk about your ideas, and how I can represent them visually.

Best,

Martina

Services
Non-Fiction
Art Music
Fiction
Classics Contemporary Romance Magical Realism New Adult Poetry Themes & Motifs
Languages
English
Certifications
  • BSc in Design and visual communication
  • MSc in UX Design

Work experience

Self-employed

Jan, 2016 — Present
I've been working as a freelance illustrator in the last few years, specialising in editorial design. My work is characterised by the exploration of indoor spaces, daily objects and the concept of home. I’ve always been fascinated by places and their stories. In my illustrations I like to shift the perspective and turn the little details and the daily objects that belong to a space into the protagonists. I’m interested in exploring the meanings that places, and objects, carry with them - the stories and the memories that they evoke. The colour blue is a recurrent theme in my work, which helps me represent the sense of nostalgia associated to places that play(ed) a significant role in our lives.

Martina has 6 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Hannes R.

Hannes R.

Jan, 2026

perfect as always. beautiful style, super fast, very enjoyable creative collaboration. I will continue choosing Martina for my cover art :)
Hannes R.

Hannes R.

Dec, 2025

Martina was an absolute dream to work with. I asked her to take creative leadership which she did, delivering beautiful sketches for potential covers. Later, she took a lot of time and care to ask for my feedback and implement edits and variations. Within the next week, I will reach out to her ag...
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Martina F.
Thank you so much for your kind words Hannes. Likewise, and looking forward to working together again! :)
Blake Y.

Blake Y.

Jul, 2025

Martina did an amazing job with the artwork, she is the definition of a professional with her responsiveness, and the quality of her work is great for the value.
Kimberly L.

Kimberly L.

Mar, 2025

I really enjoyed working with Martina. She is thoughtful, engaged, and imaginative. I appreciated how open she was to my suggestions and I am very pleased with the book cover she designed. I would definitely work with her again! Highly, highly recommended.
Steve D.

Steve D.

Jul, 2024

Martina has been an island of integrity and professionalism in the shark-filled waters of self-publishing. As soon as I saw her style, I knew it would give a distinctive touch to the cover design, and avoid lots of problems that would have arisen with a more literal, representational style. ...
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