Illustrated Children's Books: Create a Unique Story

A course by Weberson Santiago , Illustrator, Writer, and Teacher

Illustrator, Writer, and Teacher. Lisbon, Portugal.
Joined August 2015

Learn composition techniques for illustrating a story from first idea to final prototype

99% positive reviews (171)
4,318 students
Audio: Portuguese
Portuguese · Spanish · English · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch

Learn composition techniques for illustrating a story from first idea to final prototype

The combination of narrative and images that children's literature brings together gives life to a powerful visual language, a hallmark of picturebooks. Brazilian writer and illustrator Weberson Santiago is an expert on the subject, having successfully published several books and other projects with major publishers, newspapers, and magazines.

In this course, learn to develop an idea graphically and build a visual narrative for a picturebook. Weberson guides you through each step with a series of exercises, showing you how to create characters and build the environment using a variety of composition techniques.

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What will you learn in this online course?

16 lessons & 10 downloads

What will we do in the course?
3 minutes, 56 seconds
How a picture book works
10 minutes, 39 seconds
Where do the ideas come from?
18 minutes, 59 seconds
Elements of design 1
20 minutes, 18 seconds
Elements of design 2
10 minutes, 2 seconds
Materials
2 minutes, 4 seconds
  • 99% positive reviews (171)
  • 4,318 students
  • 16 lessons (2h 45m)
  • 10 additional resources (3 files)
  • Online and at your own pace
  • Available on the app
  • Audio: Portuguese
  • Portuguese · Spanish · English · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch
  • Level: Beginner
  • Unlimited access forever

What is this course's project?

Illustrate three double-pages and the cover of your illustrated children’s book.

Projects by course students

Who is this online course for?

Designers, amateur or professional illustrators, storytellers, or anyone who would like to discover how to create and structure an illustrated children's book.

Requirements and materials

A lot of curiosity and a desire to tell stories are helpful for this course.

Regarding the materials, you will need A3 paper, some pencils, pens, inks, scissors, a stylus, adhesive tape, and a computer with Adobe Photoshop installed.


Reviews

4,318 Students
171 Reviews
99% Positive ratings

Weberson Santiago

A course by Weberson Santiago

Teacher Plus
Illustrator, Writer, and Teacher

Weberson Santiago understands how to combine the beauty of images with the power of words to bring his unique work to life. The Brazilian illustrator, writer, and teacher has published more than ten children's books and illustrated the pages of important national publications like Veja magazine and Folha de São Paulo newspaper.

His illustrations led him to participate in exhibitions in Latin America and collaborate on board games for Brazil, the United States, Asia, and Europe. He currently resides in Portugal and teaches courses at the Lisbon School of Innovation and Technology.


Content

  • U1

    Introduction

    • Presentation
    • Influences
    • What will we do in the course?
  • U2

    Understanding the illustrated book

    • How a picture book works
    • Where do the ideas come from?
    • Elements of design 1
    • Elements of design 2
    • Materials
  • U3

    Telling stories with images

    • Character
    • Scenario
    • Rhythm
    • Illustration
    • Final prototype
  • U4

    Finishing touches

    • Photoshop Tips and Adjustments
    • Project presentation
    • Book Map
  • FP

    Final project

    • Illustrated Children's Books: Create a Unique Story

What to expect from a Domestika course

  • Learn at your own pace

    Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.

  • Learn from the best professionals

    Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.

  • Meet expert teachers

    Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.

  • Certificates
    Plus

    If you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.

  • Get front-row seats

    Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.

  • Share knowledge and ideas

    Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.

  • Connect with a global creative community

    The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.

  • Watch professionally produced courses

    Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.


FAQs

Domestika's courses are online classes that provide you with the tools and skills you need to complete a specific project. Every step of the project combines video lessons with complementary instructional material, so you can learn by doing. Domestika's courses also allow you to share your own projects with the teacher and with other students, creating a dynamic course community.

All courses are 100% online, so once they're published, courses start and finish whenever you want. You set the pace of the class. You can go back to review what interests you most and skip what you already know, ask questions, answer questions, share your projects, and more.

The courses are divided into different units. Each one includes lessons, informational text, tasks, and practice exercises to help you carry out your project step by step, with additional complementary resources and downloads. You'll also have access to an exclusive forum where you can interact with the teacher and with other students, as well as share your work and your course project, creating a community around the course.

You can redeem the course you received by accessing the redeeming page and entering your gift code.

If you're a Plus member, when you complete a course you've purchased, you'll instantly get your personalized certificate. You can see all your certificates in the Certificates section of your profile. You can download your certificates as PDFs and share the link online. Learn more about certificates.
Illustrated Children's Books: Create a Unique Story. Illustration course by Weberson Santiago

Illustrated Children's Books: Create a Unique Story

A course by Weberson Santiago
Illustrator, Writer, and Teacher. Lisbon, Portugal.
Joined August 2015
  • 99% positive reviews (171)
  • 4,318 students