• Use Crayons, markers, pen and ink, finger paint, collage, photography, pencil, plastercine, textiles, paints, found objects collage (leaves, trash, etc.) computer illustrating software, vegetable stamping, chalk, sponge painting, the list is endless
• Fill the page. Make your backgrounds extend beyond the edges of your page. (Easy, just use a bigger piece of paper kids)
• Don’t fill the page. Show something precious or very important or lonely or isolated, very small on your page with nothing else around
• Create your own original characters. Don’t use characters from TV, movies, or books. They are owned by someone else
• Match the mood of the story. Funny happy stories = Vibrant, bold, clean illustrations usually. Sad stories may be darker or more somber colours
• Keep the important stuff within the center of the page so it doesn’t get cut off the edges
• No words. Your picture will tell the story. Leave the words to the story for a separate page.
• Use fun words! Incorporate sound words in your illustration. BLAM! CLOP! WHOOOOOSH!
• Remember to draw them as they sound
• Draw a storyline within the story illustrations. Maybe a pet can appear in every illustration having his own adventures simultaneously, but he’s never mentioned in the written story.
• Look at some of you favourite picturebooks for inspiration. Study them for techniques, media, that may work in your story

Things to remember:

• Maintain consistency throughout your story. Illustrations should be similar in style. Writing “voice” should be indistinguishable from page to page.
• Write for your audience. Create something that your students would enjoy reading, chances are other children would enjoy it as well.
• Consider creating a series, or developing a character that would appeal to your audience in a series of stories.
• If it sounds good use it.
• Worry less about grammar, sentence structure and more about how your characters speak and the flow of the story.
• Find the realism within your story. No matter how unbelievable if there is something that is real (the weather, the days of the week, an individual) the story will be far more believable.

Keep writing!
Keep drawing!