Hiring A Children's Book Illustrator

For a children's book author, part of publishing a book also includes finding and hiring a children's book illustrator. At MindStir Media, we've been illustrating/publishing children's books since 2010, and many of our illustrators have been illustrating much longer than that on their own. Some of our illustrators are even award-winning illustrators. They've illustrated in nearly every illustration style imaginable and have worked on hundreds of picture books.

Recently, I had one of my illustrators at MindStir Media create a mascot for our children's book division. Check it out below.

Click here if you want to learn more about getting your children's book illustrated. We follow a simple 3-step illustration process and our rates are affordable considering the quality. We even include free revisions as part of the process and fees.

Interview: Children's Book Author Toni Tuso Faber

I interviewed children's book author Toni Tuso Faber earlier this week. She's the author and creator of The Poodle Tales children's book series and brand. An excerpt below:

Toni Tuso Faber approached MindStir Media in 2012 about her children's book series, The Poodle Tales. Since then, nearly a dozen books in the series have been produced. Toni also launched a fantastic interactive website at www.thepoodletales.com; built up an amazing poodle-loving community of over 12,000 people on Facebook; and has attracted hundreds of Poodle Club members (sign up to get free stuff!). She even created other fun stuff like the Catch A Poodle game and anonline coloring & activity book, among other things. I'm so honored to be a part of The Poodle Talesand I'm looking forward to continuing to help Toni with children's book publishing and children's book illustrations and more. Without further ado, here's an interview I recently conducted with Toni Tuso Faber:

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? Writing a book is like creating a sculpture, when you feel an urge, you pursue it. In my case, I never actually realized I wanted to be a writer. One day I was just inspired! 

How long does it take you to write a book? There are no time limits as far as writing a book, as writing a book is a very personal endeavor. The questions are many. Is it a novel, is it poetry, is it simple children's verse, or perhaps a complex review of one’s life issues? Hmm, difficult to answer; however, I believe the answer is, whatever it takes to make it great! It could take a month, a year, or even a lifetime … as long as it is good! 

Read the rest of the interview...