You missed one. SVS learn - it is possibly the best out there. Heard of inktober? Jake Parker is one of the founding guys along with his two mates. All amazingly qualified. Just don’t bother with anything else.
It’s already on the list Andy! Under its long form name… it does look good. I’ve listened to some of their podcast too. Good to know you’re a fan of good ship too ☺️
That said though, check out onegraydot.com: not everything I do is on there as I want to ensure the majority of illustration work is the stuff I want to do. But I regularly help clients self publish work I’ve illustrated. And I’ve worked in loads of styles. So if you ever want to chat or message me questions about yon business of scribbling (no charge) then please do.
Or what Sheila’s drawings said. I think svs is more technical for kids books. I mean we are talking everything. Fly your freak is more getting the you into the work. In fact I’d say both on second thoughts. Yeah… do both courses! And I am a professional illustrator.
Thanks very much for this extensive review of available courses! I have just done the Fly Your Freak Flag course offered by the Good Ship Illustration. I'm not in illustrator but wanted something to help me get back into drawing more. I have really enjoyed the course although I felt some of the modules were light on content/practical exercises. It does contain some really interesting interviews with working illustrators though. It has got me drawing more and is helping me move on a bit from where I felt my practice was a bit stuck.
That’s great Sheila, I’m so glad the course has helped get you unstuck recently. I find that a lot with courses, they spark something in me when other things have gotten in the way. I especially like hearing from other experienced illustrators too, very inspiring
I second the Claire Alexander recommendation. I have done one illustration and one writing workshop with her and the group was small enough that you can get direct feedback and ask questions. She is lovely and has loads of good insights.
This is an awesome list, Libby! I have done many of these courses. The Owen Davey one that I met you on, has been one of the most valuable to me as it kickstarted the book I am working on and I made some real progress (almost done!). Going forward, I am going to be looking for more courses like that, where you work on your own book, and get feedback and have accountability. Because, as you say, we already know a lot of what is available in other courses (after taking so many already) so for me it's more about putting it into practice on an actual book project now.
I think Claire Alexander offers something similar for picture books, but I haven't taken it yet. It's on my wish list.
That’s lovely to hear about Claire Liz! I really enjoyed the Owen Davey one, especially because our group was so great. So many different styles, approaches and experience. I enjoyed learning from each other as well as Owen’s personal feedback and time on each of our projects
I'm chiming in as I have some thoughts on this as someone that runs illustration courses and loves going to courses and workshops!
I think doing a course every now and then is fantastic and a great way to get in the swing of things, meet people, learn new skills - all that good stuff. I especially love attending courses that are more about art creation, for example at the Royal Drawing School. It's so so nice to be in a creative environment with likeminded artistic people.
I've also had 1 to 1 mentoring with the brilliant Tania from Goodship, as well as with illustrator Linzie Hunter and also portfolio reviews through the AOI.
& I used to go to a lot of orange beak talks too - they have so many interesting speakers.
However!!!
I have noticed a trend of people taking my illustration courses (which I teach at CityLit in London) who maybe lack the confidence and faith in themselves to just go for it. They will just keep booking courses, and I have a sneaky suspicion that they are just delaying the really hard nitty gritty bit of being an artist or illustrator which is getting on with your work and being self motivated. I am definitely a bit guilty of this myself.
A lot of information in some online courses is readily available in blogs or books or on the AOI website, and I do think some of the courses have quite a high price tag, for things that someone could do by themselves if they had a bit more self belief.
Overall, i think we should always keep learning and courses are a great way to do this, but they do need to be balanced with a big dose of personal work, reflection and research.
Thank you for this compilation, it's very helpful. I wouldn't call myself exactly "addicted" yet, more like a hoarder :-), judging from the courses I've got saved but have never finished or even finished watching. Although I loooove the accessibility of learning online, all of the courses available can make it really tempting to play it safe by staying in "eternal student mode", rather than entering the fray and figuring out through real-world experience what you don't know and which skills you need to acquire. But anyway, thanks for this post, it helps me hoard more efficiently! ;-) ;-)
A hoarder, I love that. At the beginning I was like ‘I’m going to watch everything, on-time and be a super student.’ After I got a couple of illustration jobs, everything started to slip. Now I have tens of hours to catch up on 😄 I’m glad this post will help improve hoarding efficiency!
Such a GREAT article, and so thorough! And it’s soooo lovely to be mentioned! Hihi. I also wrote one article on Substack in that topic, a while back. I wanted to recommend that people don’t just “binge” on courses but they have their WHY. Skillshare as the “Netflix of online courses” :)
Ah Weronika! You’re very welcome. Thank you for your amazing classes. Knowing your WHY is so important and allowing a bit of flow after a course to put things into practice. Online course platforms can certainly be as addictive as Netflix! :)
Thanks for the rundown of all these courses! I too am a course addict and I had to force myself not to buy anything this year unless it was for a specific goal I had in mind. I still have a bunch of Domestika classes I need to watch.
I've taken The Good Ship Picture Book Illustration course and SVS Learn's Children's Book Pro course. The Good Ship's strength is that they really get you to think about stories - not just illustration. I developed two ideas from their exercises into dummy books and I just sold one to a traditional publisher and the other is in acquisitions at another publisher! Children's Book Pro from SVS Learn is really good on the technical aspect, and they do answer all the questions that are submitted to them (which I really appreciated) and give feedback. Unfortunately I was too busy working on another book project when I was taking the course so I didn't have time to do the assignments!
I also took Nina Rycroft's Animal Character Design class (one of the other commenters mentioned her) and enjoyed it. I'm actually doing a mentorship with her now.
I'd also recommend Claire Alexander's workshops. I took a composition class with her last year and learned more in those 4 hours than I did in an entire year of art school!
Wow Michelle - massive congratulations on your books! That’s so exciting. And thanks for all the course insights, I’m sure it’ll be really helpful for others interested in children’s book illustration. I’ve been to on of Claire Alexanders’s monthly draw-alongs. I’ll add her course and the other specifics to the post!
Thanks, Libby! 😊 I've never been able to make it to Claire's draw alongs, but I hope to one day! Thank you again for sharing your insights on the classes you took, it's really helpful!
I’ve received a recommendation via email for courses by Lindsay Stripling. https://www.lindsaystripling.com/ I’ll update the article next week with all recommendations. Keep them coming! 😀
Nina Rycroft has a few really good courses. She has some free mini-courses that are very thorough, and I've also done her PicBook Live course, in which she gives extremely detailed feedback.
As for the Good Ship courses (I've done all 3) I'd say, and it might sound like a contradiction, that one of the strengths of their courses is that they don't give personal feedback. So much of the work I've seen coming out of other courses looks like it came out of those courses; they seem to accidentally promote a 'house style'. Good Ship teaches you to make up your own mind about your illustrations.
Lovely, I’ll add Nina’s to the list. That’s a really interesting point about Good Ship and no feedback. I’ve had some good tutors on other courses who don’t favour a style when giving feedback but others that do. I think it makes for a really good facilitator when they encourage all styles and style exploration. Thanks Jesse! 😊
You missed one. SVS learn - it is possibly the best out there. Heard of inktober? Jake Parker is one of the founding guys along with his two mates. All amazingly qualified. Just don’t bother with anything else.
It’s already on the list Andy! Under its long form name… it does look good. I’ve listened to some of their podcast too. Good to know you’re a fan of good ship too ☺️
That said though, check out onegraydot.com: not everything I do is on there as I want to ensure the majority of illustration work is the stuff I want to do. But I regularly help clients self publish work I’ve illustrated. And I’ve worked in loads of styles. So if you ever want to chat or message me questions about yon business of scribbling (no charge) then please do.
Thanks Andy! Lovely work! Much appreciated :)
Scans back …. Oh yeah 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I’d already been illustrating for some years, but doing the course even when it was early days was stupidly helpful.
Or what Sheila’s drawings said. I think svs is more technical for kids books. I mean we are talking everything. Fly your freak is more getting the you into the work. In fact I’d say both on second thoughts. Yeah… do both courses! And I am a professional illustrator.
Thanks very much for this extensive review of available courses! I have just done the Fly Your Freak Flag course offered by the Good Ship Illustration. I'm not in illustrator but wanted something to help me get back into drawing more. I have really enjoyed the course although I felt some of the modules were light on content/practical exercises. It does contain some really interesting interviews with working illustrators though. It has got me drawing more and is helping me move on a bit from where I felt my practice was a bit stuck.
That’s great Sheila, I’m so glad the course has helped get you unstuck recently. I find that a lot with courses, they spark something in me when other things have gotten in the way. I especially like hearing from other experienced illustrators too, very inspiring
I second the Claire Alexander recommendation. I have done one illustration and one writing workshop with her and the group was small enough that you can get direct feedback and ask questions. She is lovely and has loads of good insights.
This is an awesome list, Libby! I have done many of these courses. The Owen Davey one that I met you on, has been one of the most valuable to me as it kickstarted the book I am working on and I made some real progress (almost done!). Going forward, I am going to be looking for more courses like that, where you work on your own book, and get feedback and have accountability. Because, as you say, we already know a lot of what is available in other courses (after taking so many already) so for me it's more about putting it into practice on an actual book project now.
I think Claire Alexander offers something similar for picture books, but I haven't taken it yet. It's on my wish list.
That’s lovely to hear about Claire Liz! I really enjoyed the Owen Davey one, especially because our group was so great. So many different styles, approaches and experience. I enjoyed learning from each other as well as Owen’s personal feedback and time on each of our projects
This is such a useful resource!
I'm chiming in as I have some thoughts on this as someone that runs illustration courses and loves going to courses and workshops!
I think doing a course every now and then is fantastic and a great way to get in the swing of things, meet people, learn new skills - all that good stuff. I especially love attending courses that are more about art creation, for example at the Royal Drawing School. It's so so nice to be in a creative environment with likeminded artistic people.
I've also had 1 to 1 mentoring with the brilliant Tania from Goodship, as well as with illustrator Linzie Hunter and also portfolio reviews through the AOI.
& I used to go to a lot of orange beak talks too - they have so many interesting speakers.
However!!!
I have noticed a trend of people taking my illustration courses (which I teach at CityLit in London) who maybe lack the confidence and faith in themselves to just go for it. They will just keep booking courses, and I have a sneaky suspicion that they are just delaying the really hard nitty gritty bit of being an artist or illustrator which is getting on with your work and being self motivated. I am definitely a bit guilty of this myself.
A lot of information in some online courses is readily available in blogs or books or on the AOI website, and I do think some of the courses have quite a high price tag, for things that someone could do by themselves if they had a bit more self belief.
Overall, i think we should always keep learning and courses are a great way to do this, but they do need to be balanced with a big dose of personal work, reflection and research.
Thank you for this compilation, it's very helpful. I wouldn't call myself exactly "addicted" yet, more like a hoarder :-), judging from the courses I've got saved but have never finished or even finished watching. Although I loooove the accessibility of learning online, all of the courses available can make it really tempting to play it safe by staying in "eternal student mode", rather than entering the fray and figuring out through real-world experience what you don't know and which skills you need to acquire. But anyway, thanks for this post, it helps me hoard more efficiently! ;-) ;-)
A hoarder, I love that. At the beginning I was like ‘I’m going to watch everything, on-time and be a super student.’ After I got a couple of illustration jobs, everything started to slip. Now I have tens of hours to catch up on 😄 I’m glad this post will help improve hoarding efficiency!
Such a GREAT article, and so thorough! And it’s soooo lovely to be mentioned! Hihi. I also wrote one article on Substack in that topic, a while back. I wanted to recommend that people don’t just “binge” on courses but they have their WHY. Skillshare as the “Netflix of online courses” :)
Ah Weronika! You’re very welcome. Thank you for your amazing classes. Knowing your WHY is so important and allowing a bit of flow after a course to put things into practice. Online course platforms can certainly be as addictive as Netflix! :)
So much of information in this article. Thanks Libby. I am also on the same journey.
I’m so glad its helpful Rachna! Glad to hear you’re on the journey too. Have you taken any courses?
Not yet. I bought an iPad and for now trying to be familiar with the same by following YouTube videos. Anything that you suggest for a beginner?
Thanks for the rundown of all these courses! I too am a course addict and I had to force myself not to buy anything this year unless it was for a specific goal I had in mind. I still have a bunch of Domestika classes I need to watch.
I've taken The Good Ship Picture Book Illustration course and SVS Learn's Children's Book Pro course. The Good Ship's strength is that they really get you to think about stories - not just illustration. I developed two ideas from their exercises into dummy books and I just sold one to a traditional publisher and the other is in acquisitions at another publisher! Children's Book Pro from SVS Learn is really good on the technical aspect, and they do answer all the questions that are submitted to them (which I really appreciated) and give feedback. Unfortunately I was too busy working on another book project when I was taking the course so I didn't have time to do the assignments!
I also took Nina Rycroft's Animal Character Design class (one of the other commenters mentioned her) and enjoyed it. I'm actually doing a mentorship with her now.
I'd also recommend Claire Alexander's workshops. I took a composition class with her last year and learned more in those 4 hours than I did in an entire year of art school!
Wow Michelle - massive congratulations on your books! That’s so exciting. And thanks for all the course insights, I’m sure it’ll be really helpful for others interested in children’s book illustration. I’ve been to on of Claire Alexanders’s monthly draw-alongs. I’ll add her course and the other specifics to the post!
Thanks, Libby! 😊 I've never been able to make it to Claire's draw alongs, but I hope to one day! Thank you again for sharing your insights on the classes you took, it's really helpful!
This is such a good collection of courses and great questions to ask yourself before signing up for any of them!
Thanks Jenni! I’ve enjoyed our many illustration course chats…. and I’m pretty sure we’ll be having more in future 😄
I’ve received a recommendation via email for courses by Lindsay Stripling. https://www.lindsaystripling.com/ I’ll update the article next week with all recommendations. Keep them coming! 😀
Nina Rycroft has a few really good courses. She has some free mini-courses that are very thorough, and I've also done her PicBook Live course, in which she gives extremely detailed feedback.
As for the Good Ship courses (I've done all 3) I'd say, and it might sound like a contradiction, that one of the strengths of their courses is that they don't give personal feedback. So much of the work I've seen coming out of other courses looks like it came out of those courses; they seem to accidentally promote a 'house style'. Good Ship teaches you to make up your own mind about your illustrations.
Lovely, I’ll add Nina’s to the list. That’s a really interesting point about Good Ship and no feedback. I’ve had some good tutors on other courses who don’t favour a style when giving feedback but others that do. I think it makes for a really good facilitator when they encourage all styles and style exploration. Thanks Jesse! 😊