'What's Kiwi Up to?'
A spunky canine teaches readers by observing a dog's daily routine.
Through this whimsical children's picture book, young readers can witness the daily life of Kiwi, a sassy West Highland White Terrier! The purpose of this story is to educate children (ages 4-6) about interpreting a dog's body language and behaviors. The book cover jacket design was personalized to resemble my real-life pet companion, Kiwi.
I created the concept, illustrations, and cover jacket design.
What draws children to pick up a book?
I researched children's books at my local library to understand what kind of visuals would capture their interest. Cute characters on the covers with book titles posed as questions became the common themes for my rough, sketched compositions.
Designing book jackets was a new challenge to me. I had to consider many factors such as:
- Type of book binding and spine width
- Using typography that is both playful and legible
- Color mode conversion from drawing program (Procreate)
Learning the ropes of book production.
This design process taught me the essence of setting a solid foundation (in this case, prepped files).
Developing the visual aesthetic is important, but having consistent paragraph styles, properly sized elements inside margins, and maintaining the right color mode holds equal significance.
