Picture Book Illustrator Schedule Survey
This is a survey for picture book illustrators working primarily in the United States publishing industry.

If you are a graphic novel illustrator, you can fill out the graphic novel survey here: https://forms.gle/fRrKrpAJrgbKwdtr8

For the purposes of this survey, a "picture book" is defined as a fully illustrated book intended for young children, of at least 32 pages, with an average word count between 300 and 600 words. Your picture book size and word count may vary based on this standard.

The Purpose: to get a sense of timeline trends for picture book illustrators among the US children's book industry. There is no standard in the US picture book industry for illustration production schedules. The time an illustrator is given to work on a single picture book may be impacted by any number of factors. Anecdotally, I have heard schedules ranging from just a few weeks to over a year, but there's one thing that remains the same in all situations: illustrating a picture book is challenging, time-consuming work, and illustrators should be given enough time to comfortably do their work while maintaining a healthy work-life balance.

How Will the Data Be Used: the data will be presented publicly by Nilah Magruder to give illustrators a more transparent look at illustration timelines. The hope is that both unagented and agented illustrators will be able to use this information to advocate for themselves. I hope this information also gives agents and editors a clearer understanding of healthy illustration schedules. I will not be collecting names or private information of survey participants. While this survey may ask for specific details about the books you've published, all responses will remain anonymous.

The Creator of the Survey: My name is Nilah Magruder. I am an author and illustrator. I oversee the Agents for Illustrators Directory. If you have questions about the survey, e-mail me at illustratoragents@gmail.com.
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How long have you been illustrating picture books? *
How many picture books have you illustrated in the course of your career? *
Include any books you're currently illustrating in your count.
In what country are your publishers primarily based? *
Do you have an art/literary agent who negotiates your picture book contracts? *
In the last two years, which types of publishers account for the majority of your picture book contracts? *
Required
Check any of these publishers that you have illustrated for in the last five years. *
Required
What is the shortest amount of time in which you've illustrated a picture book? *
If you're an author/illustrator, please leave out your time spent writing the text and only include the time spent illustrating.
Did an art or literary agent negotiate this contract for you? *
Sometimes in the course of illustrating a book, a deadline may be affected by contract delays, lengthy revisions, or communication delays with the editor or designer. Please elaborate on any changes in your negotiated schedule that impacted the amount of time in which you illustrated the book.
What is the longest amount of time you've had to illustrate a picture book? *
If you're an author/illustrator, please leave out your time spent writing the text and only include the time spent illustrating.
Did an art or literary agent negotiate this contract for you? *
Sometimes in the course of illustrating a book, a deadline may be affected by contract delays, lengthy revisions, or communication delays with the editor or designer. Please elaborate on any changes in your negotiated schedule that impacted the amount of time in which you illustrated the book.
What would you say is the average amount of time you're given to illustrate the majority of picture books you've worked on? *
If you're an author/illustrator, please leave out your time spent writing the text and only include the time spent illustrating.
Has meeting a picture book illustration schedule ever required you to do the following? *
Required
Have you experienced any illness or injury that affects your ability to work tight picture book deadlines? *
Would you like to elaborate on any illness, injury, or other uncomfortable or unhealthy practices you've experienced in order to meet a picture book deadline?
In general, how do you feel about the schedules you've been given for the majority of the picture books you've illustrated? *
In general, how do you feel about illustration schedules you will negotiate in the future? *
In what country are you based?
What race best describes you?
What are your pronouns?
Are you a marginalized gender/sexual identity?
Are you disabled?
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If you have anything else you'd like to say about illustration schedules, please include it here.
Your answers are anonymous. Survey results will be compiled and published at a later date. Any long answers you've provided will not be quoted in the final publication, but may be referenced in general terms. Do you consent to the use of your answers in this survey? *
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