The illustrator as a brand: keys to promotion in the publishing business

To position their work successfully, illustrators must understand how the publishing industry operates—its key players and processes. Among other activities, publishing companies are responsible for developing a catalog, acquiring titles, editing, and design. It’s important for them to define a catalog that reaches their readers, with works that reflect a specific identity. Many of the most important publishers actually “create” their own readers.

There is a classic distinction between transnational publishers and independent publishers, which almost always have a local character, where the editor is also the owner of the company. Additionally, publishers may organize their catalog into imprints, which are editorial lines presented as distinct brands, and collections, which group books of the same genre or category under the publisher’s brand. This diversification usually comes with unique graphic and visual identities.

To illustrate these concepts, we can look at a few notable examples. One such case is the renowned Minotauro, founded in 1955 by Francisco Porrúa. After noticing the absence of science fiction in Latin American literature, Porrúa began publishing translated classics like the famous The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. That same editor—though working with Sudamericana—published One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez’s masterpiece, which had been rejected by many other publishers. In this sense, the selection of works is a key editorial task, and the refinement of this process may lead to discovering great literature in initially underestimated manuscripts.

Other examples include Argentina’s Caja Negra, which specializes in essays on music and art; the Chilean-Venezuelan Ekaré, recognized for the refinement of its catalog; and publishers focused on children’s literature like Uruguay’s ¡Más Pimienta!, as well as others geared toward pre-readers, where books resemble toys and the publications explore materials and textures.

Compass for Illustrators

An illustrator’s work, above all, must align with the ideological, aesthetic, and political values that define each publisher. For this reason, illustrators should research a publisher before submitting their work to determine whether their style aligns with the publisher’s editorial line.

An illustrator must think of themselves as a brand. This means defining what attributes they want to convey, what qualities their work expresses—whether warmth, tenderness, irreverence, social critique, tradition, or others—and then asking whether these attributes match those of the publisher.

To promote their work, illustrators have several tools at their disposal: a personal website, platforms like Etsy (for direct sales) and Patreon (a modern crowdfunding platform), and of course social media, which serves as an ideal showcase to share their work with the world.

The portfolio is the illustrator’s main commercial and sales tool. It must be as professional as possible, and the selection of works should be personalized and carefully curated. It’s important to establish a clear hierarchy and sequence of images. Illustrators must select pieces from their body of work that are best suited to the specific portfolio they are presenting.

Time and thought should be dedicated to its content: What will the viewer see? What do I want to highlight? Customizing the portfolio for each client is crucial, achieved through a thoughtful selection of works. Everything in the portfolio depends on the recipient, and the context in which it will be viewed is also important. Viewing it at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair is not the same as reviewing it in a publisher’s office.

The selection should show the illustrator’s range of styles, note whether the pieces have been published, and include their strongest work. It should also be prepared in English, with careful attention to language accuracy, and include the illustrator’s contact information—aspects that are often underestimated. The portfolio should aim to answer every possible question a client might have.

The cover of the portfolio deserves special care: it must grab attention, be expressive, and clearly convey who the illustrator is in a single glance.

As for design, the portfolio should be in landscape (horizontal) format to support digital viewing and feature a professional and clean layout that allows for efficient absorption of content. From a technical standpoint, it should include 10 to 15 pages and avoid elements that interfere with readability—since the portfolio must be quick to view and grasp.

Adrián Puentes
Founder and partner at Puentes Literary Agency, representing Latin American authors and illustrators.