I'm Charity Russell a book illustrator and designer, specialising in children's literature, including picture books, chapter books, cards and activity books. 

Diversity and inclusion are very important to me and I like this to be expressed in my artwork. I graduated with a First Class masters degree in 'Illustration and Design' from The University of Sunderland in 2012, before which I gained my bachelors degree in Illustration from Falmouth University College, Cornwall in 2004. 

My work all begins in my sketch book with traditional pencil and ink, then my illustrations are digitally completed, here I amalgamate all the different textures I've gathered and patterns I've personally created with the original pencil and ink drawings. 

I am originally from Zambia and moved to the U.K. as a teenager, I now live in Bath, England with my husband, two children and dog, Frank. I specialise in freelance work for both independent and commercial authors and publishers, offering illustration plus full design, formatting and typesetting of children's books. 

Some clients include; Harper Collins, The Body Shop, Library For All, Our Little Worlds, NoMeLoMe, Monarto Zoo and many amazing talented authors, including: I Can Do Hard Things by Gabi Garcia Why Is My Piano Black and White? by Nathan Holder Where Do Tantrums Come From? by Manika Kaur A Wave Came through Our Window by Zetta Elliott (was awarded outstanding merit in Best Children's Books of 2016) The Boogie by Aaron Thayer It's Finders Keepers by Christopher Oyo The Why Books  by Nathan Holder Turvy Has No Time by Anoush Fazal  Books written by me; Mummy's Got MS (as I have MS) and The Window Book  

Please feel free to contact me here or via mail@charityrussell.com if you have any queries or are looking for a quote for a project. I am able to provide a full book design service, including cover design, layout and formatting, you can have a book on the market in a matter of weeks!