About the Illustrator - Author - Video animator
From an early age, Essex J James showed a talent for storytelling, inspired by his siblings' books and sketchpads. His passion led to an award-winning career in children's literature, including picture books, editorial illustration, and numerous school visits.
Known for a style full of warmth and humor, Essex has influenced many young readers and their educators.
How we make our mission happen:
We make our mission happen by turning meaningful stories into engaging books, colorful illustrations, learning activities, and creative experiences that encourage children to read, imagine, explore, and grow with confidence.
The 3 core pillars of Creative Digital Art Children Books:
How We Improve Literacy
We create engaging, age-appropriate stories that encourage children to read, build vocabulary, strengthen comprehension, and develop a lifelong love of books.
How We Inspire Imagination
We combine colorful illustrations, memorable characters, creative storytelling, activities, and multimedia experiences that help children explore ideas, dream bigger, and see new possibilities.
How We Empower Young Minds
We create stories that build confidence, curiosity, kindness, problem-solving, faith, friendship, and positive decision-making so children can learn, grow, and believe in themselves.
Milestones & Honors
- 🏆 CFWPG— Children's Illustration Excellence
- ✏️Over 5 children's books published
- 🎨 Over 40's children's books illustrated
- 🌟 Numeral school and daycare reading
- ✏️ Recognized by the CFWPG for Creative Storytelling & Book cover design
View Portfolio: A Gallery of Imagination
From picture books to editorial spreads and passion projects — every piece tells its own story. Essex explore's a
curated selection of illustrations spanning over 25 years of creative artwork, characters creation and animated videos.
Starter Story Package
A beginner-friendly package designed for first-time authors and small projects, helping you embark on your creative journey with ease.
- Up to 8 original illustrations
- Custom character design
- 3 round of revisions included
- High-resolution digital files (JPEG, PNG)
- Basic layout support for text integration
Starting at $550
Click here to get started
Picture Book Pro Package
This comprehensive, mid-tier package is ideal for authors embarking on full picture book projects. It offers a balanced solution, ensuring your story is beautifully brought to life with professional artistry and publishing-ready quality.
- Up to 15 original illustrations for interior pages
- Custom character designs for up to 5 main characters
- Professionally designed front and back cover art
- Five rounds of detailed revisions included
- High-resolution, print-ready files (CMYK, 300 DPI)
- Detailed color palette development for visual consistency
- Basic manuscript pagination and layout guidance
Starting at $750
Full Series Bundle
A premium package for multi-book series or large projects, offering extensive creative support to develop captivating worlds and characters across multiple volumes.
- Up to 30 original illustrations distributed across 2 books
- Full cast of character designs (up to 5 unique main characters)
- Professionally designed front and back cover art for each book.
- Three comprehensive revision rounds per book.
- High-resolution, print-ready (CMYK, 300 DPI) and web-optimized digital files.
- Dedicated project timeline and direct artist collaboration.
- Coloring book
Starting at $1500
Testimonials: Voices of Readers & Partners
Nothing says more than the words of the people these books have touched — parents, teachers, librarians, and fellow creators who live alongside these stories every day.
⭐ Dr. Poochie Carter
"It is the first illustrated children's book that our company has ever embarked upon and Mr. James' contributions helped to make it a huge success."
⭐ Dr. Ruth L. Baskerville, Author, Editor, Ghostwriter
"I secured the graphic designer and illustrator services of Essex James. He is a gifted artist who added dozens of well-placed, colorful and expressive pictures on the pages of the book.
He also designed the front and back cover."
⭐ Akiba & Ahmad Aliyy -Authors
"Essex was very sensitive to our vision, shared his ideas and suggestions with us, and formed the illustrations that helped the story have the life even better than we originally expected."
⭐ Tranny D. Jackson Authors-Publisher
"I would highly recommend Essex J. James as an exceptional asset and resource during your journey as a first time author. He is artistic, innovative, and masterful with creative illustrations.
He demonstrated a great deal of patience, guidance, knowledge, and professionalism during my many changes and updates. He also helped me to stay on track to meet projected timelines.."
⭐ Joan Ulloth,
Authors-Publisher
"Essex was a courteous professional who explained the self-publishing process as he performed illustration magic in making my vague descriptions of possible illustrations become reality."
⭐ Suzette Farquharson-Morgan
FarMor Group Inc
"Essex James unique style, created the concept illustration that captured book cover design scene with attention to detail and excellent blended visual elements."
Children Books Animated Video
