If you are not creating your illustration by yourself (doing freehand digital illustration) and feel a bit lost while searching for images, here are some ideas of where to find some.
If you want to pay a professional to illustrate your book, you can ask an illustration company or a freelancer. If you opt for using pre-made illustrations, be aware that there is always a risk that it does not fit what you imagined, that delays happen, and that quality has a different meaning for everyone. To avoid any issues, be clear on what you like and your style, and carefully check previous work from the company or the freelancer.
If you feel adventurous, you can also try AI (Artificial Intelligence) but keep in mind that it is a new technology, so it is not always perfect. Be also careful of copyright issues you could meet on your way.
It is also possible for you to illustrate your book by yourself with tools you must pay for and free ones. Here is a non-exhaustive list:
- The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators
- Getyourbookillustrations.com
- Fiverr
- ChildrensIllustrators.com
- Upwork
- Behance
- 99designs
- Guru
- Pixabay (free)
- unDrawn (free)
- Freepik (free)
- Openclipart (free)
- Flaticon (free)
- VectorStock (free)
- Vecteezy (free)
- The Noun Project (free)
- Vector4Free (free)
- Shutterstock (free)
- Unsplash (free)
- Openverse (free)
- Smithsonian Open Access (free) …
Technology is endlessly evolving, and so are the possibilities. The quality of the image keeps improving too. As illustration is essential to your story, it might be risky to use old-fashioned tools.