My Mummy's a Superhero
I was really excited when Emma Portor asked me to create the illustrations for her book ‘My Mummy is a Superhero Nurse’. She wanted to create a book that children could read that celebrated and appreciated the jobs their parents did, but from a child’s perspective. The book follows a child watching their parent work and is in awe of the amazing things they do. They charmingly describe what they see and it beautifully captures the child’s innocent view on the world.
I started the project off by creating some rough character concepts, and luckily hit the nail on the head for who Emma envisaged the character to be. I then roughly sketched some scene ideas for the book spreads and re-worked a few and once Emma was happy, I did some colour palette exploration to decide on the overall colour palette and tone the book would take on.
![An illustration of children playing doctors](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/752x564px_Service_Childrens_Book.png?media=1697813262)
![Group 2449](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-2449.png?media=1697813262)
![Group 2448](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-2448.png?media=1697813262)
![Group 2447](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-2447.png?media=1697813262)
The final designs...
Once the outline designs and colour palette was approved, I got to work on colouring in the final illustrations! It’s so exciting and satisfying to see the artwork and characters come to life, and it’s always my favourite stage of the project!
![Children's book illustration with a super hero mum turning into a nurse](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Website_Images_Large_1641x821px_Childrens_Book_Illustration_My_Mummy_is_a_Super_Hero_Nurse_Final_1.jpg?media=1697813262)
![childrens Illustration of a nurse rushing around a hospital ward](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Childrens_Book_Illustration_Emma_-Portor_Book_Layout_Pages_5-6.jpg?media=1697813262)
![childrens book illustration of a nurse comforting a sick child in bed](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Childrens_Book_Illustration_Emma_-Portor_Book_Layout_Pages_7-8.jpg?media=1697813262)
![Childrens book illustration of a nurse mum watching her children play doctors and nurses in bed](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Childrens_Book_Illustration_Emma_-Portor_Book_Layout_Pages_17-18-1.jpg?media=1697813262)
![illustration of a mum hugging her two children](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Childrens_Book_Illustration_Emma_-Portor_Book_Layout_Pages_19-20-1.jpg?media=1697813262)
![Group 2461](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-2461.png?media=1697813262)
![Group 2462](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-2462.png?media=1697813262)
![Image showing open book with children's book illustrations inside - the scene shows a nurse transforming from a superhero](https://usercontent.one/wp/www.samanthathorley.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Website_Images_Small_537x403px_Childrens_Book_Illustration_My_Mummy_is_a_Super_Hero_Nurse_Storyboard_Book.jpg?media=1697813262)
Looking to have your own book illustrated?
I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing some of the visuals from our book, and if you’d like help bringing your own story to life,
please feel free to drop me and email at: samanthathorleyart@hotmail.com