We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Before you get started, to set the mood, hit play on Sounds of Summer: Very Best of the Beach Boys. 🌞

Tutorial

• Step 1: Start by drawing the trunk.

• Step 2: Fill in the trunk with zigzags as shown.

• Step 3: Above the trunk, add curved lines for the top of the palm branches.

• Step 4: Draw the rest of the palm branches as illustrated.

• Step 5: Draw lots of little circles for the dates. Add a top branch to the tree.

• Step 6: Finish by doodling sand and rocks.

• Done! Your doodle is finished. We’d love to see your drawings in our subscriber’s chat.

Enjoyed this tutorial? You might like this one as well…

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Cartoons are fun! Exaggerated details make an illustration playful. Characters doing silly things entertain the crowd.

And that’s what our last post was all about. We shared my sister Bethany’s cartoon drawings.

If you missed it, you can read it here.

Bethany introduced us to a character who inspired her to write a children’s story: Eugene.

When Bethany was finished writing her story, she needed a cover design that would entice people to read it.

So, being the amazing brother that I am, I got to work.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Bethany’s Story: Down With Vegetables

Before designing a cover, I need to understand the writing and style of the author and what the book is about.

So, I read my sister’s book titled Down with Vegetables, starring Eugene.

It was entertaining, funny, and definitely silly.

Setting the Mood

Potential readers need to know what’s in store for them if they choose to read a book.

Will the book be emotional, funny, serious, or a little of each?

Since this was a children’s story, I wanted a very playful feel. The design needed to capture a silly vibe, making the book instantly recognizable as simple and lighthearted.

How can a silly aesthetic be achieved? Using bright colors, bold fonts, and hand-drawn elements are sure ways of doing so.

Direction set… I started working on the design.

The Sketching Phase

The book title is the most crucial part of cover designs. So I put most of my attention on the typography. I sketched out a couple of typography concepts featuring interlocking letters.

I wanted the letters to make an impact. To create this feeling, I used bold and sharp shapes.

Since Bethany was the illustrator of this book, I asked Bethany to draw a cover illustration.

We decided on an illustration of Eugene throwing out a whole bunch of vegetables.

This illustration was intriguing. Why would an old man be throwing out vegetables? Why does he have a happy, friendly face? What is he accomplishing in throwing out vegetables?

From just looking at this illustration, we become increasingly interested in the story. At least that is the intention.

Bringing It Together

I finalized the typography on the computer. When designing type, I make sure to use consistent spacing and shapes across every letter. This ensures clean typography that feels cohesive.

I then turned Bethany’ sketch into a polished illustration.

Finally, I added abstract shapes to help the lettering stand out. These shapes matched the typography style.

And with that, the cover was finished.

(If you’re not already subscribed, you can do so here for more content like this. 📬️)

Read Down with Vegetables

We know that many of our readers are writers too.

Some are parents, and some are grandparents.

Well, Bethany’s story, Down with Vegetables, is for everyone!

🥕 If you need a moment to smile and enjoy the work of a young cartoon artist, this book is for you.

🫑 If you would like to share a moment with a special child, this is the perfect read, unpredictable and amusing.

🍅 If you’re struggling with finding your passion as a writer, Eugene’s story is an allegory to encourage you.

Download now

Down with Vegetables is a gift to ALL of our subscribers. Enjoy!

Let’s Create a Cover for Your Book

If you’re an author, chances are, you want to make book sales. You can’t make sales unless your book stands out among millions of others. A great cover design can do just that.

A book cover isn’t just for looks. Its primary job is to catch the eye of potential readers and make them interested.

Let’s work together to make your book standout in the vast sea of the internet.

If you are an illustrator, we can help you too. We can work with your original art and make it pop on the cover of your book.

Let us take care of the typography and layout that will make your book impossible to pass by.

We are ready to help you bring it all together. Your work deserves it!

Well, we hope you enjoyed this post. Let us know what you think about the cover or the story.

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We have an extra fun one today!

We invited ’s younger sister, my daughter Bethany, to write for us.

Bethany is a high school senior, mostly finished with her core curriculum. Many of her study hours are devoted to art. Doodling, drawing, watercolors—you name it. On any given day, you will find Bethany following tutorials, reading art books, and creating.

In today’s post, Bethany shared about how she is developing her skills as a cartoonist. I’ve learned a lot as I have watched Bethany draw cartoon characters, and I think you will too.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Studying Cartooning

By Bethany

Growing up with storybooks, TV shows, and Pixar movies, I have often admired the work of cartoon artists. Cartoonists know how to put a smile on a child’s face. Cartoons are fun and nostalgic, and they’re supposed to be.

As a homeschooled art student, I find cartoons fun to draw. There’s something to drawing a picture where the lines and proportions don’t need to be exactly right. They can be imaginative and silly.

To develop my cartooning skills, I watched a YouTube series by Let’s Draw with BeeJayDeL.

This is a great series. The videos are well done and easy to follow. I recommend it for anyone practicing cartooning.

Finding My Style

I liked the way my drawings came out when I was following a video, but artists say you need to develop a personal style. What if I never figure out a style that is perfect for me? I was always influenced by other people.

I just needed to be patient with the process. Influence isn’t a bad thing. There’s nothing wrong with imitating other artists. However, I needed to use my creativity to call the drawings mine.

I drew characters without watching a video. That was a big step. Still, I was using the concepts the man taught in his videos. That was okay. I was getting better.

To change things up, I decided to give my characters big heads. I like drawing large heads because I can highlight the facial expressions. I combined this idea with other elements of art I had seen and started my own style.

Here’s one of the first drawings I created with this style.

Naming My Characters

As I drew my characters, personalities emerged, and I started naming them. I’ll introduce you to a few of them.

Claire

The first character I named was Claire.

Claire is assertive, pretty, and perhaps a bit vain. She spends a lot of time in front of the mirror getting her make-up just right.

Chuck

Next up is Chuck.

He is care-free and very sloppy. You can tell by his messy hair.

It’s always good to look at your life for inspiration. Some of the inspiration for this character came from my brothers. 😃

Karen and Her Two Boys

I drew a little boy named Sammy, a woman named Karen, and a baby boy. I decided they should be a family: a young mother and her two sons.

I drew a man with dark skin and a character who was supposed to be his wife. After coloring, I thought the woman looked more like his mother.

Eugene and Emma

Lastly, I’ll introduce you to an elderly couple. I named them Eugene and Emma.

Inspired to Write a Story

Of all my characters, one inspired me to write a children’s book: Eugene. However, to make a story about him, I had to adjust the drawing.

I started with the same idea, an old man with a mustache. I needed to fix the shape of his body and head. A few wrinkles, a pair of glasses, and a different outfit—what do you think? Is this an improvement?

Let me tell you a little about Eugene. Like I said, he is married to Emma. He’s retired and needs to find something he enjoys to keep busy.

Most importantly, he hates vegetables. This is the basis for my story.

When writing a children’s story, there has to be something about the characters that a child can relate to. A man who only likes junk food seemed perfect.

I drew many pictures for my story.

Coloring My Drawings

I was happy with the drawings. However, I wanted to color them digitally to give them a crisp look.

I had no idea how to start, so I went to my brother Justin. This is the benefit of having AJ Doodles in the family. I knew Justin’s graphic design and computer skills would help. Justin showed me how to scan my drawings and transfer them to the computer. He gave me an app to work with Krita.

I have seen Justin color drawings on the computer many times. I have always thought it looked kind of fun, but I figured my talent was drawing by hand. After doing a project where I had to color many digital pieces, I still think my talent is more in drawing with pencil and paper than in computer work. I did enjoy the digital coloring, though.

Justin was very patient with me throughout this project. I’m not a techy person. I had to get Justin’s help quite a few times throughout the project. He always figured out the best way to do things and helped me when I made mistakes.

My mom was very supportive too. Given that she is an artist, my mom and I like exchanging opinions about the other’s art. She gave me ideas as I showed her my drawings along the way.

Eugene in Color

The more I worked in Krita, the better and faster I became.

The first drawing that I colored was Eugene eating his junk food. I have to admit, it was pretty fun coloring the pizza and ice cream. :)

I am glad I learned a new skill on the computer. It’ll come in handy if I decide to make another story. I became better at drawing, writing, and digital coloring by doing this project.

Next Up…

This post is just the beginning of the fun with Eugene! Next week, Justin will show you how he created a book cover for Bethany’s story, and we have a special surprise for our subscribers.

So, stay tuned!

We’d love to hear your thoughts on Bethany’s drawings.

Leave a comment

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Tutorial

• Step 1: Using a pencil, draw a guide oval.

• Step 2: Draw a rim of the pail around the guide, leaving space for sand. Add the handle above the rim.

• Step 3: Doodle some wavy lines for the sand.

• Step 4: Draw the rest of the bucket as shown.

• Step 5: Add a shovel to one of your sand lines.

• Step 6: Finish by adding dots for the sand and some shells.

• Done! Your doodle is finished. We’d love to see your drawings in our subscriber’s chat.

Enjoyed this tutorial? You might like this one as well…

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Welcome, AJ Doodles readers!

For those of you who have been following our journey, you have seen that Justin and I are having fun with our design process.

From playful puppies to returning to the 80s, each design is meant to display personality, humor, cheerfulness, commitment to excellence, and determination to grow as designers and illustrators.

While we’ve delighted in every design, none is more fulfilling than creating a design for someone else, a client. As graphic designers, much happiness comes from a simple request to make an image that someone else wants to display as theirs.

In today’s post, we will share a design that we made for Substack writer and life coach . It was a joy—both to work with Barbara and to create the image for her.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

A YouTube Thumbnail

Barbara has a YouTube channel: Simply Harmony Reflections. She posts guided meditations to help others find clarity, focus, and personal growth. She uses vivid imagery, elements of nature, color, affirmations, and creative stories to support others in their journey to bloom and thrive.

Furthermore, Barbara uses AJ Doodles’ personalized illustrations to support her work and make it stand out on YouTube. (And it’s a good idea too because there are plenty of people using generic thumbnails.)

When Barbara started her channel in May of this year, we were right there with her. We created a thumbnail illustration to give her channel a unique look. We shared about our first design in this post.

The Project Brief

“Let’sThe image needed a cohesive look with the previous image that we made for Barbara’s YouTube channel. Providing the photo below, she said that she was interested in something similar but was open to our ideas. She said she was thinking greenery, blue sky with clouds, and a bench with a silhouette on it.

From the initial request, we knew this was going to be a fun project!

When we asked Barbara what she wanted the silhouette to look like, she said, “Let’s go with a female version with a ponytail.”

I suppose her answer is one of the reasons this project was so fun for me. I’m a gal who loves to pull my hair back, sit in nature, and meditate. I could easily put myself into this picture.

Amy’s Process

The first step to all of our images begins with a piece of paper and a pencil. Since we were making this image to go with the first, I began by taking out my sketch from the first thumbnail.

This was helpful because while playing with the silhouette for the first image, I had made a couple of women with ponytails. I could easily place a lady like the ones above onto a park bench.

The next thing I did was draw out a rectangle that was 16 by 9 centimeters. The ratio for YouTube thumbnails is 16:9. By creating my sketch in this frame, Justin wouldn’t have to do any extra size formatting later when he brought it into the computer. He traced the image as is.

I drew this and asked Barbara what she thought before bringing it into the computer. I know I loved it, but we needed to make sure Barbara was happy with it. And she was.

Making It Digital

By

With the sketch approved, I brought it into the computer.

I started by tracing over the sketch lines to create all the different elements. Along the way, I edited and changed some of the lines for a more refined illustration.

Adding Color

The colors above were just concept colors to help me visualize the scene. To create the final color palette, I used Coolors (a powerful color palette generator).

After picking the colors, I incorporated them into the illustration.

We were 95% done with the image. However, the sky and hills looked bland and empty. I needed to add something that would make the whole scene pop.

Quick note: If you are not subscribed to AJ Doodles, you’re missing out on content like this.

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Extra Details

I added lots of wavy shapes throughout the skyline. I gave the hills some flowers and plants. The trees and clouds received highlights.

And with that, the illustration was finished!

Here’s Barbara’s response:

Thank you again for this newest perfect piece of art for my YouTube meditation channel! We’ve worked together several times now and the process is always easy and fun. You take my idea and run with it, creating the ambiance, vision and color that supports my work. As you said, until next time…

Barbara used the illustration for her latest YouTube meditation. Have a listen…

Illustrations to Help You Stand Out

It was fun creating a special illustration for Barbara. Now, we’d like to do it for you. Custom illustrations will help viewers understand a concept, feel a feeling, and most importantly, remember you.

If you want to stand out online and establish your personal brand at the same time, click the image below.

Any questions, comments, or feedback? Be sure to leave a comment.

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May 4, 1996. I was a year out of college. My beloved asked for my hand, and I gave it to him, my heart too.

We had passions and dreams. But our jobs only reflected the outcome of a well-earned BA. I was a waitress at a Red Lobster, and he was the assistant manager at a Rite Aid Pharmacy.

What did we know? We were in love and wanted to be together.

So, we did what any young couple would do. We quit our jobs and started a cleaning business: On Our Knees Cleaning, May 4, the same day we were engaged.

And we did well too.

A friend created a logo and made t-shirts for us.

A man from our church printed fliers for a mailbox campaign courtesy of his advertising business. We did a cleaning job for him and his wife after a house fire.

Our schedule was full. We cleaned homes and offices 5 days a week.

The cleaning business lasted a couple of years—until we heard another call. It wasn’t hard to leave behind.

But we have the memories and compatible cleaning skills. My husband has always been good with a vacuum.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Justin’s Logo Project

And along came Justin. As a homeschooler, he had an interest in graphic design and marketing. He was an artistically clever guy (still is), creative, and very savvy with technology. He studied logo design and branding.

As he was finishing up high school, I encouraged him to work on a portfolio. I gave him projects from my life’s experience, explaining what I wanted in a logo. On Our Knees Cleaning was the perfect logo project.

Thoughts Behind the Design

By

When designing a logo, I like to understand where it will be used. This helps me know what parts of the design are most important. For On Our Knees, I wanted a solid icon that could stand alone.

The icon mark would be used for social media, t-shirts, and as a website favicon.

A good logo design should be distinct from the industry’s trends and cliché symbols. So I wasn’t going to create an icon out of a home symbol and a few stars to represent cleanliness. I wanted to design something that would separate On Our Knees from every other home cleaning business.

I started the design by sketching out multiple ideas. I wanted to illustrate a person on their knees. I had the idea to combine a vacuum and person into one unique mark.

After exploring the idea some more, I came up with a final concept that I liked.

Next, I tackled the wordmark. I chose to design my own typeface for the project. This way, another company wouldn’t be able to download and use the exact font for On Our Knees, keeping the brand unique.

Given the long name, I stacked the words for the primary logo. The typography style matches the icon, making the design cohesive, which is super important with brand design.

The logo looks pretty good on a van as well.

Creating Brand Illustrations

For the brand’s illustrations, we chose to place cleaning characters on real photographs. This is a style I have seen other artists use, and I wanted to give it a try myself.

We created two characters (a man and woman) using clean outlines and textured fills.

(Please note: these characters are purely fictitious and likeness to the original On Our Knees Cleaning crew is merely coincidental.)

Fonts, Colors, and a Website Design

Every brand has a set of colors and fonts that are used across all the designs.

For the fonts, I chose Satoshi, a modern sans serif typeface. I paired this font with Playfair Display, a serif typeface that feels clean and trustworthy.

I kept red as the primary color from the original On Our Knees designs. I paired the red with a brown (communicating home), a blue (trustworthy and represents jeans), and green (for that clean aesthetic).

To test out the brand, I created a concept of what an On Our Knees website would look like.

The result was a sleek and modern website that feels clean, energetic, and trustworthy.

Fun. Meaningful. Memorable.

Custom illustrations, logo designs, colors, typography—whatever it is, we’ve got you covered. It’s time to give yourself an authentic brand that will increase clarity and loyalty with your customers.

Fill out the form to get started.

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“If you want your Substack or any other social media profile or even any books to instantly stand out, you need to talk to Justin and Amy.”

—

I’d love to hear your thoughts on these designs. If you have any questions, be sure to ask them in the comments.

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We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

I participated in a 5-minute sketch challenge hosted by , author of Betsy’s Substack, and , author of The Quiet Yes.

During this challenge, I drew my sunflowers for 5 minutes every day for 5 days in a row. By the end of the challenge, I had developed a doodle style for sunflowers that I quite enjoy doodling in my notebooks.

I hope you enjoy it too! 🌻

Tutorial

• Step 1: Draw a circle. Using a pencil, draw a concentric circle outside the first. Add a vertical line extending from the outer circle (like a lollipop 🍭).

• Step 2: In between the two circles, draw some petals.

• Step 3: Draw some more petals behind the first set of petals. Add a leaf as shown.

• Step 4: Draw more leaves along the vertical line.

• Step 5: Inside the smaller circle, draw a coily line (like an old telephone cord ☎️). Draw parallel vertical lines for the stem.

• Step 6: Finish by adding dots in the center of the flower and lines for the ground.

• Done! Your doodle is finished. We’d love to see your drawings in our subscriber’s chat.

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You’re scrolling through Substack, and a post catches your attention. Maybe the title piqued your curiosity, or the featured image was intriguing. Whatever it was, you stopped scrolling to open it.

You start reading. It’s a long post filled with big blocks of text. You look at the clock and decide to hit the save button, intending to read it later. Maybe you come back to it, and maybe you don’t.

If you’re a Substack writer, your audience could be deciding to read or not read a post based on its formatting. Even though you have valuable things to share, your posts may lose your readers’ attention simply because they are not visually appealing.

Today, I am going to show you a simple hack to keep your readers engaged until the end of your posts.

I am a graphic designer. The job of a designer is to engage the viewer in order to communicate a message in a visual and memorable way. My tips for keeping your readers interested have nothing to do with the words themselves but how they are formatted visually. I’ll leave the word part up to the experts. 🙂

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Tip #1: Break Up Long Paragraphs

Big paragraphs with long text are one of the biggest factors that keeps me from reading a post till the end. If I’m really interested in the topic, I may force myself. If I’m just a little interested, however, I often stop reading when there’s nothing that grabs my attention visually.

With the age of ADHD, we need to work hard to keep our audience reading. My first suggestion is short paragraphs. Making short paragraphs helps readers scan your article if they don’t want to take the time to read it word-for-word.

Additionally, it gives each paragraph room to breath. This principle in design is called “white space.” With plenty of white space, there is more emphasis on each paragraph giving a stronger impression. 💥

Finally, short paragraphs are much easier to read on mobile devices. In 2026, you need to be optimizing for mobile viewers.

Tip #2: Add Text Dividers

You’ve cut your paragraphs down. Great, but that’s not the end of the story.

If you have no images in your posts, then all you have is text, text, and more text. It can be exhausting to read. 😴

To fix this, I like to use horizontal designs in between paragraphs or headers to break up the text. Something like this works well…

I call this a text divider. 😀 A text divider gives the reader a break and helps them get ready for the next section.

The divider also adds a splash of color. Black and white is boring. Using an image can liven up your article.

Further, text dividers can make your writing more memorable. The majority of authors on Substack are not using them. You can develop your personal style using text dividers.

Best Text Divider Practices

I recommend keeping the design short and horizontal.

Something to keep in mind is your current branding (colors, fonts, etc.). You want your dividers to be in line with your brand, strengthening the memorability. Generic stock images may not be the best choice.

Ideally, you would have a design that is custom and unique to you. A look no one else is using.

As for placement, text dividers work well in between paragraphs to break up long sections. They can be placed before or after headers as well.

But don’t make the mistake of overdoing them. I recommend 2-4 dividers total. If your posts are short or already filled with images, you may not need any.

If your design’s colors do not stand out against black and white, I recommend not using a transparent background. This is to ensure proper legibility when viewing your posts in the Substack reader.

And I think this would be a good place to add another divider…

Examples of Great Dividers

Now that you understand the purpose of text dividers, let’s look at some Substackers who are using them well.

What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking

’s publication ranks #1 for Food and Drink on Substack. Her designs are very professional and clean.

Instead of using Substack’s built-in headers, she has her own header designs that help break up the text.

These simple word designs are consistent with her branding and unique to her publication. They add a nice splash of color, separating the paragraphs.

It really pops on the dark background in the Substack reader as well…

The Minimalist Herbalist

Each post from is thorough and lengthy. However, the author does a nice job breaking up text with images.

Right after each header, the author uses an image with The Minimalist Herbalist wordmark on it. This works for three reasons:

1. Images like these are easy to attain.

2. The wordmark helps brand the design, making the publication easier to remember.

3. The image works with the writing to communicate the message.

Extra Biblical Librarian

The last example is text dividers that we created for . Sarah writes Extra Biblical Librarian, an educational publication teaching about historical and spiritual books not found in the Bible.

Given the depth of Sarah’s content, we wanted to give her designs that would make reading her publication fun. We created a handful of illustrated book dividers using her brand colors.

These simple illustrations have an educational aesthetic that suits the publication perfectly. 👌

Start Adding Dividers to Your Posts

There you have it. Are you ready to format your content to help engage your readers?

If the answer is yes, we’d love to help you get started. We can create a set of unique text dividers for you to use across all of your posts. Fill out our intake form to get a price.

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As always, if you have any questions, ask them below.

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I called it a sketchbook and challenged myself with certain guidelines.

You can read about my sketchbook rules and the beginning of this particular sketchbook journey here.

In today’s post, I’ll share some updates—what I’m learning, how I’m challenging myself, and some completed pages.

I’ll share the good and the embarrassing.🫢

So, let’s take a look.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Organization and Approach

As we flip through my sketchbook, you will notice that I date every drawing.

The idea is to do a little every day. I don’t try to fill a page with one drawing; I make mini drawings. Not using a timer, I suspect this exercise takes between 20 and 40 minutes, maybe more. Somewhere between 2 and 5 times a week, I’m drawing in my sketchbook.

As I pick subjects, themes have developed. Without much intention, I have created pages around motifs.

Have a look at my “Sheep and Goats” page.

All of these drawings were of sheep and goats that I have encountered while walking in my small town. The shepherds are very patient with me when I take pictures. 😊

No Pencils, No Erasers, No Problem

If you read my first article, you know that the first rule that I set for myself was “No pencils and no erasers.”

In giving up erasing, I have learned some workarounds.

1. Plot Points

When using a pen, you can plot points. The points can be used to figure out the angle, length, and curve of a line before committing to making one. Once the line is drawn, the point disappears, leaving a well-planned line.

2. Make the Right Line

Sometimes lines don’t look quite right. They are off just a little or even a lot. When you make the wrong line, you can fix it by making the right line. The wrong line can serve as a guide for the correct one.

When the right line is in place, the wrong one will hardly be noticed. Our minds make adjustments when viewing art; we see what we are supposed to see.

My Banana

Art isn’t just about carefully placed lines. It’s about feelings and connections.

My banana was drawn in my sketchbook in June.

Before sitting down to do a math lesson with my kids, we all drew a banana. It was a fun way to get my drawing and coloring practice in while procrastinating on the math lesson. We were doing geometry proofs.

After sharing it in a Substack note, someone said they’d like to hang “My Banana” on their wall.

Yay! I was super encouraged! And we made it available to order.🥳

You can order it here if you like.

Order now

Apricots

As a self-taught artist, some things take time. Things that perhaps, if I had taken a class or two, I would have experimented with a long time ago.

But, as it is, I’m learning as I go.

In this sketchbook, I have been playing with color—background colors, shading choices, etc.

Along the way, I have become more curious about hatching.

So, I’ve tried using hatching in my shadows. (This is the embarrassing bit.)

Though I have seen other artists use hatching with colors, I have not found a way to make it work. In the example above, my hatch lines look weird. If I had used colors to create the shadows, I could have achieved a better drawing. But my sketchbook isn’t just about making my best possible drawing; it’s about trying new things and pushing past my current abilities.

Immediately after coloring this group of apricots (I had eaten most of them, but I still had one and a bit left from which to observe), I noticed that I quite liked my background color choice—blue and purple against orange.

Wanting to redeem my apricots, I drew this.

Hatching Practice

After the embarrassing apricots, I decided to practice hatching. For this, I eliminated coloring.

My morning coffee cup was a perfect subject. (So pretty, warm, and inviting.☕️😍)

Day 1: I drew my coffee cup, observed how the light from my nightstand hit the cup, and sketched and hatched it.

Day 2: I watched a very helpful YouTube video and generally followed the approach.

Day 3: Personal style and intuition kicked in.

A mint plant is my current subject for hatching practice. If you follow my Substack notes, you’ll soon see the results.

Go to my notes

A Few More Pages...

Ladybug Coffee Cup

More Bugs (and Some Flowers)

The reference photos for this page were taken from ’s Substack notes.

And More Flowers For You, Dear Readers

Thank you for joining me in this look inside my sketchbook.

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Doodling the 1980s was fun. Nostalgia kicked in. I was delighted to remember Velcro wallets, family time around the TV, microwave popcorn, and the beginning of the speedy progression of technology.

Y2K—also fun. I remembered our first computer. I was newly married. My husband and I loved the dial-up sound and the words, “You’ve got mail.” We didn’t have kids yet, but by the year’s end, we’d have our first baby. And another, and another, and...

And then came 2020.

Maybe it’s because we’re still living it. Maybe my feelings about this era are raw.

Even those of us who yearn for long summer days playing in sprinklers and catching frogs have technology at our fingertips. We want to return to homesteading and walks in the woods, but we bring smartphones along. We take pictures, share the moment, and hope someone out there will connect. They do, and we’re thankful.

But we must admit—2020 is a full commitment to technology.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

2020 Doodles

I made 2020 doodles, accepting the current state of things. I did not imagine how I wanted them to be, or how I think they should be, but how I think they are. There’s freedom in embracing reality.

My doodle design started with a smartphone. From rotary to cell to smart.

To create our 2020 design, we decided to magnify the smartphone.

With the smartphone amplified, the doodles were easy.

I drew icons for apps.

From cash and checkbooks to payment apps.

From cassette tapes to MP3 players to music apps.

From coffee makers to digital coffees. (Okay, maybe this technology stuff is fun after all.😊)

Finding Inspiration and Moodboarding

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If I type “80s graphic design” on Pinterest, I get a clear visual style. Sure, there are different design directions we could take with an ‘80s aesthetic, but the styles are still very vivid. However, it wasn’t as easy determining a clear style for the 2020s.

It’s harder to detect trends and popular styles while we are living in the moment. As time goes by, each era becomes more recognizable and distinct from the others.

That being said, I had a good idea of where I wanted to take this project. I put together a moodboard highlighting the visual direction and mood of the design.

Let’s talk about the moodboard… I wanted a clean yet bulky sans serif font.

I also wanted to implement an aurora gradient. A gradient is a blur of colors. An aurora gradient has a flowing pattern similar to the Northern Lights. These gradients are often used in AI web/UI (user interface) design, so they feel modern.

With the visual direction set, it was time to move on to the design.

Typography

First things first, I chose a background color and the fonts.

The “Hand-Drawn” font is Boldonse. I paired this tall, thin font with a popular typeface that is much wider, Montserrat.

These two fonts work great together and gave the design the clean modern look I was going for.

Colors

Using the orange and pink from the moodboard, I created a gradient for the background. I then used a similar gradient for “Illustrations” and “your brand.” This helped those words stand out, as they are key to the message.

“Hand-Drawn” has a glow and a gradient, fading the color out towards the top of the lettering.

After creating this concept, I preceded to spend hours playing with multiple other ideas before coming back to this design. 😒 Oh well, at least I proved those other ideas weren’t going to work.

Adding Illustrations

After tracing the sketches into the computer, I added them to the design.

The idea was to have a smartphone with icons of the apps projecting from the phone and floating in the empty space.

I added some faint shapes in the background. Can you spot them? 🧐

At this point, I was really close to finishing the design.

The Finished Design

After adding lines connecting the icons to the phone, adjusting the colors, and altering how I implemented the shapes in the background, I was finished.

The result is a vibrant, modern design that feels very 2020s. At least it does to me. Additionally, it is sharp yet playful. We are all about playful here at AJ Doodles. 🙂

Here’s a peak inside the design document…

Yes, I took my time exploring multiple ideas. My design process includes making tiny alterations and comparing them to the previous concept. I take what I like and discard what doesn’t work for the finished design.

Hand-drawn Illustrations for Your Business

So, now it’s your turn to transform your visuals.

You too could have designs that articulate what you’re offering. After all, clarity increases conversion.

It’s time to make an impression! To stand out among millions of other creators.

Use illustrated designs to make a statement. A statement that is enticing. A statement that makes your viewers interested.

We are ready to help you optimize your branding with hand-drawn illustrations.

I hope you found this read helpful and interesting.

If you have any questions, comments, or remarks, drop them below in the comments.

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We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

In our latest post, we created illustrations from the early 2000s. You can see our Y2K design style here.

This week, we’ll teach you how to draw a Y2K-style computer. Enjoy!

Tutorial

• Step 1: Start by drawing two rectangles—one inside the other.

• Step 2: Draw another rectangle below the first two. Draw a parallelogram for the keyboard.

• Step 3: Add depth to the computer and keyboard as shown.

• Step 4: Draw a circle underneath the main monitor. Draw the mouse. Draw wires connecting the keyboard and mouse to the computer.

• Step 5: Add details as shown.

• Step 6: Finish off by drawing the keys on the keyboards.

• Done! Your doodle is finished. We’d love to see your drawings in our subscriber’s chat.

Enjoyed this tutorial? You might like this one as well…

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Midnight came. The electricity shut down. We stood in the dark of our friend’s living room. Each pondered what to do next.

While my husband verbally processed, I looked outside and across the street to the neighbor’s home. Their lights were on; their trees were aglow with sparkling lights. Confused, I wondered, “Did it happen?”

Soon, the owner of the house and his co-conspirator ascended from the basement into the living room. They were laughing their heads off. We didn’t know they had slipped away.

They pulled a prank, especially hoping to get my husband, who was not so easily fooled. But they got him. They shut down the main breaker of the house. And for a few minutes, we all believed IT happened.

Today, we can say that Y2K happened, but not in the way they prophesied.

Computers didn’t shut down, and the economy didn’t collapse. Regardless, the world shifted. Everyone bought a personal computer and learned how to use it. We loved the phrase, “You’ve got mail.” We talked on mobile phones and danced to the music on our MP3 players.

These changes marked Y2K.

80s, Y2K, and 2020s Design Challenge

Justin and I decided to take a trip back to Y2K with our graphic designs. We wanted to look at design trends that marked the turn of the century, the millennium.

If you read last week’s post titled Back to the 80s, you know we’re challenging ourselves to make AJ Doodles ads from the 80s, Y2K, and the 2020s.

In today’s post, we’ll share the design process for our Y2K design.

Let’s get started.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Y2K Doodles

As with all our designs, we began with hand-drawn iconic Y2K doodles. Having already made doodles from the 80s, I picked out items that demonstrated progression. From Mr. Coffee to a single-serving Keurig, from a Velcro wallet to a checkbook, these directional changes show us where we were heading.

Here’s a look at the progression just using our doodles.

Finding Inspiration and Moodboarding

by

As technology became more capable, designers could create various effects more easily. Chrome gradients and bubbly elements became popular around Y2K. Other trends included pixel icons and illustrations, vibrant colors, and bold typography.

After spending some time browsing Pinterest, I put together a moodboard showcasing the style and mood I wanted to create for Y2K.

My Y2K Design

Instead of showing you each step of the process leading up to the finished design, I will start by showing the finished design first. Afterwards, I will walk through the process explaining the decisions I made.

Fonts and Typography

I wanted a bold and bubbly typeface for the “Hand Drawn” text. I found a font called Super Warming on dafont.com. I gave the letters a 3D bubble effect. Underneath, we have “Custom Illustrations” in a font called Pixel Operator. I used this pixel font to represent the early PC days.

Do you remember Cosmic Sans? This font was designed in ‘94 and became a staple of Y2K graphic design. Most designers, myself included, do not use it anymore. It has become outdated, which is exactly the look I was going for.

I used Comic Sans for “your brand.” I highlighted “your brand” with a pink button similar to the buttons of old computer interfaces.

Illustrations and Doodles

Moving on, I traced the illustrations in the computer. I used the bright colors I had previously picked out on the moodboard. I placed a chrome texture over each illustration for more depth.

After arranging the main illustrations in the design, I filled in the empty space with a handful of little doodles. I also added blocks of pixels around the design.

The Background

I had a few ideas for the background of the design.

I wasn’t a big fan of the sky background. (It look a little too much like an Easter Egg Hunt.) So I made a checkerboard pattern and warped it. It’s not as complicated as it looks.

And with the background in place, I was finished with our Y2K ad design.

When you look at this design, does it remind you of the early 2000s?

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Custom Illustrations

Are you ready to take your brand to the next level?

We create hand-drawn illustrations that are vibrant and playful. If you’re interested in working with us to give your visual identity a makeover, fill out our intake form.

We’ll work to create any vibe you’d like.

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“I enjoyed my experience working with AJ Doodles and love the final product. They took my preferences and used their creativity to create a fun, colorful expression of Simply Harmony Coaching.”

—

As usual, we’d love to hear your thoughts on this design. If you have any questions, ask them in the comments.

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We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

In our latest post, we created illustrations from the ‘80s. You can see our ‘80s design style here.

This week, we’ll teach you how to draw a cassette. Enjoy!

Tutorial

• Step 1: Start by drawing a rectangle.

• Step 2: Draw three more rectangles inside the first one as shown.

• Step 3: Add two circles and a trapezoid.

• Step 4: Draw teeth in the circles, the tape in the smallest rectangle, and the dots in the trapezoid.

• Step 5: Draw a curvy looping line for the tape.

• Step 6: Loosely trace the first line with a second one.

• Step 7: Color in the empty space between the lines.

• Step 8: Add depth to the cassette as shown. Draw the label.

• Done! Your doodle is finished. We’d love to see your drawings in our subscriber’s chat.

Enjoyed this tutorial? You might like this one as well…

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Back in the 80s

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If you remember…

Velcro wallets
Fanny Packs
Rotary Phones, tangled cords
Frog Flip Phones
And Phone Books

Swatch Watches, 
Jelly Bracelets, Jelly Shoes
High-top Converse All-stars 
Terry Cloth Sweat Bands
And Leg Warmers

Polaroid Cameras
Kodak Disks
Sony Walkman
Cassette Tapes, Personalized Mixes
And Boom Boxes

Atari
Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Pitfall
Cheers
The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Knight Rider
And waaay  too much TV

Mr. Coffee
Pudding Pops
Fun Dip, Nerds
Chuckles, Big League Chew
And Styrofoam McDonald’s Packaging

Drinking Water from the tap
Back to the Future
In the Theater 
Popcorn and Soda
All under 5 dollars

Brown Paper Bags
Brown Paper Textbook Covers
Scratch ‘n Sniff Stickers
Trapper Keepers 
And Fuzzy Pencils

Encyclopedias
Newspapers, the Funnies
Schwinn Bikes, BMX Bikes
Skateboards
And scrapped knees

Punch Buggies
Station Wagons
Riding in the back of pick-ups
Without seat belts
And Fuzzy Dice

Then you probably grew up back in the 80s.
And you lived to tell about it.

Retro Illustration Challenge

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As a designer, I love seeing designs from different time periods: trends that mark each decade, colors that feel retro and nostalgic, and typography that spells out an era.

As time goes by, design has changed a lot.

I had the idea to create illustrated designs to represent three different time periods.

Starting with the ‘80s, then moving to Y2K, and finishing in the 2020s, I wanted to create three ads for our Custom Illustrations service.

In the next three weeks, we will explore the impact of time and culture on design trends over these 40+ years.

This will be a fun, yet challenging, project. So, let’s get into it.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Finding Inspiration and Moodboarding

When someone sees the design, I want them to say, “Yep! That’s the 80s.” To make this impression, I did a lot of research.

As with any time period, there were several different directions I could have taken with my 80s design—neon and electric colors, an old-style serif editorial look, paper cutout collage with mixed media, just to name a few.

After many web and Pinterest searches, I put together a moodboard. Moodboards showcase sample designs, giving clarity to the tone and style of a project.

In the center of the moodboard, I created a color palette. The colors were not set in stone. They served as an example of the direction I wanted to take.

When my research was complete, my mom drew up some 80s doodles.

80s Doodles

By

Knowing that we were planning to do ads for the 80s, Y2K, and 2020s. I chose items that changed over time.

For example, I doodled some coffee makers.

As a kid, I remember my parents purchasing a Mr. Coffee. In the 2000s, when the Keurig single-serving coffee maker came out, my husband and I bought one (my parents did too). And now, in the 2020s, there’s an app for everything. My doodles reflected changes over time, changes that others could relate to as well.

The doodles that were used for this project were the rotary phone, Mr. Coffee, a Velcro wallet, a cassette tape, and, of course, a television. Life in the 80s seemed to revolve around the television.

Building the Design

By

Similar to building a house, I start every design by laying the foundation. In this case, the core elements were the text. I wrote out the copy that was used in each design for the different time periods.

For the script font, I used Autolova. I paired it with Oxanium.

With the fonts in place, I moved on to color.

I chose to stack ‘Hand Drawn’ to make it bigger. I adjusted the right side of the H to curve over the top of the text. Using a bold shadow, I outlined the lettering.

For the background, I added some retro lines. Then I turned my attention to the illustrations.

I traced the illustrations and placed them into the design. After coloring the TV, I wasn’t happy with the colors. So, I held off on coloring the other illustrations to explore different color palettes.

I liked the lighter background. However, this concept wasn’t coming together for me either.

There is always a part of the design process that is difficult—whether it’s a color, font, or layout choice.

I took a step back and tried a different means of getting that 3D look on the script type.

I duplicated the object three times and applied a different color to each one. Take two looked like this…

I distorted the text for an old-style effect.

Back to coloring the illustrations, I found this image on Pinterest.

Taking the colors from this image, I added them to my design.

Finally, a color combination that I was excited about. Hold on, though, I wasn’t quite done.

To finish, I placed a halftone texture over each illustration (basically an image of several tiny dots). I offset the texture to give the illustrations highlights and shadows. This touch added lots of character.

The textures I use are sourced from texturelabs.org.

I then added a grunge texture over the whole design, which gave it an aged look. Then, I was done.

The result is a bold, vibrant, and retro-looking design that we can use to advertise our illustration services.

We had a lot of fun creating this.

Hopefully, this design will take you back to the 80s. If so, we accomplished our goal.

Custom Illustrations

How would you like a package of illustrations you could use across your branding?

Retro or not, we can create something just for you.

Are you interested in a quote for a design project? Fill out our intake form.

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Stay tuned... next week we will create a design that takes you back to Y2K.

I’d love to hear your feedback and questions.

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Hi Friends,

Happy Summer!

We have some inspiring, fun new design projects in the works to share with you as we kick off the summer. Starting next week, we’ll be posting a 3-week series on graphic design trends. We are looking forward to sharing what we’ve been designing.

But first, we wanted to address a need that we see among our readers. Many of you are writers and authors. We designed a service with you and your projects in mind: Illustrated Book Cover Designs.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

As an author myself, I know what it’s like to work for hours and hours, weeks and months, and years on a book. There’s the writing—that’s the easy part. Then there’s the editing. That’s not so easy, but with good editors, we get through it.

When you get to the point of putting the final touches on your book—the cover, the layout of the book, etc. You may be quite tired of the process, especially the technical stuff, but some of the most important details are still yet to come.

You may need someone to come alongside you and say, “Let’s do this. Let’s get it done together. We’d love to help you make your book visually appealing.”

You may need some fresh wind beneath your wings, and we’ve got you covered. We will work with you, side-by-side, to make your book stand out among thousands.

Incredible Offer

Right now, as we build our portfolio of book cover designs, we are offering an incredible deal.

Our illustrated cover design service includes:

• A design optimized for e-books and/or print

• Hand-drawn illustration

• Publish-ready PNG file

• Editable source file (upon request)

• 14-day delivery

• Unlimited revisions

For a limited time, while we establish ourselves as the go-to book cover design team, we are offering this service for just $100.

Make Your Cover Stand Out!

When you use our service, you will work with a professional (mother-son) design team that cares. We want you to be happy with your book cover, and we’re willing to do what it takes so that you have the cover that you envisioned as you wrote your book.

But it’s not just about having a cover that appeals to you, the author. It’s also about thinking through what is going to attract readers. And that’s our job. We want to make a cover that cannot be ignored by your potential readers.

Are you ready to take the next step with your book? Are you ready to cross the finished line?

Hire us to take the next step in making your book a reality.

Let’s see what we can accomplish this summer as we work together!

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We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Tutorial

• Step 1: With a pencil, start by drawing a circle and semicircle as shown.

• Step 2: Around the guide circle, draw the head and face of the chicken.

• Step 3: Add a wing.

• Step 4: Around the semicircle, draw the body of the chicken with some tail feathers. Erase the guide shapes.

• Step 5: Add details in the body and more tail feathers.

• Step 6: Doodle in the legs and claws.

• Done! Your doodle is finished. We’d love to see your drawings in our subscriber’s chat.

• Add Color.

If you enjoyed this chicken, try some of our other animal tutorials.

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Doodle Bug Inspiration

Several weeks ago, we published a post titled Playful to Professional: Creating 5 Ad Designs.

Justin challenged himself (and me) to create 5 different ads for the same product. Each ad would progress from playful to professional using doodle art.

We wanted to design these ads for an actual product. Through our subscriber’s chat, we learned about ’s snail mail publication. It wasn’t hard to envision cute little snail and mailbox doodles. So, we got to work.

While working on the second design (playful, but not most playful), I felt we needed a small snail emoji in one of the lines of copy. Using the colors that we chose for the second design, Justin whipped one up.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Doodle Bug Creations

This little emoji stayed in my mind. The simplicity of it. The little smile. The pink and green color combination. It made me happy, and I kept thinking about it. So, I turned it into a note.

And I did what any doodle artist does when they have this type of connection with a design. I doodled some more.

More bugs in the same style.

A lady bug.

A grasshopper.

An ant.

More Inspiration...

For my dragonfly doodle, I consulted ’s notes.

As a student of nature, I like to have accuracy when it comes to my drawings, even my doodles. Though I am not sure if David would agree with my reasoning, this one is a female. Notice the pink in her wings.

The male doodle dragonfly looks like this.

For better information on determining the gender of dragonflies, follow David on Substack. His notes are teeming with entertainment, education, and the wonder of nature.

Celebration of Our Doodle Bugs

Here’s a picture of the 9 bugs that made it in our AJ Doodles doodle bug collection.

This page is available to download on Shutterstock and Adobe Stock.

What Would You Like To Design?

As you can see, I had a lot of fun with these doodle bugs. From doodling to seeing them realized as graphic designs.

Once they were traced on the computer, it was easy to create notes. Coming up with sayings for each added to the good time, making them more meaningful.

Would you like some illustrations to boost your notes? Some drawings specifically made to communicate your message and ideas? Would you like to work with us to bring the human touch to your publication?

Reach out and let us know how we can help you.

Until next time…

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When I look at a book, I definitely judge it by its cover.

I can’t help it. I’m a designer. I see bad designs and I analyze what I would do differently. Would I change the colors? What fonts would better suit this project? 🤔

It’s not just about what I like. It’s about the viewer. Potential readers may be turned off to a poorly designed book cover. They may not understand why a design is bad. Never the less, a bad design communicates something to the reader.

Three Keys to the Best Book Covers

The best book cover designs have these three things going for them:

1. Simplicity: The simpler the better. Book covers shouldn’t be overly crowded with elements. They shouldn’t have multiple flashy colors. At least not in most cases.

2. Clarity: A book cover needs to give potential readers clarity. It should express what the book is about. It should give the viewer an idea of what they’re in for if they choose to read the book.

3. Emotion: Every design evokes emotion. Bad designs evoke the wrong emotions. Good designs hit the right emotions.

   If the book is a mystery/thriller, the elements need to portray a mysterious feeling. This could be done by using dark shadows, minimal color, etc. If a book is fantasy or adventure, the colors should be bright and playful.

In this post, I’m going to walk you through how I designed a book cover for Jordan. I attempted to hit the above three points when I created it.

Jordan’s New Book

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My book is titled Salvation in the Sheepfold: The Ingathering Revealed in the Stars.

The constellations prophesy a gathering of God’s people in a protected place before the return of Messiah. Together, biblical prophecy and the pictures in the constellations reveal a plan to save a remnant of humanity. This book is a scriptural study of the following signs in the Heavens: the Sheepfold, Twins, Good Shepherd, Breaker, and Messiah’s Bride.

You will be amazed at what is written in the sky for our generation.

Find out more

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

First Concept

Jordan and I had a clear vision for a silhouette of sheep on a dark, starry night background. So, I worked on this concept.

After browsing for a while, I picked these three pictures from Unsplash.

Using the sheep and trees, I made a silhouette.

I adjusted the colors of the starry background. This made the silhouette clearer. I then added the title and subtitle.

For the fonts, I chose the same fonts Jordan was already using in his branding and designs: Josefin Sans and Roboto. I also used a hand-drawn font, Comic Neue, for the “in the” part of the title. This font pairing gave the title some visual interest and added a human touch.

So far, this design was definitely simple. I didn’t add any extra elements. If anything, it was bland. Through the revisions, I dealt with that problem.

Designers need to put themselves in the shoes of potential customers. I thought about what would interest the viewer. What words would help them understand the product? It’s the thought process that makes a design good.

I underlined “The Ingathering” in the subtitle. This part is key to the viewer, as it is the primary concept discussed in the book.

I didn’t make a perfectly straight underline. Rather, I created a curved line. This paired with the handwriting font used in the title.

Jordan and I liked the concept, but we both felt that it looked too similar to his other book cover. We wanted it to feel cohesive with his other book but also stand out on its own.

Second Concept

To change things up, I found this photo on Unsplash for the background. The colors are distinct and add a sense of intrigue. The sky still shows stars, which was pretty important given the book is about stars and constellations. 🌟

After adding the background colors to the design, I adjusted the colors. And with that, the cover was coming together—stunningly!

The Finishing Touches

Everything was looking really good. We liked the color change. That deep red/purple was vibrant.

Now, it was time to put on the finishing touches.

To add a little extra character, I replaced the dot in the ‘i’ of “Salvation” with a star. 🌠

A little illustration on a book cover can work really well.

Finally, through the colors and the star illustration, I made a bold and lively vibe.

Jordan signed off on this design.

Ad Designs for the Book

To help Jordan promote his book through his Substack posts, notes, and emails, I created a couple of ads.

I used the same colors that were used in the book.

I made a mock-up of the cover design on a tablet to show that it is an e-book. For the fonts, I wanted one that was quite different from the sans serif typefaces on the cover. I found a serif font called Zodiak. Not only did it pair nicely with the other fonts, the name Zodiak fit well. 🙂

I gave Jordan a smaller version of the ad in case he wanted something that takes up less space.

Here’s what Jordan said about the design:

AJ Doodles did a fantastic job with my cover.

Amy brought vision to the project. She was careful to include my preferences while bringing her own touch. Justin did a great job executing the illustration. He made sure I liked how things were forming before moving forward. Justin went above and beyond to highlight what was important to me.

I love how the shooting star in the “i” of Salvation draws extra attention. The gradient colors of the dusk sky fading into the starry night adds interest. Most importantly, the flock of sheep gathered under the night sky communicates my message. All in all, this book cover suits me perfectly. Amy and Justin worked with care and professionalism.

Are You Publishing A Book?

If you are writing or publishing a book, we’d love to help you create a unique cover design. Something that feels like your writing and makes your book standout.

I’d love to hear your feedback on the design.

Leave a comment

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Tutorial

• Step 1: Start by drawing an oval.

• Step 2: Add two more ovals behind the original.

• Step 3: Outline the head.

• Step 4: Add the body and antennae.

• Step 5: Draw the facial details and highlights.

• Step 6: Doodle some grass and hearts.

• Done! Your doodle is finished. We’d love to see your drawings in our subscriber’s chat.

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Getting to know our audience is the greatest benefit to using the Substack platform.

When our audience uses the platform, it’s easy. We can follow each other’s notes and connect nearly every day. (👋Hi friends!)

However, Substack Notes is limited to getting to know only those who are actively scrolling and posting.

In today’s post, we will share two new ways we can get to know one another.

We hope these ways of connection provide us all with inspiration, encouragement, and good ol’ human-to-human fun.

We are a mother-and-son illustration team. Our drawings are hand-drawn and traced in the computer. Our goal is to help Substackers illustrate their publications with fun and simple drawings. We’re trying to restore the human creativity that is being lost from the progression of technology and AI.

Subscribe to join the fun. 🥳

Our Chat is OPEN!

We are opening our chat for two new themes.

1. Question of the WEEK (Tuesdays)

2. Show N’ Tell (Thursday)

Through these new weekly threads, we invite you to drop in and say hi, share about yourself, comment, and get to know others who care about human-made art.

Question of the WEEK

On Tuesdays, we will ask a Question of the WEEK. Some questions will be just for fun. Other questions will help us navigate the AJ Doodles journey as we value the input of our audience.

You can expect questions like…

• What did you have for breakfast this morning?

• Are you writing a book?

• What publications would you recommend for art inspiration?

Your answers will help us get to know your preferences. They may inspire a new doodle-art page of breakfast foods or something.

This is simply a time to get to know one another. We won’t sell your information or betray your trust. We want to connect and have fun with others who want to do the same.

Question of the WEEK Thread Guidelines

Do…

• Answer the question asked.

• Engage and encourage others.

• Keep conversation positive.

• Keep it clean. This is a family-friendly space.

Don’t…

• Vent or complain—it’s a break from that.

• Go way off topic.

Show N’ Tell

Remember picking something for Show N’ Tell? Well, through our chat, we invite you to a weekly Show N’ Tell.

The theme is visual art—anything you have created (or are creating).

So, you can share...

• A picture of a painting you are working on and tell us about it.

• A photograph that you took and tell us about it.

• A picture of a cake you made and decorated. Tell us about the celebration for which you made it.

• Some doodles from your notebook or from one of our doodle tutorials.

• Graphic designs that you worked on and tell us about the process.

• Something made by someone in your family—your spouse, your kids, etc.

• A picture of a snowman, sandcastle, mosaic, knitted-sweater, coffee drink, embroidery, birdhouse, bread, cardboard creation, cartoon character, cupcake, featured image, etc.

If you made it, we’d love to see it in this space.

When you tell, you are welcome to share anything related to your image. You can tell about your creative process or a memory associated with your visual.

This is time to reflect on your creative journey and get to know others in the process. It’s about inspiration and connection.

Show N’ Tell Thread Guidelines

Do...

• Share 1 visual per week. We want everyone to have their work seen. We don’t want the chat overloaded.

• Tell us something short about your visual, your process, what it’s for, and why it’s meaningful.

• Include a link for more information if you like. For example, if you wrote a poem that goes with the visual, share the visual and the link to the poem for anyone interested.

• Engage with others and keep the conversation positive.

• Keep it clean. Remember it is a family-friendly space.

Don’t…

• Use this space to directly promote anything not related to your visual. This is not a space for free advertising.

• Add more than one visual per week; you can always post another image next week.

• Make negative comments or complaints. Again, this chat is a fun and encouraging space.

Through this chat, we hope to provide a meet-and-greet for creatives. It’s a place to be human. To have a laugh, tell a joke, and make people smile.

If you’re connecting and want to get to know someone better, we encourage you to check out their publications. Who knows what doors could open for all of us as we share our creative journey intentionally?

That’s it for today.

We hope to see you in the chat.

Can’t wait to see what you share!

Amy and Justin

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