How to Make Your Own Children's Book (Without Weeks of Drawing)

Two ways to make your own children's book

If you want to make your own children's book, there are two honest routes. You can write and illustrate a book entirely yourself, which is a lovely project and usually takes weeks. Or you can use a custom book maker that turns your choices and one photo into a finished, illustrated story.

This guide walks through the second route using Custom Picture Books and then looks fairly at the DIY route. The choosing part fits into one sitting at the kitchen table, and the finished eBook is usually ready about 15 minutes after you order.

Before you start: the photo and the name

Have one clear photo of your child ready: bright, sharp, face visible, with only your child in the frame. Type their first name exactly the way you want it to appear in the book. If you plan to add family members or a pet, find a good photo of each of them too.

Our guide to the personalized book with photo covers what makes a photo work well, and why sunglasses and heavy filters get in the way.

Step by step: the choices that create a personalized book

1. Age group

Choose 0 to 2, 3 to 5, 6 to 9 or 10+. This sets the length and reading level, from 4 to 12 words a page for babies up to around 80 to 120 words a page for the oldest group. Choose for your child's listening level if you will read it aloud, and their reading level if they will read it alone.

2. Theme and subject

There are 120 subjects in eight themes, from Adventure and Worlds to Family and Feelings. Pick something they already love (pirates, unicorns, construction machinery) or something happening in their life (a new baby, moving, the first day of school). You can browse them all on the subjects page, and our story ideas page helps if you are stuck.

3. Lesson

Pick one of ten: friendship, courage, care for nature, love, perseverance, sharing, honesty, respect, kindness or curiosity. It shapes how the hero behaves in the story. Match it to the subject: courage suits a dark bedroom, sharing suits a new sibling.

4. Illustration style

There are ten styles: 3D animation, watercolor, gouache, soft anime, clay animation, comic book, sticker art, pencil and crayon, paper collage and block world. Think about the books and shows your child already reaches for. A fan of animated films may light up at 3D animation; a calm bedtime book can suit watercolor or pencil and crayon.

5. Lettering style

This is the look of the words on the page. If your child is learning to read, lean toward the clearest option. If the book is mostly for looking and listening, pick whatever fits the mood of the story.

6. Language

The book can be written in any of 25 languages, including English (US or UK), Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish and Hebrew. In a bilingual family, it can be lovely to choose the language a grandparent reads in, so the book becomes their thing together.

7. Characters

Your child is the hero. You can add up to five characters in total, each with their own photo: a sibling, a grandparent, a pet, even a favorite toy. Fewer characters keep the story focused, so add the ones who really belong in this adventure.

What happens after you order

1. The story is written and illustrated from scratch for your choices. The pictures are illustrated with the help of AI, based on the photos you uploaded.
2. About 15 minutes later, the eBook ($7.99) is ready: 12 to 13 illustrated story pages plus a cover, readable on any device, shareable by private link and downloadable as a PDF.
3. You read it through. You can rewrite the text of any page and ask for any picture to be redrawn.
4. If you want it on the shelf, you order the printed hardcover for $44.99 plus shipping, with the eBook payment deducted. It is printed only after you have checked every page, which takes 3 to 10 working days plus shipping.

There is no free preview of the full book, because nothing exists until you order. The eBook is the small first step that lets you see the real thing before deciding on print. The pricing page explains how the hardcover works.

Tips for a custom book that feels homemade

• Use the edit step. Add your pet's real nickname, the name of your street or a phrase your family always says.
• Read it aloud before your child sees it. A sentence that looks fine on screen can trip on the tongue at bedtime; smooth it out.
• Redraw anything that feels off. If a likeness or detail is not right, ask for that picture to be redrawn rather than settling.
• Think in series. A sequel can be made with the same characters, so a first book about dinosaurs can lead to a second one about starting school.
• Use the pictures twice. Illustrations from the book can become a greeting card, a coloring book or a canvas print.

Making it for a date? If you want the printed hardcover, printing takes 3 to 10 working days plus shipping, so work backwards from the date and allow at least 3 to 4 weeks (more in December). Our personalized birthday book guide has more on timing.

Writing and illustrating a book entirely yourself

Making a children's book completely by hand is a wonderful thing to do, and nothing here is meant to talk you out of it. A story in your own words, with drawings that are yours, carries something no service can copy.

It is also a real project. Expect it to take weeks of evenings and weekends:

• writing and rewriting a story with a beginning, a problem and an ending that suits your child's age
• drawing or painting a dozen or more pages where your child looks like the same child on each one
• laying out text and pictures, then finding a way to print a single copy

If you love drawing and have the time, go for it. If you want the feeling of a book made for your child in time for an occasion next week, a custom book maker gets you there and still leaves room to put your own words on every page. You can also do both: a made-to-order book now and a handmade one as a longer project. For gift timing and ideas, see our personalized book gift guide.