About
Julie McLaughlin is a freelance illustrator whose work has been commissioned by editorial, advertising, and publishing clients from around the world. She has illustrated over 70 book covers and 15 children’s titles for clients such as Harper Collins, Scholastic, Simon & Schuster, OwlKids and Orca. Her work has received several awards including the Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction in 2015, and, most recently, the Victoria Book Prize and The Nature Generation Green Earth Book Award in 2023. Julie grew up on the Prairies and now resides on Vancouver Island.
She is currently available for freelance projects!
julie [at] whatwouldjuliedraw [dot] com
Photo credit: Melanie Grisak
Press
Illustrator’s Studio Interview with the Canadian Children’s Book Centre
Interview with Robin Stevenson, author of Pride Puppy! for BookFlap
Kirkus Starred Review for Pride Puppy!
Publisher’s Weekly Starred Review for Pride Puppy!
Awards
2019 CASE Circle of Excellence Bronze Award for Beatles Spot It, Monmouth University Magazine
2018 Shortlisted for the 2018 Ontario Librarian Association Forest of Reading Silver Birch Award non-fiction award, shortlisted for Nova Scotia’s 2018 Hackmatack Award, shortlisted for the 2018 Information Book Award at Vancouver Children’s Literature Roundtable, named a Best Book for Kids & Teens by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre, Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction nominee: Meatless? A Fresh Look at What You Eat (Author: Sarah Elton, Owlkids Books)
2016 Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction nominee, Red Cedar Book Award nominee, named a Best Book for Kids & Teens by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre, selected for inclusion in the Calkins Classroom Library Project, shortlisted for The Children’s Literature Roundtables of Canada 2016 Information Book Award: The Art of the Possible: An Everyday Guide to Politics (Author: Edward Keenan, Owlkids Books)
2016 Best Mobile Ad, Embers Award: TELUS Spark Cloud Cannon
2015 Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction winner, Red Cedar Book Award nominee: Why We Live Where We Live (Author: Kira Vermond, Owlkids Books)
2014 National Silver Award for Editorial Design, Council for the Advancement and Support of Education: Out of Their Minds, TCNJ Magazine
2010 Green Prize for Sustainable Literature School Age Nonfiction Award, 2009 Junior Library Guild Selection: Heroes of the Environment (Author: Harriet Rohmer, Chronicle Books)
2010 Western Magazine Awards: The Best Time To, Swerve Magazine
2009 Western Magazine Awards: Helen Koentges, Swerve Magazine
2009 Alt Weekly Award Second Place, Illustration (circ. under 50,000k): Twin Peaked, FFWD Weekly
2008 Western Magazine Awards: Los Compadres, Swerve Magazine