Illustrator of The Mosaic, Nicky Johnston, shares her experiences throughout the process, love of both illustrating and writing, and desire for her illustrations to allow readers to understand their own emotions. 

What do you love about illustrating children’s books?

I love being able to weave a visual narrative with the words to enrich the story bringing emotion and extra layers to the story.

What was your favourite scene to illustrate in this book? Or the most challenging?

My favourite illustration of The Mosaic are the end papers, where I created a collaged mosaic of a heart using the lino print artwork I printed of the blue and white vase, but that’s not a scene as such! 

So, my favourite (and extremely complicated) illustration scene to paint was the street scape (on the way to the Art Gallery) because I was able to create so many characters, doing so many different things, with lots to look at. I hope that every time that same page is read, the reader finds more interesting details in the illustration!

What is your usual process for illustrating picture books? Was there anything you did differently this time?

The mediums I usually use for illustration are watercolour, pencil, ink, pastel or a combination of these. For The Mosaic, I used all these plus lino printing and collage. 

The vase that is pictured throughout the book was created using lino printing with dark blue ink. 

The illustrations inside the Art Gallery have lots of individual collaged artworks (art within the art!) all created separately using a variety of printing and mosaic techniques. 

I painted lots of plates, cups, saucers and teapots and used these to cut up and create a mosaic which was the artwork that Frankie is inspired by in the story. This process to create the mosaic artwork was the longest I have ever spent on an illustration! But so worth it.

As both an author and illustrator, how do the two roles compare? Is there one you enjoy more?

In picture books the space left by the author for illustrations is what makes a story magical. Writing picture books is a very difficult task indeed, because you need to say a lot using as few words as possible. 

As a visual person, whether I am writing it or illustrating it, the story always comes to me in pictures. I love illustrating books other people have written, because the visuals come to me immediately. When I am working on my own books, I start with visual narrative and work backwards, so it is a much longer process.

You’re also a teacher. Does this impact you when you write or illustrate in any way?

I think I am simply a kid at heart. Writing or illustrating for kids, comes naturally from my own experience of still being child-like as well as being around children all the time. 

In my illustrations I love including insignificant details that kids love to pour themselves over, because that was what I loved doing as a child. I was also obsessed with making 3D objects which is why I love to create activity PDFs to go with my books for all the kids and teachers like me!

What was it like to work with the author on this book?

When I read The Mosaic for the first time, I knew exactly how I wanted it to be visually represented. I love collaborating with a team because I believe it helps me solve things quickly inspiring me to continue to think outside the square and stretch my ability even further than I could on my own.

What do you hope to show readers through your illustrations?

I hope my illustrations represent the intrinsic emotions felt by the reader. Through a variety of compositions, colour palette, and poignant moments, the illustrations can extend the unwritten text in the story and provide hope and happiness at the end of the book.

Do you have any other projects in the works?

I am currently working on another book with EK Books (not out until 2026). I also have a few projects as author/illustrator on the go too. There’s never much rest time for me, but that is how I love it to be.