Behind the Scenes: Working With My Illustrator for The Cheerleader Book Club

If you’ve ever flipped through one of my cheer books and thought, “Wow, these drawings are adorable,” please know that behind every cute cheerleader is… well… a slightly chaotic process that usually involves me squinting at a picture and whispering, “Why does this child look like she’s possessed? Where are her pupils?”

Welcome back to Cheer Chapters — today we’re diving into the magical (and mildly hilarious) world of illustrations and how I work with my amazing illustrator to bring every story to life.

The Illustrator Hunt (aka: Me Living on Fiverr for Days)

When I started creating these books, I needed someone who could match the vibe in my head. I jumped onto Fiverr — as you do — and spent what felt like 47 years scrolling, messaging, comparing styles, and trying to figure out whose artwork didn’t scream “AI-generated.”

Budget mattered. Style mattered. But honestly? Communication mattered most.
I’m chatty, friendly, and I cannot function with someone who replies like a disappointed school principal. So I talked to a lot of artists until I found someone who didn’t make me feel like an inconvenience.

Enter: Nina McQueenie, the magical unicorn who now illustrates my worlds.
She sent samples, pricing, timelines, previous work — the whole buffet. And she got what I was asking for from day one.

Giving Nina The Blueprint (aka: My Giant, Slightly Overwhelming Document)

Once I had my story, I broke it down in a Word document like a detective solving a crime:

• Book size
• Hardcover, paperback, or ebook
• Overall feel of the brand
• Character goals (relatable, diverse, realistic to all-star cheer — not just blonde flyer stereotypes)
• Colours
• Page breakdowns
• Where text sits vs where images sit
• Copyright page
• Dedication
• ISBN variations
• Barcodes
• Spot-the-difference pages
• My random little doodles that look like they were drawn by a sleep-deprived toddler

All of that goes into one big file for Nina. Bless her soul for opening it without running away.

Describing the Characters Without Micromanaging Their Eyebrows

I don’t over-describe characters — just the basics:

• freckles
• height
• hair colour
• body type
• uniform colours

Then I let her add her flair. She’s an artist. I’m just the lady sending screenshots saying, “Can we make her look slightly less like she saw a ghost?”

The Pupils Incident (and Other Mini Disasters)

Nina usually sends illustrations in colour and in black and white.
But sometimes the black-and-white ones come through with tiny mistakes — like missing pupils.

Which is how I once ended up messaging:

“These cheerleaders look terrifying. Can we please give them eyes?”

She fixes everything quickly. It’s honestly part of the fun now.

Spot the Difference: My Favourite Chaos

Every “Spot the Difference” page starts with me describing a scene like:

“Okay, it’s a gym but not our gym, more like a pretend gym, with kids stunting but also one kid is holding a hairbrush for… reasons.”

Somehow, she turns that into actual art children can enjoy.

Formatting Fun (But Not Fun At First)

For the first two books, Nina did the formatting.
After I changed my logo three times (yes, three), I got sick of asking her to redo everything. So I learned formatting myself.

Margins, bleed, trim size — I learned it all.
Now all the newer books are formatted by me, and I feel like a formatting warrior.

A Little Chaos, A Lot of Coffee, and a Whole Lot of Collaboration

The truth is: creating a children’s book is a team sport.

I give Nina way too much detail, she turns my chaos into beautiful art, and together we build worlds cheer kids can see themselves in.

And yes — someone in my house keeps handling the books with blue fingers. I’m still investigating the culprit.

See you in the next cheer chapter!

Allison xx

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Allison xx