Pro's and Con's : Two Job Roles.

Children's book illustration.

Pro's:

• The skills learned for and from children's book illustration are transferable (for example: drawing and painting can be skills used in many roles).
• For me, children's book illustration would be my dream job at the moment so it would be enjoyable to be doing it on a daily basis. 
• There's not really any set aesthetic to fit into as the styles of illustration are so diverse. 
• You can choose your own working hours. 
• You can arrange your time so that you are able to work on personal projects. 
• You have a choice of clients (however many) and what work you do so you can just be illustrating things which interest you. 
• There could be possibilities to travel and meet a broad range of new people at book events etc. 

Con's:

• Being a freelance children's book illustrator may mean that income is not so steady.
• Children's book illustration is a very competitive market and hard to become established (create a name for yourself. 
• It could be hard to find work if you are not well established or don't have many contacts within the industry. 
• It could be a lonely job, you only have yourself to rely on and gain ideas from. 
• Theres not a lot of structure so you have to be well organised work-wise. 

Teaching/Education. 

Pro's: 

• The income is a lot more steady and reliable. 
• There could be a certain amount of leeway in terms of working hours. 
• I already have some experience of working within education/with children.
• I enjoy working with children so i would still enjoy this job. 
• Depending on hours, you could still illustrate in your spare time. 
• If the teaching job was art based it would be more enjoyable and you can stay in touch with what is happening in the industry. 

Con's: 

• Although i like working with children, i don't think i would enjoy teaching as much as illustrating children's books. 
• Although teaching is more steady and reliable, it also means that you are stuck in one place with limited possibilities of travel etc. 
• There is a lot of paperwork and marking which comes with a job in education. Not fun. 
• Except public holidays you may not have much free time, especially as you may have to create lesson plans etc. 
• Could become tedious.