ebook-cover-image-edited-_26_edited_edited_edited_edited.jpg

EPUB Design & Illustration

Turning complex ideas into a visual system for Apple Books

Editorial design, custom illustration, and digital publishing for a 120-page, 17-chapter EPUB.

THE CHALLENGE

Translating a complex visual and strategic narrative into an intuitive digital reading experience—without losing its hierarchy, character, or impact.

Content to Experience: Transforming complex design-thinking methodologies and legal strategies into clear, engaging visual narratives that could communicate effectively with a diverse audience of judges, jurors, and clients.

Designed for Reflow: Adapting custom illustrations, graphics, typography, and layouts for a reflowable EPUB environment, where screen sizes and reading conditions could change—while maintaining visual hierarchy, grid integrity, and a consistent experience across Apple Books.

THE APPROACH

Establish the visual system: Each of the 17 chapters received its own primary color pairing, supported by a shared secondary palette. This created distinction between sections while maintaining continuity across the publication.
Translate ideas into visual metaphors: Rather than illustrating concepts literally, I distilled abstract legal and design-thinking ideas into simple, narrative-driven visual metaphors that could be understood quickly.
Create a consistent illustration language: I established repeatable rules for line weights, corner radii, character proportions, and graphic treatment, allowing individual illustrations to feel like part of one visual family.
Adapt the system for digital publishing: The illustrations and graphics were optimized for a reflowable EPUB, balancing image quality, file efficiency, typography, hierarchy, and layout behavior across Apple Books reading environments.

THE OUTCOME

A 120-page publication transformed into a cohesive, illustration-led digital experience.

The refreshed edition gave 17 chapters a distinct visual identity while maintaining a consistent illustration language and editorial hierarchy throughout. The result was a production-ready EPUB that brought together editorial design, custom illustration, and digital publishing in a unified experience for Apple Books.

View the full book here

See the graphics in action here

THE CLIENT

Faegre Drinker Design Lab
(Partnered with Stanford University’s Legal Design Lab)

The partnership empowers legal teams through the process of design thinking and visual advocacy. They facilitate design sprints, seminars, and courses that solve complex challenges and elevate legal communication.

THE TOOLS

Illustrator
InDesign

MY ROLE & CONTRIBUTIONS

Graphic Designer / Visual Systems Designer

Visual Strategy · Editorial Design · Illustration · EPUB Asset Production

THE TEAM & COLLABORATION

Nisha Kabra - Graphic Designer
Michael Jones - Creative Head & Manager
Eric Benge - Visual Designer
David Gross - Firm Partner/ Author

A consistent visual language

To ensure the publication felt cohesive across 17 chapters, I established a set of visual rules —

01 — Recurring Illustration Treatment

Organic brush-like edges introduce a tactile, hand-drawn quality while the artwork remains digitally constructed.

02 — Character Proportions

Simplified proportions, minimal facial detail and repeatable body shapes create recognition across different illustrations.

03 — Recurring Visual Motifs

Clouds, mountains and geometric forms recur throughout the illustrations, creating visual continuity while allowing each concept to have its own narrative.