Illustration Commissions
Illustrations with personality, drawn by a developer who gets the joke.
I draw avatars, stickers, logos, and illustrations for developers, authors, conferences, and tech companies, helping you stand out wherever you go.
Start a commission See my work
"158 pages, illustrated throughout by David Neal, who somehow draws the joke I was trying to make rather than the one I actually made."
Lars Klint, Principal Developer Advocate at Atlassian, and author of Automate Everything, Notice Nothing
Books I've Illustrated
A book is one of the best tests of an illustrator. I know how to explain ideas, land jokes, and make them feel like they belong. Here are the ones I’ve had the joy of drawing.
- Automate Everything, Notice Nothing by Lars Klint: Six years of automating a farm in rural Victoria, told through all the things that went wrong. I illustrated all 158 pages. A book full of flooded paddocks and access points held up with double-sided tape is a cartoonist's dream!
- Microsoft Azure in Action by Lars Klint (Manning, 2025): My first project with Lars, for one of the best-known tech publishers. I drew the book's opening "Learn all these things!" map, defense in depth as a castle guarded by a moat full of ninja crocodiles, and parody book covers and sale posters for Banning Books, the book's fictional bookstore. He liked it enough to come back for the next one.
- You Don't Know JS Yet by Kyle Simpson: I illustrated the covers of Get Started and Scope & Closures, the second edition of one of the best-known JavaScript book series, plus a set of stickers to match.
- Developer Relations Activity Patterns (Apress): I co-authored this one, and I illustrated the cover and every chapter (all 39!), each capturing the patterns in that section.
- The Illustrated Book of Dad Jokes: My own book, born from drawing a new dad joke every single day of 2021. I compiled my favorite 250 for you and your eye-rolling family to enjoy. You're welcome.
Writing a book, a course, or documentation that needs illustrations? Let's talk about it.
What I Draw
- Avatars: One-of-a-kind illustrations for GitHub, Slack, websites, social media, podcasts, slides, or anywhere you need to post your face. I've drawn thousands, including large orders for companies, teams, and events. Starting at $30 for black-and-white.
- Stickers and t-shirts: Designs that people actually want on their laptops and their backs, like the sticker set I designed to go with Kyle Simpson's You Don't Know JS Yet books.
- Logos and mascots: A friendly face for your event, team, project, or community.
- Book and course illustrations: Drawings that explain the idea and give readers a reason to smile. See the books above.
- Social media graphics: Launch announcements, event promos, and art that stops the scroll.
- Live event illustrations: I've drawn avatars live for attendees at the WordPress.com booth at WordCamp Europe, US, and Asia, around 150 at each event, with folks coming back with colleagues in tow for their turn. I also draw sketch notes of talks.
- Tech humor and cartoons: Comics for your blog, newsletter, talk, or team chat that developers will actually share.
Why Work with Me?
I'm a developer who draws. I've spent more than a decade in developer relations, and many years before that building web applications. So when you ask for a joke about a race condition, a mascot for your API, or a diagram of how OAuth works, I already understand what you mean. (I've even drawn the OAuth one.)
- I draw what you meant, not just what you said. We'll talk through the idea until I understand what you're going for. That's how Lars got the joke he was trying to make.
- The tech details are right. Developers notice when a diagram is wrong or a joke doesn't make sense. I've been in the room where those jokes are told.
- It all looks like it belongs together. One style across a 158-page book, 365 daily jokes, or 150 avatars at a single conference.
- It's original, and it's yours. Hand-drawn work made for you, not a remix of a million other images.
What People Say
From the book's acknowledgements:
"David Neal, who has now illustrated two of my books and who somehow draws the joke I was trying to make rather than the one I actually made."
Lars Klint, in the acknowledgements of Automate Everything, Notice Nothing
I use David’s avatar everywhere I can. It being hand-drawn has made all the difference. People at conferences have met me and said “I recognized you from your avatar!” I’ll probably use it forever.
How It Works
- Tell me what you need. For an avatar, order on the avatars page. For anything else, send me the details and I'll reply with a quote.
- I sketch, you react. For custom work, you'll see your drawing take shape, and we'll refine it together until it's right.
- Get your files. A high-resolution PNG that's ready for wherever you need it, and it's yours to use however you like.
Order an Avatar
Avatars have their own page, with the gallery, prices, and ordering. They start at $30 for black-and-white and $60 for color, and they're usually ready within 48 hours.
Custom Work
Stickers, logos, mascots, books, events, and everything else are priced by the scope of the project. Tell me a little about it, and I'll send you a quote.
It helps to include:
- What you'd like drawn, and what it's for
- Where it'll be used (stickers, a book, slides, a website, print)
- Your timeline
- Your budget range, if you have one
- Links or examples of styles you like
The Details
- Pricing: Avatars start at $30 for black-and-white and $60 for color (see all the avatar prices). Custom work is quoted based on scope.
- Turnaround: Avatars are usually ready within 48 hours. For custom work, the timeline is part of your quote.
- Revisions: Not happy with the results? I'm happy to make adjustments. Within reason 😉
- Files: A high-resolution 3000 × 3000 pixel PNG, ready for GitHub, Slack, slides, and print. Add the vector option ($15) and you'll also get an SVG that scales to any size, from a sticker to a banner.
- Usage: The art is yours to use however you wish. Attribution is always appreciated!
Questions Folks Ask
Why not just use AI?
Fair question! An AI image generator is fast and cheap, and sometimes that's all you need. But it draws what you typed, not what you meant. It won't ask what the joke is, notice that the diagram is backward, or keep your mascot looking like the same character from one drawing to the next.
There's also ownership. In the US, images generated by AI without meaningful human authorship can't be registered for copyright (see the Copyright Office's guidance on AI). That matters a lot when the art is your logo, your mascot, or your book cover. Original, hand-drawn work doesn't have that problem.
How much does a custom illustration cost?
It depends on what you need: how many pieces, how detailed, and how you'll use them. Send me the details, and I'll send you a quote.
Can you match my brand or an existing style?
Yes! Send me your brand guidelines, colors, or the characters and style you already use, and I'll draw to match.
Do you draw at events?
Yes! I've drawn live avatars and sketch notes at conferences on three continents as well as for online events. If you're planning an event, booth, or meetup, let's talk.
Let's Make Something Awesome
Whether it's a new avatar, a sticker your community will fight over, or a whole book of drawings, I'd love to draw it for you.