“Hill’s black and white illustrations, full of clean, bold lines, fill the tale with a sense of drama and action, even when the characters are reading silently…” — Publishers Weekly

Jonathan Hill is an award-winning cartoonist, illustrator, and educator living in Portland, OR. He graduated in 2003 as valedictorian of the Savannah College of Art & Design with a degree in Sequential Art. Some of his clients include Microsoft, the Portland Trailblazers, the Viet Nam Literature Project, the Inlander, Fantagraphics Books, Dark Horse Comics, Tor.com, The Believer Magazine, Literary Arts, and Powell’s City of Books. He’s been the staff illustrator to The Asian Reporter since 2007.

His books have been published by First Second, Oni Press, and is currently working on books for Walker Books US. His books have been featured at ABC New Voices, YALSA and JLG selections, and won awards – Americus won the 2012 Carla Cohen Free Speech Award and Odessa won the 2021 Believer Book Award for Graphic Literature.

He was an associate professor in the Illustration Department at the Pacific Northwest College of Art from 2014-2021, building the comics curriculum from the ground up, taught comics and illustration classes for youth programs at the Oregon College of Art and Craft from 2010-2018, and was Writer in Residence through Literary Arts’ Writers in the Schools program from 2012-2016. He currently serves as vice-chair on the Board of Directors of Literary Arts and is a 2025 We Need Diverse Books Illustration Mentor.

Jonathan has also presented and taught workshops for the Washington School for the Deaf, the Oregon Association of School Librarians, The Portland Art Museum, Portland Public Schools, the Los Angeles Public Library, and was guest faculty at Tin House’s 2020 Summer Workshop, and The Believer’s Comics Workshops.

Jonathan's Featured Titles

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My Process For Making Comics

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The Power of Encouragement | Where Comics Have Taken Me

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How to Incorporate Comics Into Your Curriculum

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Why Drawing is for Everyone (YES! Even you!)

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Personal Identity | My relationship with being Asian American

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The Creative Process and How Making Mistakes is Really Important

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Journal Comics: Using Comics As a Way To Document Your Life

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The Craft of Comics & Graphic Novels

Pacing & Rhythm: How Time Works in Comics
Drawing & Design in Two-Colors

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Diversity in Media | Why it's important & its impact

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Jonathan Hill’s Illustrations

Jonathan Hill’s Comics

Jonathan Hill’s Original Art

Honors, Awards & Recognition

2024-2025 Oregon Battle of the Books “Starter List” Title
2024 Texas Mavericks Reading List Starred Title
2023 Eleanor Cameron Notable List Title
2022 Oregon Spirit Award Honor Book
Junior Library Guild Selection 2022
2022 ALA Best Graphic Novels for Children Reading List
Winner of the 2022 Louis J. Battan Authors’ Award, K-12
Winner, 2012 Carla Cohen Free Speech Award
Winner, 2021 Believer Book Award for Graphic Literature
Shortlisted, 2022 PNBA Book Awards

Media clips

Media Kit

By clicking the link below you will be directed to a Google Docs Folder
where you can download author photos and cover images.

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