Submitting non- fiction - what to do about illustrations?

[MarmotMorning]

I am writing a non-fiction children's history book. The text and layout is ready to start submitting to agents. However the style and content of the book means it would need a lot of design and illustration added when published.

I have used Microsoft publisher to give a clear indication of the layout and flow and have added placeholders for illustrations. Is this enough? I'm concerned it looks a bit like a PowerPoint!

Am I likely to get more interest from agents if I get the chapters I'm submitting graphically designed and illustrated?

Do agents expect that as a writer of an illustrated history book that I do indeed have an illustrator already lined up?

Thank you to anyone who help with these questions.

I've seen this question asked before of agents/publishers and the answer is generally no - you don't need to have an illustrator lined up in order to query your project. If they think it has merit they will usually link you with somebody suitable to do the illustrations/graphics.

Thank you so much, that is really useful.

Agents understand it's about the content. A clean layout is good, but don't stress about graphic design upfront. Focus on finding an agent who vibes with your story. They usually expect you to have an idea for illustrations, not necessarily a finalized deal. You can even use ai vector images. Keep it authentic – you got this!