I've looked into freelance work, but most places I've found expect you to have an illustration degree. I was told when going into college that a graphic design degree would allow me to do illustration, but I think I was lied to just because they wanted me to attend. The school I went to was shady that way.

I had a few prospects here and there from acquaintances who had written a book, but they never panned out. I could probably write and illustrate my own book, but I don't have any idea what it would be.

@Kynlei what would be the difference between an illustration degree and graphic design?

Graphic design and illustration are relatively different. Sometimes, they can be interchangeable if the person is knowledgeable of both, but that's not usually the case.

Illustration is, more or less, about creating drawings. Usually, illustrators use traditional art mediums like pencils, paints, paper, etc. Graphic designers use computers for the most part. You can create "images" on a computer, but you wouldn't really refer to them as drawings.

What you do as a graphic designer kind of depends on your particular job. Some designers create logos, which involves a lot of original image creation. Some designers create graphics used in TV or movies. Some designers, like in my case, do layouts of pages with elements created by someone else. I basically decide where text and images need be on a page to make it look good. Times when I get to create my own artwork as part of my job are few and far between.

There is a better explanation of the differences here: [designhill.com]