The invention relates to a process for preparing platelet-like pigments comprising a core and at least one coating layer consisting essentially of a compound having from 60 to 95% by weight of carbon and from 5 to 25% by weight of nitrogen, the balance to 100% being selected from elements of the group consisting of hydrogen, oxygen and sulfur, comprising the steps of: (a) suspending plateletlike particles in a liquid; (b) adding one or more polymers containing nitrogen and carbon atoms, or (a1) suspending one or more polymers containing nitrogen and carbon atoms in a liquid; (b1) adding the plateletlike particles, (c) effecting a polymeric coating layer to be formed on the surface of said plateletlike particles from the polymers added at step (b), or (a1); (d) isolating said plateletlike particles having said polymeric coating layer from the suspension; and (e) heating said plateletlike particles having said polymeric coating layer to a temperature of from 100° C. to 1000° C. in a gaseous environment, to the pigments obtained by the method and the use thereof. It is possible by the process of the present invention to obtain very regular, homogeneous and continuous coatings in an extremely wide range of thicknesses.