I'd Rather Get A Cat And Save The Planet
If you are a woman, you may have seen thousands of books that talk about how to be a better mum, or how to prepare for motherhood.
However, there are not so many books that help women who decided to be "childless" (generally known as child-free) thrive in a world that, on the surface, seems more ready to embrace gender diversity.
For this reason, writer Nina Jervis decided to present her thoughts around her experiences as a child-free woman. She invited me to design her book, to match its humorous and lively style.
Competencies
Book Cover
Content Hierarchy
Chapter Illustrations
The Project. The Story.
The Protagonists
Nina Jervis is a writer, coach and blogger, who I had the pleasure of meeting when I was looking for a fine editor who is creative and passionate about writing.
Nina's goal was to write a book that every woman would feel happy to read, no matter her marital status or motherhood experience. A book that could help childless women feel less lonely in this society and create a more understanding environment.
I decided to help her in this mission.
The Plot
The life of a woman is considered by many to be a journey with just one destination: motherhood.
But there have always been women who have felt that procreation is not their purpose in life. These women are often seen as travellers that are wandering and lost.
Nina's book is the funny, all-too-common “journey” of many child-free women and their conversations with the rest of the world, a society that finds it difficult to fully understand the reasons behind this choice.
When procreating is not on a woman’s to-do list, society demands to know what bigger plans she has in mind. You may be surprised to find out that some women are not planning to save the world, but to simply enjoy other aspects of their child-free life.
At the same time, it’s easy to see how a child-free woman can be subject to discrimination at work, just as a mother (or a single father) and that, child-free or not, more empathy is badly needed between human beings.
I wanted the cover of the book to represent these, and many other, aspects, in the same hilarious, witty and relaxed style of Nina's writing.
So, I imagined that Nina had embarked on a travelling mission to collect as many testimonials as possible from different women, whose experiences could support and populate her book (luggage).
The black cat, which in many cultures is associated with bad luck and witchcraft (and so a species that can be denigrated and avoided), is her travel companion. On the cover, the cat is represented as attempting to chase a ball (our world).
The style of the book is friendly and open, so I felt that the polished, refined look of my vector drawings wouldn't reflect the intimate and informal writing.
For this reason, I decided to use watercolours and markers, to give a more expressive and spontaneous feel throughout the book.
The illustrations of both the cover and the chapter openings are linked together, creating another layer to the story. In fact, some of the objects used in the chapter illustrations are also used in the luggage on the cover.
When it came to the typography, I decided to use a different approach.
The title on the cover uses a bespoke, handwritten typeface, while the rest for of the book I wanted a font that could convey Nina's bright and happy voice.
The Result
The book has been successfully launched in both printed and epub version at the beginning of 2020, and it has since received very good reviews.
Through her witty and intimate discussions, Nina invites the reader to discover that, whether or not the ultimate destination is motherhood, a woman can enjoy her journey and still have a happy and rewarding life, filled with unconditional love.
The client says:
I ’ve often wanted to read something more light-hearted and upbeat about being child-free; something that reflects the fact that choosing not to have children is as natural and normal as choosing to have them.
-Nina Jervis, writer
