The Cover Is Here (And Every Detail Means Something)

After months of back-and-forth with my illustrator — drafts, mockups, "can we tighten that letterform a little more" — the cover for Not My Baggage is officially here.

I love it. And I think you'll love it even more once you see what's actually happening on it.

Because this isn't just a pretty design. Every element on this cover is doing a job. So, here's the tour.

The woman at the center

She's the focal point. On purpose.

If you've spent any time being the family overfunctioner — the fixer, the emotional translator, the one who held it together while everyone else fell apart — you know what it's like to feel like a background character in your own life. To be defined by what you carry for everyone else.

The whole thesis of this book lives in one design choice: you are at the center. Not your trauma. Not your role. Not the bag someone else handed you when you were six. You.

The luggage carousel behind her

Here's the part most people miss: a lot of what we carry was never ours to begin with.

Generational patterns. Beliefs about love. The way we brace when someone raises their voice. Half of it got handed down before we were old enough to opt in.

For years, the language around this has been "checking your baggage." Set it aside. Move on. Not My Baggage makes a different move: unclaim it. You walk up to the carousel, look at the bag with your name on it, and decide — actually, no. That one's not mine. And you walk away.

The carousel on the cover is that moment.

The crowd behind her

Look closely, and you'll see people moving through the terminal behind her, each one with their own bag. Their own story.

That's intentional, too. Because if you've ever thought I'm the only one carrying this much — you're not. Airports are full of people pretending their luggage isn't heavy.

Coming in June or July

The book is heading into its final formatting stretch, and I'm aiming for a June or July launch. There's a lot more on the way — including a companion journal with the same cover sensibility — but today, I just wanted to share this with you.

If you want to be the first to know when it's live, [you can join the email list here]. No spam. Just the occasional update and a few preview chapters along the way.

Unclaim the bag. Walk away. Keep going.

— The Baggage Therapist

Not My Baggage book cover by The Baggage Therapist. Artwork By Dali Wu