What actually happens if you do this.
You do not have to organise any of it. I handle the whole process, gently, from the first phone call to the moment it's yours to keep.
The process, step by step
We talk
I spend time with you over a series of relaxed, recorded conversations, at your own pace and in your own chair. Most families do this in person. Where that is difficult, we work out between us how to do it rather than rule it out.
I write
I shape those conversations into a properly written life story, keeping the person's own voice throughout. You see a full draft before anything is finished.
Your book is made
The finished story becomes exactly what you want to keep: a professionally produced hardback, the original recordings, or a digital copy.
There is no fixed session count.
The exact number of sessions depends on the person and the story, and is agreed together on a call rather than sold off a rigid table. Some families need one long conversation; others need several shorter ones spread over weeks. The Memory Kit, which is coming soon, will work differently: you go through a set of questions together in your own time, then send me the recording.
I conduct every conversation myself, and I write every story myself. Nothing is handed off. Read about Amanda→
Could you just do this yourself?
Could I just record the conversations myself? Yes, honestly, a phone and a quiet room is enough to start. The Memory Kit, coming soon, is built for exactly this: a set of questions to go through together, in your own time, at a much lower cost. The hundred questions and the recording guide are here now, and free.
So why pay someone to write it? Recording a conversation and shaping it into something someone will actually want to read are different skills. I spend real time with the material, finding the shape of the story, keeping the person's own voice, and making sure it reads as something worth handing down, not a transcript.
What if we're not ready for a full book? Say so when you message me. The Memory Kit is being built for exactly that, and until it is ready we can talk about the smallest sensible version. There is no obligation to take it any further.
The questions people have once they have decided.
- Family involvementFamily members are welcome at sessions, and if several of you are sharing the cost, tell me how many of you there are and we will work the practical side out.
- Memory that's patchySessions can be shorter, or split across visits, if the person tires easily or a diagnosis means some days are better than others.
- The recordingsThey stay between us. Nothing is shared beyond what goes into the book. Whether the edited recordings come to you as part of the project is one of the things we agree at the start, rather than something I decide for you. What to ask me about the recordings sets out exactly what to pin down.
- PhotographsYes, your own photographs are restored where needed and woven through the finished book.
Two things I would rather tell you exactly than approximate on a website: how corrections and final approval work in practice, and how long I hold the recordings before they come back to you. Ask me before you commit to anything and you will get a straight answer.