Creating your life story book is a careful process of transcribing, editing, organizing, formatting, including photos, layout, printing, and binding.

After completing the recorded interviews with you, we transcribe the audio tapes and carefully edit the resulting manuscript, organizing the material into an easily read narrative with natural chapter breaks.  

As much as possible, we keep the rhythm and integrity of your own speech patterns, so that your readers will be able to hear your voice in the words on the printed page.  

We then send you a draft of the manuscript so you can check for accuracy of details, add new thoughts, and make any other adjustments that you feel will carry out your vision for your book.

I say the tale as `twas said to me."

—Sir Walter Scott

Family letters and treasured keepsakes

"We lay aside letters never to read them again,

and at last we destroy them out of discretion,

and so disappears the most beautiful, the most immediate breath of life,

irrecoverably for ourselves and for others."

—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

You most likely will want to include some of your favorite photos in your book. In addition to photographs, there are other items you might consider. A concise genealogy diagram may be appropriate, for instance.

Among the precious resources in any family's possession are old packets of letters, diaries or journals, or even daybooks with notations of comings and goings. Copies of a selection of these items can be included in your book, to give it added richness and historical depth.

These keepsakes are invitations to your readers to become better acquainted with their forebears. Through old photos and journal excerpts, younger generations are given glimpses into the details of times gone by.

Putting the book together

We consult with you on the design, layout and construction of your book. Your book can be almost any size and length.  There are many formats and type styles to choose from. To assist you in your selection, we provide sample fonts for text and titles. 

We print on acid-free paper for long life and can provide a variety of cover materials and bindings, depending on the quantity of books you order and your choice of binding processes.  

We specialize in beautiful custom-designed hard-cover books with hand-sewn bindings. Slipcases are available to protect your heirloom copies.

The books pictured on the right are examples of two different styles of binding. Each story was published in both a hard-bound and a soft-cover wire-bound edition.

When you already have a good start

Have you completed a manuscript? Perhaps you seeking someone to assist with the final layout, printing, and binding.

Whether you have hand-written journals, typed documents, computer disks, or previously recorded audio tapes, we can work with you during any part of the process so that your story will live on in the hearts and minds of those who love you.