Their life story, written.
One afternoon of their answers becomes their story, in their own voice. $79, print-ready PDF, within 2 days.
Write their storyAlso £65 incl. VAT · A$119 · C$109 · you ask the questions, we write it
Your rough notes from the kitchen table become this.
You do not have to write well. You have to ask, and type what they say.
Q8 Dad (Tom) – dance in Enniscrone 1961, he stood on her foot and apologised for the whole next dance, she thought he was “a bit of an eejit, but a kind one” Q9 married Aug 1964, rained sideways, the cake fell off the table at the Downhill Hotel, Tom's brother drunk by 3
I met Tom at a dance in Enniscrone in 1961. He stood on my foot in the first dance and apologised for the whole of the second, and I thought he was a bit of an eejit, but a kind one. I was right on both counts, and I was glad of both for fifty-one years. We were married in August 1964. It rained sideways, the cake fell off the table at the Downhill Hotel, and Tom's brother was drunk by three o'clock. It was a wonderful day.
Sample: Peggy and her daughter Clare are invented. Every real story is written only from the answers you send.
Three steps. Two days.
Ask them 24 questions
One afternoon, a pot of tea. Print our sheet, record it on your phone or type as they talk. Rough notes are fine.
Send us the answers
Paste the notes or the transcript into the form, or a link to the recording. We transcribe up to 90 minutes.
Get the story
Their life in short chapters, in their voice, as a print-ready PDF plus the text. Within 2 days, one free round of changes.
$79
- Their story, 1,200 to 3,000 words, in short chapters, in their own voice or told about them
- Title page, A4 or US Letter, ready to print, bind, frame or read aloud at the party
- The plain text too, for a photo book or a card
- Within 2 days of payment. One free round of changes. Late means your money back.
Also £65 incl. VAT · A$119 · C$109 · nothing invented, ever
Read a whole one first.
“Peggy, in her own words”: Clare's notes from one afternoon with her mother, and the seven short chapters they became. Plus the 24 questions, so you can start this weekend.
Read the sample storyThe first eight questions:
- Where were you born, and what is the first thing you remember?
- What was the house you grew up in like? Who was in it?
- What did your mother and father do, and what did they say that you still hear?
- What were you like as a child? What got you into trouble?
- School: a teacher you remember, and why.
- What did you want to be when you grew up?
- Your first job, and what it paid.
- How did you meet the person you married (or the great friend of your life)?
Tell us about them.
Who they are, how you want it told, and their answers. You get an order code at the end, then pay by card at the checkout and the two days start.
Questions
What if they will not sit for an interview?
Most people will, once it is one afternoon and not a project. Give them the sheet a day ahead, put the kettle on, and ask the questions out of order if they wander. Twenty questions out of twenty-four is plenty. If they will not be recorded, type as they talk; rough notes are enough.
Do you make anything up?
No. The story is written only from what they said and what you send. If a date or a name is missing we leave a marked gap and ask you, rather than guess. Their words, their phrases and their jokes stay exactly as they said them.
What arrives, and how long is it?
A print-ready PDF (A4 or US Letter) with a title page and the story in short chapters, 1,200 to 3,000 words depending on how much they said, in their own voice or told about them, your choice. You also get the plain text to paste into a photo book or a card. Within 2 days, with one free round of changes.
Already sent the form? Pay at the checkout: $79 · £65 · A$119 · C$109, then put your code in the box. Questions first? lifestory@mail.tab.bot