Preserve Your Family History and Life Stories
You’ve lived an incredible life full of experiences that deserve to be remembered. But it’s overwhelming to try to write them all down. With Backstory, you just tell your stories through a guided conversation and we do the rest. No writing required.
Everyone has a different vision for preserving their history. Here are the three most popular steps, from simplest to most complete. Start with the first and see where it leads
Oral History
Yours words, exactly as your said them. Hear it in your voice.
Guided interviews with a personal historian on topics we explore together. You receive a transcript lightly edited for readability and organized into chapters, plus the audio, so your family can both read your words and hear you say them.
• How it works: Intake session → four one-hour interviews → one review/revision session
• You receive: Up to 40-page Word document, PDF, and audio recordings
• Typical timeline: 6-8 weeks
BEST FOR:
✓ If you feel hesitant about a whole book project
BENEFITS:
✓ If you are very busy, and want to to be involved reviewing a book or looking for photos.
✓ The process takes about 6-8 weeks, which is a quicker project than a book
✓ A great place to start. Your fee is credited toward a Life Story Book or Legacy Book within 12 months if you want to continue.
Starting at $1,800
Additional interviews and video available:
See Add-ons
TIMELINE: 6-8 weeks
Life Story Book
Your stories, written as a book.
We take your interviews and write them into a chapter book that contains your life stories and family history.
• How it works: Intake session → five one-hour interviews → two review sessions to go through the draft together
• You receive: 6 x 9 hardcover book up to 40 pages with a color cover photo and a back-page photo collage, and audio recordings
• What is the difference between this book and an Oral History? An oral history is your words, transcribed and edited, with no photos. The Life Story book is written by Backstory as a narrative, and includes photos.
• What is the difference between this book and a Legacy Book? The Legacy Book has more pages and interviews, and has up to 40 photos throughout. This book has a cover photo and a photo collage at the back, and the rest is your stories in chapters .
• Typical timeline: 2-3 months
BEST FOR:
✓If you want your stories and history captured, but either don’t have a lot of photos, or don’t have the time to look for photos
BENEFITS:
✓ The process takes about 2 months, which is a quicker project than a Legacy book
✓ A great middle ground. You’ll have a wonderful story book, and your fee is credited toward a full Legacy Book within 12 months if you decide you want to add more interviews, and add photos throughout the book.
Starting at $2,500
Additional interviews, pages, photos, and video available: See Add-ons
TIMELINE: 4 weeks
Legacy Book
Your definitive life story, written and designed as an heirloom. A legacy, beautifully told.
Organized thematically or chronologically, this book weaves your family’s history and photos into a keepsake to pass down.
• How it works: Intake session → six one-hour interviews → one photo selection session → two review sessions
• You receive: 6 x 9 hardcover book of up to 60 pages and up to 40 photos woven throughout, PDF, and audio recordings
• What is the difference between this book and the Life Story Book? It has everything in the Life Story Book, plus a fifth interview to go deeper, up to 40 photos woven through the story and chosen together with you, and custom design by a professional book designer.
• Typical Timeline: Three to four months
BEST FOR:
✓ If you have been meaning to write a book, or has started but not finished it, and feel overwhelmed.
BENEFITS:
✓ It’s the complete book, allowing you to let go of photos, files, and stories.
✓ It’s easy to add on a video
✓ Includes book layout, professional design, and photo scanning
Starting at $3,200
Additional interviews, pages, photos, and video available.
See Add-ons
TIMELINE: 3-4 months
What’s the difference? At A Glance
