Do I need to prepare?
No. A memory, a person, or a place is enough. Emily will ask the rest.
For telling your own story
No writing and no forms. Emily, a patient interviewer, asks you one question at a time, out loud. You just answer. Your words become a story your family can keep, and a printed book if you'd like one.
Free to try. No sign-up needed.
Emily
Let's start somewhere easy. Where did you grow up?
Emily is one of five voices. Pick the one that feels right. You can stop any time, and she'll remember where you were.
This is the whole screen. One question, one button.

Your grandchildren know you as Grandma or Grandpa. This is how they'll know the rest.

Not a questionnaire
Most life-story tools hand you a question and leave you to it. Emily talks with you. She listens, answers back, and asks about the little things you mention, because that's where the best stories are.
What did the house you grew up in sound like at night?
The trains, mostly. The late freight rattled the teacups in the cupboard.
Whose teacups were they?
Mother's wedding china. We weren't allowed to touch it. Oh, I haven't thought about that in years. She gave me one cup the day I married Frank.
+ A story she hadn't planned to tellIllustrative story · Maggie Ellis
Emily answers back, and every so often she tells you what she's heard, so you know your words landed.
One good question leads to the memory behind the memory. People are often surprised by what comes back.
Talk for ten minutes or an hour. Stop any time, and next time she picks up right where you left off.
Before you start
No. A memory, a person, or a place is enough. Emily will ask the rest.
Take your time. Emily waits. You can stop in the middle and pick up tomorrow, and she'll remind you where you were.
You decide. Say more if you want to, or just say “let's move on,” and Emily will. She never pushes.
If you can talk on the phone, you can do this. It works on a computer or a tablet, right in the web browser. Nothing to install.
Watch it grow
Read it in your own words. Fix anything we got wrong, add a photo, or keep it exactly the way you said it.
Nothing goes in the book until you say so.

Sunday at the river, about 1954.
Every Sunday from June to September, the family carried a wicker hamper down to the grass below the old bridge. Father rolled up his sleeves but never took off his tie.
“We didn't have much, but we had Sundays.”
Illustrative page from Maggie's book, after six conversations.
What becomes yours
Every option starts with the same conversations with Emily, a few hours in all, at whatever pace suits you.
Maggie Ellis
Maggie Ellis
Maggie EllisExtra copies for every branch of the family.
Illustrative story · Maggie Ellis
$79.95 one time
The stories and photos you choose, printed, bound, and mailed to your door. The written story and the recordings come with it.
Choose the bookEverything included
Or choose one on its own
Your choice
$11.95 one-time. Checkout isn’t open yet; nothing will be charged or created by continuing. Includes one year to record new conversations, starting when your payment is confirmed. Your saved stories, recordings and book stay available afterward. Nothing renews or is charged automatically. Refunds and returns
Thinking of someone else?
A sister, an old friend, the neighbor with all the stories. Write them a short note, tuck in an old photo, and Emily will take it from there.
Give it as a gift
You've told me the best stories for fifty years. Now tell them to someone who'll write them down.
Love, Maggie
Illustrative invitation · Maggie Ellis
Your story starts here
You don't need to know where it leads. Emily will be right there with you.
Try one question nowFree to try. No sign-up.