Everyone has a story to tell. But if it’s not written down, it’s lost forever. Details disappear. Timelines fade. Important memories evaporate into thin air. A story forgotten can never be retold.
Writing a memoir is a daunting task. Many people say, “Someday I’m going to write a book,” but few ever have the time, patience, or skills to get it done. For those fortunate few, a carefully crafted memoir enables them to put events into perspective, make sense of the past, and leave an everlasting record of their days on this earth.
For others, it’s a chance to unravel family
mysteries, tell it like it was, bare their soul, and set the record
straight.
Publishing a memoir is a guarantee that your
story, told from your point of view, will be accurately passed down to
future generations. Nothing is more tangible than a book.
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Each book published by Your Story is approached on an individual basis. The subject is up to you. It may focus on a single, idiosyncratic theme or encompass an entire life. The choices are unlimited:
A Hardscrabble Childhood, Tales
from the Old Country, Travels Around the World, The Early Years of
a Marriage, Building a Business, Restoring an Old Home, Stumbling
Toward Maturity, Grandma’s Kitchen Table, Grandpa’s War
Stories, Homage to an Unsung Hero, A Year Abroad, Raising a Family,
Summers by the Sea, Spiritual Revelations, A Keepsake Cookbook, Turning-Point
Tragedies, Joyous Triumphs, or just Words of Wisdom From a Life Well
Lived.
The tone, as well, is set by you. It can be flippant and funny, bold and bawdy,
or serious and stern.
After an initial consultation, Your Story provides a fixed fee that takes into account the time required for interviews, ease of access to needed materials, travel considerations, number of photographs or images to be included, and the length of book desired.
Once these matters are agreed upon, we come to you, ask the questions, spark the memories, and record the interviews on audiocassette tapes. Interviews are conducted at a relaxed pace and in a comfortable, sensitive manner and can range in length from a few days to several weeks. Follow up phone calls to clarify facts may be required.
We then transcribe the tapes, transform the raw material into a cohesive narrative, and write the manuscript in a way that preserves the “author’s voice.” Once that is done, we submit a first draft for your approval. Next, we edit the text as per your suggestions, incorporate photographs and personal documents, design and lay out the book, and present it to you for one more round of proofreading. We then print the books and have them professionally hard bound in linen or leather with the title and author’s name on the cover.
Upon completion of the project, you receive the original audiocassette tapes, and own the copyright to the published book. Registration with the Library of Congress is available for a small fee.
The entire process, from first interview to delivery of the finished books, takes between three and six months. The time factor can depend to a great extent on the speed with which clients are available for interviews and complete their proofreading. The number of books produced is determined by the client. A detailed rate sheet is available upon request. But in general, fees range around $20,000 for an average book.
