How it works

How Chronicle works.

Three conversations to start. Just a story to tell.

This is the full story of how a Chronicle gets made – what happens on day one, what the storyteller actually does, what arrives in the post at the end.

1

Choose the tier and the day, then set the chapters.

At checkout you pick the tier and the day you want the invitation to land. Once paid, a five-minute setup wizard takes you through the chapters that matter, the tone, and what you already know about the storyteller.

Thirteen chapters is our recommended starting point – drawn from how memoirs are usually shaped – but the list is yours. Add chapters, remove them, rename them. The guided conversation follows whichever titles you choose.

Tell Chronicle the names, the places, the moments worth asking about. That's what makes the interview feel like family, not a stranger.

2

They receive the invitation, then talk at their pace.

On the chosen day, they receive a personal note from Chronicle. The first chapter is ready to begin.

Chronicle leads the conversation, one chapter at a time. Pause whenever they need to. Targeted reminders nudge them forward without pressure.

Sessions work on any phone, tablet, or computer. No app to download. The session is exactly as they left it.

3

Each chapter, drafted in their voice.

After each session, Chronicle drafts the chapter from what they actually said. Every word came from them.

You and the storyteller review every page. Edit, approve, or reshape anything. Nothing goes into the book that has not been approved.

The chapter sits in the book in the storyteller's voice. Not a generic memoir voice.

4

The finished book.

When all the chapters are done, the book is bound. 148 × 210mm (A5). Smyth Sewn (Heirloom), casebound (Memoir), or perfect bound softcover (Life Story).

Printed and bound in the UK. Posted to the address you nominate.

The full-colour digital PDF is included in every tier so the whole family has a copy too.

Hands writing in a leather-bound notebook at a wooden desk in soft window light, a cup of tea and a small stack of family photographs nearby

Why a conversation, not a form.

Most memoir tools ask the same set of questions to everyone. A form. A questionnaire. Chronicle is configured by the people who love the storyteller, so the questions feel like they came from family. The interviewer knows the storyteller's name, the names of their parents, the place they grew up, the work they did. So when it asks about their childhood, it already knows where to start.

The result is the difference between filling in a form and being interviewed by someone who knows you. The same person, with the same memories, produces a richer story in the second mode.

What we ask of the storyteller.

The three things people worry about. The three things Chronicle is built around.

Nothing technical.

It works on any phone or tablet. No app to download, no fiddly setup – one simple, secure sign-in keeps the story behind a locked door, every session. If they can read a text message, they can do this.

At their pace.

A session lasts as long as they want. Pause for a week, a month, a year. Targeted reminders nudge them forward when the time feels right.

Their voice, their story.

They review every chapter before anyone else sees it. Nothing gets printed without their say-so.

How a Chronicle gift unfolds.

The gift is in the invitation. The book is whenever they are ready.

  1. The invitation lands on your chosen date.

    Pick the day you want it to land – a birthday, an anniversary, a Tuesday. They receive a personal note from Chronicle on that morning, with their first chapter ready to begin.

  2. They tell their story, a chapter at a time.

    Thirteen guided conversations, one chapter at a time. Targeted reminders keep them moving without pressure. Pause whenever they want. The story is theirs to tell, not a deadline to meet.

  3. A finished book in the post, printed in the UK.

    When they have finished every chapter, the book is bound and posted. 148 × 210mm (A5). 90, 130, or 150gsm paper, depending on the tier. The kind of book that belongs on a shelf for generations.

A note on the technology.

Chronicle uses AI to lead the conversation and to draft the chapter from what was said. It does not invent. It does not embellish. It does not replace the storyteller's voice with a polished one. Every word in the final book came from them. We never use what is shared with Chronicle to train AI.

Pick the tier that fits the story you want to give.

Pick the tier that fits →See the book →