Questions families ask us first.

Getting started

Do we need to have everything organised before we start?

No — and please don't try. Most families come to us with a shoebox of photos, half-remembered stories, voice notes, and one or two cherished documents. Our producers organise everything for you. A short call is enough to begin — book a story call.

What is the story call?

30 minutes by phone, WhatsApp video, or Zoom. We meet the family, hear the story arc, ask a few targeted questions about scope, and confirm which package fits. No payment is taken at the call — you receive a written scope and a quote afterward and decide in your own time.

Can older relatives who aren't tech-savvy still take part?

Yes. A grandparent who can answer a phone call or send a WhatsApp voice note can fully contribute. We can also schedule a video interview where the producer asks the questions and records the conversation — your relative just talks. We handle the rest.

How families contribute

How do family members actually contribute their stories and photos?

Mostly through WhatsApp. We open a shared thread for your project. Aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents send voice notes, photo snaps, screenshots, and short videos straight from their phone — in whatever language they speak. No app to download, no login to remember. Your producer transcribes, catalogues, and translates everything.

Can you work from old photos, voice notes, letters, and documents?

Yes. Phone snapshots of old albums, scanned prints, voice memos in any language, WhatsApp recordings, letters, documents, even photographs of handwritten notes — all useful source material. We will tell you what additional material, if any, would strengthen a chapter.

Formats, languages & art style

What book formats can we choose from?

Every package supports your choice of format. Most families choose a graphic novel — sequential panels, dialogue, character consistency from real photographs. We also produce illustrated memoirs (prose-led, with key scenes illustrated and watercolor anchors throughout), storybooks (page-per-scene, generously illustrated, good for younger readers and grandchildren), and a traditional format that pairs written text with the family's actual source photographs throughout. Format choice is locked during the story call and can shape the page count and pacing. Want to see inside a finished book first? Take a look.

Can we choose the art style of the book?

Yes. Early in production we share two or three style references — warm and cinematic, quieter and more documentary, classic graphic novel, painterly — and adjust to what feels right for your family and story. You approve a sample plate before the rest of the book is illustrated, and you can refine likeness, palette, and tone at the page-review stage. The same style is then carried consistently across every plate. See finished examples in our gallery.

Can we include Hebrew, Yiddish, Arabic, or French names — and bilingual editions?

Yes. We deliver English and Hebrew editions today, RTL-native. Captions can hold Hebrew, Yiddish, Judeo-Arabic, French, or Russian names with correct transliteration. Bilingual side-by-side editions (Hebrew page with English page) are available as an add-on.

How do you keep characters recognizable across the whole book?

We build a character reference sheet from your family photographs at the start of production, and apply a character-persistence pipeline (multi-reference embedding + human editor review) to every page. The same person looks like the same person on plate 1 and plate 60.

Can the same person appear at different ages across the book?

Yes — and we expect to. A grandfather may appear as a child in 1948, a young soldier in 1973, and a smiling grandparent today, all in the same volume. We build age-specific reference sheets from your family photographs and check every plate against the right age for that scene. Faces remain recognizably the same person across decades.

Pricing & packages

What does a legacy book cost?

Concierge packages are a one-time price per project — not a subscription. There are four editions: Family ($1,200), Guided ($2,200), Signature ($3,600), and Heirloom ($5,600+). Each includes producer-led production, custom illustration, family review rounds, and printing. The Bar/Bat Mitzvah Legacy Twinning program pairs your family book with a sponsored second book. See full Editions & pricing for exactly what each edition includes. Exact pricing depends on length and complexity — book a story call for a quote, with no commitment.

Why is there no $99/year subscription tier?

Subscription apps in the memoir category are mass-market products — same weekly prompts, same templates, same finished-book layout for everyone. That works for a lot of families and it is not what we do. LegacyTaleCraft is fully customized to your family: a human team scopes your project, interviews your people, edits your script, reviews every panel with you, and stays with you on WhatsApp from first call to finished book. We are the alternative for families who want their actual story told properly.

How is this different from StoryWorth, Remento, or a memoir ghostwriter?

StoryWorth and Remento are subscription products that produce a templated book if the storyteller follows the weekly prompts. Memoir ghostwriters charge $18,000–$75,000 and take 8–12 months for a text-only manuscript. LegacyTaleCraft sits between them: concierge-led, fully custom, available as a graphic novel, illustrated memoir, storybook, or traditional text + photographs format, 6–12 weeks, $1,200–$5,600+. Your family sees themselves on the page — drawn with consistency from real photographs.

What does "early-bird" mean — when does pricing go up?

Early-bird pricing is open right now while we onboard our first cohort of families. We will lift it once we close that cohort. We have not set a date — when we do, current early-bird families are honored at the price they booked at.

What if our project is larger or more complex than the package describes?

Signature Edition and Heirloom Edition are scoped at the story call. Larger families, unusual timelines, more interview subjects, or specialized research (Holocaust archives, military service records, multi-language translation) can be quoted separately. The listed prices are the starting points; the written quote after the story call is your final price.

I already have a written memoir or a documented interview — can you just illustrate it?

Yes. Our adaptation packages turn existing material — a written manuscript, or a documented interview such as a transcript or a recorded oral history — into a fully illustrated graphic novel, with the same printing and binding as our full editions. They cost close to the full packages because the printing and binding — our largest production cost — are identical; what you save is the interview and a simplified story development stage, already prepared in your manuscript or interview. See the Adaptation packages page for details.

We are a senior-living community, school, synagogue, or memorial organization — what does pricing look like for us?

Organizational engagements are scoped case-by-case and quoted separately from the four family packages. Common shapes: a resident-memoir program at a senior-living community, a classroom oral-history unit, a community-wide legacy book, a fallen-soldier family-pairing cohort, or a heritage-trip program interviewing grandparents. book a story call and tell us about your community — we will send a written proposal.

Review, revisions & timeline

Can family members review the story before the book is printed?

Yes. You see and approve the story outline, the script, character likenesses, a sample plate, and a full proof of the bound volume before anything goes to print. Revisions are part of the process, not an upcharge.

What if we want changes after seeing the first draft?

Revisions are part of the process, not an upcharge. Most families request adjustments at each stage — wording, framing, who is in a panel, period details — and we work through them together until the book reads the way you want your grandchildren to read it.

How long does a full volume take?

A typical concierge volume takes about six to twelve weeks from kickoff to bound delivery: discovery, interview, script approval, character sample, full art, family review, print. Memorial and milestone volumes can be expedited.

What if we only want one chapter, one milestone, or one person?

That is welcome. A Bar/Bat Mitzvah chapter, a 70th-birthday tribute, a single grandparent's life, or a one-scene plate are all valid commissions. Start small if you prefer; many families extend the project later.

Copies, shipping & gifts

Can we print additional copies for relatives?

Yes. Extra copies of the bound volume are available at production cost and ship worldwide. Many families order one per branch — siblings, children, grandchildren — at the same time.

Do you ship hardcover books internationally?

Yes. We print in Israel for IL-resident families and in the US for diaspora families, choosing whichever produces the better book and the better shipping cost for your address. Many families commission a book as a milestone gift for parents or grandparents on another continent — we coordinate timing so the bound volume arrives in time for a birthday, anniversary, or yahrzeit. Customs and duties (where applicable) are itemized upfront.

What if I want more than 25 copies?

Heirloom Edition includes 25 archival hardcover copies. Additional copies are quoted at volume pricing; the per-copy price drops the more you order. Common scenarios: 30–50 copies for a large family branch, 100+ for a community library or school distribution.

Privacy & ownership

How do you protect private family materials?

Materials are stored on access-controlled servers, used only to produce your book, and never shared with third parties beyond the printer or used to train AI models. You can request deletion at any time. A short, plain-language summary lives on our Privacy page.

Who owns the final art and files?

You do. You own the story, the artwork, and the high-resolution print files. You can reprint, gift, or archive the book without further permission from us.

Sensitive, memorial & sponsored stories

Can you work with sensitive, traumatic, or memorial stories?

Yes, and with care. We have produced memorial volumes for families who lost loved ones, Holocaust survivor stories, and stories that include emigration, war, and exile. Sensitive scenes are handled with restraint, in close consultation with the family, and reviewed by a human editor. You can see inside a finished book from one of our memorial projects.

Can a sponsor dedicate or contribute to cover a family memoir for someone who cannot afford it?

Yes — and we encourage it. We run two programs for this. Our Preserve a Hero Book program lets sponsors dedicate and fund a family book for families who cannot fund it on their own. Our Legacy Twinning page pairs a fallen-soldier or Holocaust-era family with a sponsoring family or community.

Still have questions? A producer answers within one business day.