Memoir Ghostwriting
Your story. Your voice. Your legacy.
You’ve lived a long, textured life filled with challenges overcome, people loved, choices that changed everything, and lessons learned.
In a time of “alternative facts” and shifting narratives, your firsthand account matters. Your memoir is not just a book; it’s a record of truth and a gift of clarity to the people who come after you.
You want that truth preserved for your family or perhaps for a wider audience, but the blank page keeps staring back at you.
Where to start? What to include? How to shape a lifetime of experiences into a coherent whole? How does this writing thing actually work?
That’s where I come in. I can help release and organize your memories, capture your voice, and craft your truth into a beautiful, accurate memoir without asking you to become a writer overnight.
What this delivers
- Your voice on the page. Interviews and light prompts let me capture how you speak—rhythms, turns of phrase, and the heart beneath the words.
- A calm, guided process. You show up, we talk; I do the heavy lifting.
- A finished, beautiful book on USB for safe-keeping, electronic distribution or printing PLUS printed copies delivered to your door for you gift to family and friends.
Who Memoir Ghostwriting is for
- Anyone who wants to leave a legacy to their family.
- Founders, professionals, caregivers, survivors, community builders, parents, grandparents, or anyone who wants their truth and experiences to be known.
- Those who feel daunted by writing but are full of stories to pass down through the generations.
Why do this now
As we age, memories start to fade–slowly, around the edges–as details drift and become ever more elusive. Capturing those memories today protects the specifics that bring them to life: the scent of Grandpa’s workshop, the touch of Grandma’s hand, the words that changed your mind, that one moment that defined the rest of your existence.
In a world where facts are being increasingly bent or blurred and history is being rewritten to suit a specific few, your memoir anchors your family to what really happened, to who you really are and thus to the history that birthed and shaped them.
Memoir Ghostwriting Service choices
I currently offer three paths to help you create a lasting legacy for your loved ones and the world–Conversation Chronicles, Vignettes Collection and Full Memoir. At the bottom of this page you’ll also find a nifty comparison chart of the three services. I am also open to proposals if what you envision for your legacy isn’t reflected below. Get in touch to discuss your ideas!
Option 1: Conversation Chronicles
Edited Interview Transcripts
USD $6000
What it is: Conversation Chronicles are a series of professionally tidied transcripts from recorded interviews we do together. I delete ums, ahhs, repetitions and throat-clearings, correct obvious errors and add light punctuation. Your voice remains unmistakably yours.
Ideal for: Clients who want a faithful record of life stories “as told” with minimal interference or intrusion as a keepsake for family and friends.
Conversation Chronicles are intended as private documents, not for general publication.
Conversation Chronicles Deliverables (What you get)
- Downloads
- All your recorded interviews (typically 12 at 60–90 minutes each)
- A print-ready PDF of the tidied transcripts (so you can print more whenever you want.)
- Mailed to you
- 5 soft bound copies with plain covers of your tidied transcripts to present to family and friends
- 1 USB drive containing the recorded interviews and the PDF of your transcripts
Typical timeline: Generally, 3 to 4 months. Depending on my workload and your availability for interviews, it may be possible to complete this faster for a rush fee.
Add-ons: For an extra fee you can add*
- Cover design
- EPUB (Ebook) creation
- Extra interviews
- Extra soft bound copies
- Hard bound copies
Option 2: Vignettes Collection
Polished prose scenes and summaries from interviews
USD $15,000
What it is: A chronological set of standalone written pieces totalling about 100 to 150 pages (approx. 25k to 37.5k words) crafted from the interviews we do together, summarizing key lessons, stories, people and events from your life. Each vignette reads like a miniature chapter with opening image, scene texture, and a resonant close.
Up to 20 black & white or colour captioned images, photographs or even your own artwork, can be added in an “images section” to increase reader engagement and interest and more clearly illustrate your words for your loved ones.
Up to 2 rounds of revisions of each vignette to ensure it accurately tells your story.
A Vignettes Collection is an excellent way to make hundreds of pages of transcripts interesting and accessible for family and friends.
Ideal for: Clients who want literary quality without committing to a full book arc. Perfect for gifts, memorials, time capsules, or sharing with family and friends.
Vignettes Collections are intended as private documents and not for general publication. If you would like your Vignettes Collection prepared for publication, please discuss this with me as it would require the Book interior design and possibly the Publication assistance add-ons.
Vignettes Collection Deliverables (What you get)
- Downloads
- Everything in Conversation Chronicles plus
- An EPUB (Ebook) of the Vignettes Collection
- Mailed to you
- Your choice of 10 soft or 10 hard bound copies of your Vignettes Collection with a Designed Cover to present to family and friends
- 2 USB drives containing everything in Conversation Chronicle PLUS a print-ready PDF and the EPUB (Ebook) of your Vignettes Collection
Typical timeline: 5 to 7 months
Add-ons: For an extra fee you can add*
- Interviews with key family members or friends to round out specific vignettes
- Book interior design (to include typography, front and back matter, ornaments for vignette headings, and image placement with associated vignettes)
- More images
- Careful scanning of fragile originals (photos, letters), light digital touch ups, and return to you
- Audiobook
Option 3: Full Memoir
The story of a lifetime
USD $45,000
What it is: A complete memoir totalling about 180 to 300 pages (approx. 45k to 75k words) for family, friends and publication, should you choose to go that route. The process begins with a set of recorded interviews from which I produce working transcripts, as in the Conversation Chronicles. Based on those transcripts and extensive conversation with you, I then shape an outline for the memoir which I submit to you for approval. On your say so, I then craft your memoir in your voice with all the important parts of a story to keep readers engaged: hook, character arc, plot development, resonant ending, etc.
Up to 30 black & white or colour captioned images—photographs, letters or even your own artwork—can be included to increase reader engagement and interest and visually reinforce your message. Images can be added in an “images section” or distributed throughout the book.
Up to 2 rounds of revisions of each chapter are included to ensure it accurately tells your story.
Up to 5 extra interviews and tidied transcripts, with you or with family members or friends, if required for you to more fully impart your story.
Ideal for: Those who want a complete memoir for family, friends or the world, designed around a particular theme, topic, lesson, life event or timeline.
Full Memoir Deliverables (What you get)
- Downloads
- Everything in Conversation Chronicles PLUS
- An EPUB (Ebook) of your Full Memoir
- A print-ready PDF of your Full Memoir
- Mailed to you
- Your choice of 10 soft or 10 hard or 10 leatherette bound copies of your Full Memoir with a Designed Cover to present to family and friends or publish for the world
- 2 USB drives containing everything in Conversation Chronicles PLUS the print-ready PDF and the EPUB (Ebook) of your Full Memoir
Typical timeline: 8–12 months
Add-ons: For an extra fee you can add*
- More images
- Careful scanning of fragile originals (photos, letters), light digital touch ups, and return to you
- Audiobook
- Extra copies of your book
- A coffee table version of your book
- Publication assistance (ISBN, bar code, blurbs, distribution etc.)
*Depending on the specific add-on/s the timeline for delivery may need to be extended.
Comparison Chart
| What’s included | Conversation Chronicles | Vignettes Collection | Full Memoir |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core book delivered | Tidied interview transcripts | Vignettes (≈100–150 pp) + Transcripts | Full memoir (≈200–300 pages) + Transcripts |
| Recorded interviews | 12 | 12 | 12–17 |
| Physical copies | 5 soft bound | 10 soft or hard bound | 10 soft or hard or leatherette bound |
| USB drive | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| EPUB (Ebook) | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ |
| ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Images | ✖ | 20 | 30 |
| Cover design | Basic/plain cover | Designed cover | Designed cover + dust jacket for hard bound editions |
| Typical timeline | 3–4 months | 5–7 months | 8–12 months |
Next steps
If a gentle, guided process through creating your memoir sounds like an exciting relief, why not schedule a discovery call? We can discuss your needs, make a plan and, if you choose, move forward together.