a life, in its own words
Every life is a story worth telling.
Tellbound is a warm, unhurried interviewer that talks with you, or someone you love, about a life, then turns those words into a printed book. Give it to a parent, grandparent, partner or friend, or tell your own story.
Join the pilot Read a sample page
Free during the pilot. English only for now.
How it works
Invite someone, or start your own
Join the pilot and tell us whose story it is. We send a private link: pass it on to the person telling the story, or keep it if the story is yours. There is nothing to install.
A conversation, at your own pace
The storyteller opens the link on a phone, tablet or laptop and simply talks. The interviewer listens, asks one question at a time and follows up on what was just said. Each conversation lasts up to about 30 minutes, at most one a day, whenever it suits.
The words become chapters
The stories are drafted into chapters from the storyteller’s own words, in the style you choose. The storyteller, and whoever set it up, read them and tell us what to correct.
A printed book
When the chapters are right, we turn them into a printed book to keep and to share.
What makes it different
Only what was really said
The chapters are made from what the storyteller actually said. We take out the “ums” and put the stories in order, but we never invent anything. If a name or a date is uncertain, it is marked to check, never guessed.
A real conversation, not a form
No forms to fill in and no app to learn. The storyteller just talks, the way they would tell it at the kitchen table, and the interviewer listens, follows up and remembers what was said last time.
“Off the record” really means gone
If the storyteller says something is off the record, the interviewer won’t ask about it, it is not written down, and that part of the recording is silenced. It never reaches a summary, a chapter or the book.
Photos beside the stories Coming soon
The storyteller, or the family, will be able to add photos while telling a story or at any time afterwards. The photos go into the book beside the stories.
A picture-book edition for children Coming later
A few favourite stories, retold and illustrated for young readers.
Choose the style of your book
Before the book is written, you choose how it reads: the storyteller, or whoever set it up. After reading a sample chapter, you can still change your mind.
Every style keeps to what was really said. We never invent events, people or feelings, and anything we are unsure of is checked with the storyteller or the family before printing. Even a biography or a story-shaped memoir is built only from the storyteller’s own words. Whatever the style, every book is reviewed and approved by a person before it is printed.
In their own words The default
A memoir in the first person, close to how it was said. Lightly edited so it reads well on the page.
“There was always a pot of something on the stove. Mother said a kitchen with nothing cooking was just a room.”
Told as a story
A first-person memoir shaped into scenes and chapters, the way a memoir writer would. The storyteller’s own words are kept wherever possible.
“The winter the creek froze, the chickens came in to live by the stove: six of them, in a crate Daddy built out of apple boxes.”
A biography
Written about the storyteller in the third person, the way a professional biographer would. Their own words appear as quotations.
Ruth Ellen Calloway learned to make biscuits at the kitchen table on Alder Street. “Mother said a kitchen with nothing cooking was just a room,” she remembers.
A collection of stories
Separate short stories and memories, grouped by theme rather than told from start to finish.
From the part called Animals We Loved: “Joan named every one after a movie star.”
In conversation
The questions and the answers, set down as an oral-history record of the talks.
Interviewer: Who sat at that kitchen table?
Ruth: I did my homework at that table. I learned to make biscuits at that table.
These are samples. Ruth Ellen Calloway and her story are made up for this page.
A sample page
This is how a chapter reads in the default style, In their own words: the storyteller’s words, tidied and put in order, with anything uncertain marked to check.
This is a sample. Ruth Ellen Calloway and her story are made up for this page.
Chapter three
The Kitchen on Alder Street
There was always a pot of something on the stove. Mother said a kitchen with nothing cooking was just a room, and she wasn’t about to live in a room.
The winter the creek froze, we moved the chickens in by the stove. Six of them, in a crate Daddy built out of apple boxes. My sister Joan named every one after a movie star, and we weren’t allowed to eat the ones with names, which was all of them, so that was the end of that.
I did my homework at that table. I learned to make biscuits at that table. When I told them I was marrying Walter, that’s where Daddy sat down, and he didn’t say a word for the longest time. Then he asked if Walter could fix a tractor.
To check with Ruth: was the winter the creek froze 1951 or 1952? She said “I think it was ’51.”
Honest about the AI
The interviewer is an AI, not a person. Here is plainly what it does and doesn’t do.
What it does
- Listens, asks one question at a time, and waits for the answer, never rushing.
- Follows up on what was just said: names, places, smells, the weather that day.
- Remembers what was said last time, picks up where you left off, and doesn’t ask the same thing twice.
- Starts by sketching the whole life, then goes deeper into one part at a time.
- Lets the storyteller steer: talk about what matters, ask to come back to something next time, skip anything, or say “off the record”.
- Slows down on hard memories and offers to skip.
What it doesn’t do
- It isn’t a companion or a therapist.
- It doesn’t make up facts or rewrite anyone’s life.
- It never asks for money, passwords or account details.
- It doesn’t decide what goes in the book. People do.
A person checks every book. Every book is reviewed and approved by a person before it is printed.
The conversation uses three AI services: Soniox turns speech into text, Anthropic’s Claude helps the interviewer choose its next question, and ElevenLabs gives the interviewer its voice.
Privacy, in plain words
Who can hear and read it
The conversations are recorded so the book can be made. The recordings, transcripts and drafts are kept on our private server in the United States, and only our team can open them. The storyteller, and whoever set up the book, see the chapters we send.
A private link for each storyteller
Each storyteller gets their own private link. There is no public list of storytellers, and a link can be switched off at any time.
Never used to train AI
We never use the recordings or words to train AI, and we never sell or share them. The storyteller’s voice passes through the three services above only to run the conversation.
Kept until the book is printed, then your choice
Recordings and transcripts are kept on our private server until the book is printed. Then your family chooses: we delete them, or we keep them. Anything said off the record is never kept at all. During the pilot, we carry out your choice by hand when you tell us at [email protected].
Questions
What does it cost during the pilot?
Nothing. The pilot is free. If Tellbound ever costs money later, we will tell you clearly before you pay anything.
Can I tell my own story?
Yes. Tellbound is for anyone with a life to tell: you can start your own, or give it to a parent, grandparent, partner or friend. Choose “I am the storyteller” on the form below.
What kind of book will it be?
You choose before the book is written: In their own words (a first-person memoir, close to how it was said), Told as a story (a memoir shaped into scenes and chapters), A biography (written about the storyteller, quoting their words), A collection of stories (short stories grouped by theme) or In conversation (the questions and answers, as an oral history). Every style is built only from what the storyteller said, and you can change the style after reading a sample chapter.
What does the storyteller need?
A phone, tablet or laptop with a microphone, an internet connection and a quiet spot. It works in the web browser, so there is nothing to install. Headphones or a small speaker can help.
How long does it take?
Each conversation lasts up to about 30 minutes, at most one a day, whenever it suits. The first conversation sketches the whole life; later ones go deeper into one part at a time. The storyteller can stop at any point, and the next conversation picks up where it left off.
What if it gets emotional?
That is natural, and the interviewer is made for it. On hard memories it slows down, offers to skip and never pushes. If someone seems really upset, it stops gently and suggests talking with family or someone they trust. It is not a therapist.
What if hearing is difficult?
The storyteller can choose the interviewer’s voice from a few options, and play a sample of each first. The interviewer speaks in short, single questions and waits for the answer, never rushing. Headphones or a speaker turned up help most. There are no on-screen captions yet.
Can we add our own questions?
Not a list of your own questions yet. You can tell us about the important people and places in the storyteller’s life, and any topics to steer clear of, and the interviewer uses that. The conversations work through the chapters of a whole life, from childhood on, and the storyteller can always say what they would like to talk about next time.
Can we add photos?
Not yet, but it is coming soon. The storyteller, or the family, will be able to add photos while telling a story or at any time afterwards, and the photos will go into the book beside the stories.
Can the storyteller skip things?
Yes. Just say “skip” or “let’s not talk about that”, and the interviewer moves on. Anything said off the record is not written down, is silenced in the recording and never reaches the book.
What happens to the recordings?
Recordings and transcripts are kept on our private server in the United States until the book is printed, so it can be made and checked. Once the book is printed, your family chooses: we delete them, or we keep them. Anything said off the record is never kept at all. During the pilot, we carry out your choice by hand when you tell us. We never use them to train AI, and we never sell or share them.
What languages does it speak?
English for now. We hope to add more languages later.
How do we get in touch?
Write to [email protected]. During the pilot, our team looks after every family personally.
Join the pilot
We are inviting a small number of storytellers and families to try Tellbound for free and tell us honestly what works. Leave your details and we will email you.
Thank you.
You’re on the list. We will email you about the pilot.