Want to record a story?When capturing your own, or someone else's life story, it’s hard to know where to start!
Perhaps you want to write your own biography, a family history, make a photo album, or record the stories for the next generation? Perhaps you need to include stories in a speech, or a future eulogy. Perhaps you just want to slow down and spend time truly listening to someone about their past. Maybe you need someone to do that for you? These are hugely important conversations. And many people miss the opportunity to capture the stories and wisdom of people they love before they pass away. If you are not experienced in interviewing people, it can be very difficult to dive in and record these stories. We can help you by acting as a guide to your conversations, creating a meaningful journey in an enjoyable and natural way. Often you can be too close to your relative or friend be able to ask what is truly important. Or perhaps they feel you have already heard their stories and don’t need to share all the details. A third person can help loosen the situation, allowing you to relax and participate fully. You can enjoy bouncing off each other and unlock the information that leads to an incredibly rich history to pass on. Perhaps you have never shared your own story and want to make sure it's heard and recorded? We listen to you. We record, and we skilfully weave it into a rich story you can keep and share forever. Here is an example of one of our recent books, that tells the life story of Ursula Kurz, a 93 year old woman who was forced to evacuate her homeland of East Prussia as a teenager during World War II. She immigrated to Canada and created a large and wonderful family full of grand and great grand children. Her granddaughter, Becky, approached us to record Ursula's life story We collected her words over a series of interviews in the comfort of her home. "I am finally at peace," Ursula whispered to us when she heard her story read back to her. The book is now her legacy for generations to come. |
What we doSharing stories can only be done in a setting where you or your loved one feels most comfortable. It might be morning tea time at a nursing home, or out in nature on a park bench, in the local library, or in their kitchen where they can move about whilst they talk.
Where would you want to share your innermost thoughts? We work locally* which means we come to you, when it suits you. Only when someone feels safe and un-rushed, will they share their story. Trust us, we’ve done this a few times before! Look at our published anthologies of stories from patrons of the soup van, recipes and refugee stories, LGBTIQ stories and people who have shared their lived experience on mental health. We have worked with many marginalised groups, and specialise in telling everyday salt-of-the-earth stories. Everyone has a meaningful life to record, from Jolie, a Vietnamese refugee cooking in her kitchen, to Georges, a great-grandfather sharing wisdom from his favourite armchair. We bring a dictaphone to record the conversation wherever it is, and sit down with you, joining in, or allowing you to lead. Every situation is different, requiring experienced facilitation. But these can be wonderful and life changing hours spent. After the conversations, we listen, transcribe and write the stories of you or a loved one, providing you with a digital, paperback or beautifully bound hardback copy of the story to keep and share forever. People share these stories with their family in many ways, giving the book as a unique gift, passed down from generation to generation. Or using the digital copy of the story to create photo albums, make their own books, or use them in speeches, at funerals, or tell them at events, and to their children. Our emphasis is on the quality of the stories themselves. A powerful and lasting gift for yourself and for everyone. "You made the whole experience a pleasure for my Mum, and it was a pleasure working with you." (Steven Kurz, son of Ursula) |
* We are based in Melbourne, Australia.
** If the interview is 50 kilometres outside of our radius, we would need to charge an extra transport cost.
** If the interview is 50 kilometres outside of our radius, we would need to charge an extra transport cost.
