Forever Stories

Telling your life story isn’t exactly something you do every day, is it? So, where do you start?

It’s simple, really; your personal Forever Stories writer will speak with you over the course of a few hours to begin learning what your life has been about and which stories you certainly want to include in your autobiography. We might even set you some homework to spend some time jotting down bullet-point notes of those anecdotal stories you know you would like to capture in writing for future generations. It is those funny, emotional and unique stories that show the reader your character – and we encourage you to cast your mind back to “that time when such and such happened …”

Everybody’s life is so wonderfully different that we place great importance on tailoring every book to you. We do this by asking you to lead us through, in brief, the timeline of your life:

“Where and when were you born?”

“What schools did you attend?”

“Did you go on to study beyond school?”

“What was your first job?”

“When did you meet your partner?”

And so on …

During these planning sessions, we don’t need to hear detailed accounts – we leave that for the interviews – this is just about understanding your life journey in brief. You may want time to go away and piece together some of the chronology of your life – I know I would need to! But by the time we have concluded those planning sessions, we will have a decent outline of all the key events in your life, leading all the way to where you are sitting today – reminiscing about all those moments in life you would like captured in your bespoke book.

Most of all, we are keen to ensure that this conversation and all subsequent ones are enjoyable, just like you are sitting with a loved one and telling your stories around a fire with a warm mug of hot chocolate.

How to Start Today:

Please email Julian Coles at info@foreverstories.co.uk or telephone him on 07508 103 714

‘What do you do for a living, Julian?’ strangers often ask me – you know, that go-to small talk at weddings or your second cousin’s granddaughter’s twelfth birthday party.

I know my answer is going to raise a lot more questions. Not because I am so interesting – but because my work (passion, really) is rather niche.

‘I write real-life stories,’ I say.

‘Oh, for celebrities?’ inevitably comes the reply.

‘No, no,’ I say, as if rehearsed (I’ve said it so many times) – but I don’t mind – ‘I write so-called ordinary people’s life stories. If you want grandma’s life story recorded in writing for future generations, I’m your man. Perhaps you have always been interested in learning about Dad’s childhood – I do that, too …’

‘And how do you gather their stories? Interviews?’ they ask.

‘Well, we begin by gathering a vague timeline of your loved one’s life and the stories they wish to cover. That helps us establish whether our client would like to focus more on their career than their family life, or vice versa. Perhaps they want their autobiography to be a perfect blend of the two. Others would like to focus on one particular part of life – their early years, perhaps – more than the later years. That’s fine. It is their story, after all.’

‘Fascinating, the stranger says, taking a small sip of her drink. ‘And do you stick to a set format?’

‘No, not really. Some clients want to ensure their autobiography is humorous. That’s great to know. Others would like to take a more serious approach. Noted! This all leads us to understanding how to lead the next part of the process: the interviews.’

By this point, I try to make an escape to the bathroom. But if I did stick around to offer my new friend (whose name I didn’t even get – I should have given her one of my business cards), I would have gone on something like this.

Essentially, we uncover our client’s life stories through interviews. Scratch that. “Interview” sounds a little ominous. We prefer to refer to the content gathering stages of the project as “conversations”. That’s what they are – enjoyable conversations about our clients’ lives. They really are fun – a chance to answer our questions and remember all of those fun, interesting, emotional times that have woven the rich tapestry of their lives. I always listen intently to everything my client says, which allows us to ask follow-up questions that we think their loved ones (the ultimate readers) will want to know when they read the autobiography. Often, our questions will uncover truths that you haven’t thought about for a long time. It’s always a great pleasure when I hear a client say, “I haven’t thought about that for decades – I did have a lot of fun, didn’t I?”

Some of our clients’ greatest fears are that they will not remember enough about every period of life we are trying to gather stories from. Fear not – nine times out of ten, our clients have far more to say on each subject we unearth than we can possibly write. You will be shocked at how many memories are unearthed through meaningful conversation focused on your life. In the event that you can’t remember something, that does not matter at all. When that happens during our conversations, we move on to the next question. Sometimes, the answer – the memory – creeps back into our client’s mind, and we gather the story at a later date. If certain memories are a little more stubborn, there will be plenty more to recall …

Once we have gathered hours of audio recordings filled with life stories to listen back to, it’s time for us to create a structured narrative. More often than not, we write our client’s life stories in a classic autobiographical format: chronological. This does not mean we are writing a list of your accolades in date order. No, we are ensuring your memories are told in your voice, just as if you were sitting in front of your loved one, reading them aloud. At Forever Stories, this happens organically, built on more than ten years of combined professional writing experience. Yes, we may have misinterpreted some of the things you told us. Perhaps we misheard a name. Fear not, you will have numerous chances to review your life story before we go to print. Whatever you tell us and whatever we write for you remain firmly with us until they are shared with you.

And we are certain that the moment our clients hold their or their loved one’s life story in their hands will bring a beaming smile to their faces – perhaps a happy tear.

Top tip: It is so important that you choose to work with a ghostwriter who you get on well with. It’s not all about the writing. Capturing a life story in writing is as much about ensuring you or your loved one feels comfortable sharing their stories with whoever is writing them. At Forever Stories, we pride ourselves on being extremely personable, sensitive and empathetic – all important qualities to ensure you are as comfortable as possible sharing your stories.

How to Start Today:

Please email Julian Coles at info@foreverstories.co.uk or telephone him on 07508 103 714

Have you ever thought, “What happens if I don’t write my life story?” Maybe you haven’t. But now that you are thinking about it, you probably have memories and experiences that your children and grandchildren don’t know anything about. Wouldn’t it be a shame if they couldn’t hear these? Wouldn’t it be great if you could have them written down in a book so they are always remembered? I’m sure you grew up in a different time, and wouldn’t it be great to tell your stories about how much has changed in the world? Wouldn’t it be great to share not only your family history and your legacy, but also your wisdom? We certainly feel they deserve to be preserved rather than forgotten.

Perhaps it isn’t you who has thought about writing your life story. It may be that loved ones are telling you that you have some great stories to share, but you don’t know how to write them. It’s highly possible you could write them but aren’t inclined to do so. Life gets busy, right? It may even be that you just don’t think your life story is worth writing. I hear that all too often, but I disagree. We think everyone has a great story, especially one to be treasured by your loved ones, family, and friends.

In simple terms, preserving your stories matters because they are gone in the wind if you don’t. When my dear grandfather was in his final weeks, he telephoned me from Arizona once a week to tell me important family history. He recognised that he needed to pass down the information, the stories of our ancestors, before it was too late – just as his father had done for him. Sadly, I was a twenty-two-year-old with “more important” things to do than to take note of our rich American history. Now, I have forgotten all that he told me.

This is why I started Forever Stories with my wife, with my mission to spend the rest of my days capturing and writing other people’s life stories – so those are not lost, not forgotten.

The good news is that you don’t need to be a writer. And your mum, dad or other relatives don’t need to be writers either. That’s where Forever Stories comes in. We interview you to capture your stories before writing them and publishing them in bespoke hardback books complete with photographs.

Just imagine future generations reaching for your life story on a bookshelf and turning the pages to discover who you were, the challenges and joy you lived through, and the legacy you left behind. That’s why it’s important to preserve stories. So your loved ones can learn from you.

In the six years I have been writing my clients’ life stories, I have heard so many times how valuable those stories have been. One client retraced her mother’s footsteps recently on a trip to Edinburgh, where her mother had attended university in the 1950s. Without her mother’s autobiography to hand, she wouldn’t have known where she stayed, where she went to dances, or where she studied. Another client has told me that he finds comfort in picking up his father’s life story to read when he misses him. He can’t wait to share it with his daughter when she is older. As if those reasons aren’t enough, there is another great value in the process of preserving life stories … Yes, the ultimate beneficiaries are future generations, but the process allows the subject to reflect on all they have achieved and enjoyed throughout their fruitful life.

We all face challenges in life, but my experience is that most people reflect on their lives with amazement at how they fit in all they did. That’s rewarding. A recent Forever Stories client summed this up perfectly: “Just received my book today and am utterly delighted with it. Writing it with Julian was such fun – he is so easy to talk to; it also actually provided a chance to reflect on my life – so often we are always “in the moment”, but the creation of the book provides a valuable chance to evaluate your life in the round – that is what I really took from the whole experience. To anyone considering it – do it; you won’t regret it.”

How to Start Today:

See our prices at: https://foreverstories.co.uk/#pricing

Please email Julian Coles at info@foreverstories.co.uk or telephone him on 07508 103 714