Business & Organization Histories
We have worked with small, family-owned businesses and Fortune 100 companies. Projects can range from a basic oral history recording to a comprehensive package containing a history book, documentary video, and public exhibit. We meet with our clients to understand their needs and budget, and we craft a solution that helps organizations achieve their strategic goals. Please call David to schedule an initial consultation at 617-755-3283.
Personal Histories — Memoirs, Oral Histories, Documentary Videos
Doing a personal history can be a rewarding and enriching experience for individuals and families. From a free initial consultation through the interviews and production stages to final delivery, we steward your project every step of the way. Our process is highly confidential and sensitive to the needs of each person involved. Your stories will be treated with the utmost respect, preserved with care, and will last many generations.
Free Initial Consultation
We’ll talk about the project, what to expect, and how long it will take from start to finish. We will discuss your goals and how you intend your history to be used. We will also talk about the option to involve other family members in the process. Throughout, we create a highly customized process and product so it’s the right fit for your family.
Pre-Interview
We will discuss the questions to be asked during the interviews. Please let us know about any topics that you especially want to cover. We will discuss the project schedule and how we will work together. You will create a personal time line and family tree using forms Story Trust provides. You will also gather photos, documents, and other memory “sparks.”
Interviews
In a series of interviews, each lasting about one to two hours, you will be involved in a highly interactive, engaging conversation with your personal historian. We will guide you to tell your life stories. Each session will be recorded digitally using broadcast-quality equipment.
The next steps depend on the final product—or a combination of products—you have chosen to document your stories: oral history, documentary video, or memoir book.
Story Editing
The audio from the interviews will be transcribed, organized, and edited for clarity and readability. You will review a first draft of the text to ensure that everything you wanted to say was captured accurately.
Photo Selection
You will select the photographs that you want to include in your book. Please provide high-resolution digital versions of the photographs. We can also scan photos for you.
Proof Pages
You will review the final “page proof” version of your book. This is how your book will look when it is printed. Now is the time to make any minor changes to the text. Photo placement and captions will also be reviewed and approved. The book then goes to a professional proofreader for one final check before being printed on archival quality paper with the binding of your choice.
How Long Does It Take?
An Oral History can be delivered within 2 weeks of the final interview, and a Documentary Video can take 4 to 8 weeks to complete, and it takes at least 6 months to produce a Memoir Book.
A Note About Privacy and Confidentiality
Please be assured that your life stories will be treated with the greatest care and dignity. All materials collected for your personal history project will be considered private and confidential until you choose to share them with family and friends. You will always have total control over the topics you choose to discuss and how they are presented.