Premium memoir services vs My Stories Matter: Which is right for you?

If you’re looking for professional help creating a memoir, you may find services ranging from a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands. The biggest difference is often how much of the work you want professionals to do for you.

Premium memoir services typically offer a highly managed process, often including interviews, professional writers, editors, book designers, and project management.

My Stories Matter takes a more collaborative approach. You can start with nothing written, a few memories and photographs, a partial draft, or a completed manuscript. You remain at the center of your story, with a platform and real human support to help you write, organize, design, and turn it into a finished hardcover memoir.

In short:

• Premium memoir services do more of the writing and creation for you.
• My Stories Matter helps you create and finish your own memoir with professional support along the way.

The right choice depends on how much help you want, how involved you want to be, and your budget.

Premium memoir services vs My Stories Matter at a glance

What is a premium memoir service?

A premium memoir service is typically designed for someone who wants professionals to handle much of the process of creating their book. Rather than arriving with a finished manuscript, you may begin with little more than your memories.

The service might provide:

• Interviews and a professional memoir writer or ghostwriter
• Editing, research, and project management
• Professional cover and interior design
• Photograph preparation and book production
• Printing and multiple copies of the finished book

Some companies also offer additional services such as genealogy research, publishing, marketing, or audio recordings.

The result is a highly managed experience, with the customer mainly responsible for telling their stories, reviewing the work, and approving the finished book.

Examples of premium memoir services

Several established companies offer this type of service.

Storyterrace

StoryTerrace uses interviews and professional writers to create memoirs.

Its services range from shorter interview-led books to much more extensive premium projects involving senior writers and substantial professional support.

Lifebook memoirs

LifeBook Memoirs offers a particularly high-touch service built around multiple interviews, a professional ghostwriter, editing, project management, design, and production.

Its packages sit firmly at the premium end of the market and can cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Modern memoirs

Modern Memoirs offers both assisted memoir services for people who already have written material and fully commissioned memoirs where professionals help create the story from interviews.

Again, the service can run into many thousands of dollars depending on the level of writing and production involved.

The exact processes differ, but these companies demonstrate why premium memoir services cost significantly more: a large amount of professional time goes into creating the story itself.

At the other end of the market, lower-cost prompt-based memoir services offer a more self-directed way to collect memories and create a book.

How is My Stories Matter different?

My Stories Matter is also a human-supported memoir service, but you do not need to hire someone to interview you and write the entire memoir on your behalf. You can start at whatever stage you have reached.

If you have nothing written yet, you can use the My Stories Matter platform to capture your memories and start building your story, with real people available to provide guidance and support along the way.

If you already have notes, individual stories, photographs, a partial memoir, or a completed manuscript, you can start from there instead.

You remain at the center of telling your story, while our team helps you move the project toward a finished book.

The standard service includes personal support, a dedicated book designer, a custom cover and interior, manuscript formatting, unlimited photographs, printing management, and a premium hardcover book.

Additional writing, organization, proofreading, editing, and photo services are available if you need more help.

Why do premium memoir services cost more?

The biggest reason is professional time. Creating someone’s life story from interviews can involve conducting and reviewing hours of interviews, researching and structuring the story, writing tens of thousands of words, editing the manuscript, designing the book, and managing production.

In simple terms, the two approaches often look like this:

Premium memoir service:

Memories → interviews → professional writer → manuscript → design → book

My Stories Matter:

Memories → guided memoir support → manuscript → design → book

If you want professionals to create most of the memoir for you, the higher price of a premium service can make sense. But not everyone needs that level of help.

If you’d prefer to choose and hire publishing professionals individually, our Reedsy vs My Stories Matter comparison looks at that approach in more detail.

Which type of service might suit you?

A premium memoir service may suit you if:

• You would rather tell your story through interviews than write it yourself
• You want a professional writer to create most or all of the manuscript
• You want someone else to manage nearly every stage
• You need substantial research or editorial work
• You have the budget for a high-end, highly managed service

For someone who wants to create a memoir but has little interest in writing or managing the project, this can be an excellent approach.

My Stories Matter may suit you if:

• You want to tell your story in your own words, whether you are starting from scratch or already have material
• You want personal guidance and human support when you need it
• You want help organizing your stories and photographs
• You want professional book design and a premium hardcover
• You want the process managed without paying for a full ghostwriting service
• You want to keep the overall cost considerably lower

The main difference is not simply budget. It is how involved you want to be in creating your own memoir.

What if you have already written your memoir?

If you already have a manuscript or substantial written material, you may not need the interview and ghostwriting stages included in many premium memoir services.

You may simply need help organizing or editing the manuscript, incorporating photographs, designing the cover and pages, and producing the finished hardcover.

In that situation, it is worth asking whether you need a full premium memoir package or professional help completing what you have already created.

If you already have a manuscript or substantial written material, you can also compare memoir services designed for people who have already started writing.

Which approach is right for you?

A premium memoir service may be the right choice if you want professionals to interview you, write the manuscript, and manage nearly every stage of the project.

My Stories Matter may be a better fit if you want to remain closely involved in telling your own story but would value human support, professional book design, and help turning your material into a finished hardcover memoir.

The key question is not simply how much you want to spend. It's how much of the memoir do you want someone else to create for you?

If you’re still deciding which approach suits you, our guide to the best ways to preserve a life story compares the main options.