One of the first questions people ask when they get in touch is this: how long is this actually going to take?
It’s a fair question. Commissioning a memoir is a commitment — of time, of trust, of the willingness to sit with someone and share things you may not have shared before. Knowing what’s involved, and roughly how long each stage takes, makes the whole thing feel far less daunting.
So here’s an honest, step-by-step guide to how long memoir writing takes — and what it actually asks of you along the way. Because understanding the timeline is one thing, but knowing what your role looks like is just as important.
The Short Answer
For a full legacy memoir, the process typically takes between three and six months from first conversation to finished book. A love story memoir or coming of age package tends to move faster, usually between six weeks and three months, depending on the number of interviews involved and how quickly you return revisions.
That said, no two memoirs are identical. Some families want to take their time, while others have a deadline — a milestone birthday, a wedding, an anniversary — that shapes the pace. Either way, the process moves at a rhythm that works for you, not against you.
Stage One: The Free Consultation (Week 1)
Everything starts with a conversation. A free 20-minute call where you talk about the story you want to preserve, the person it’s about and which package feels right.
This call asks nothing of you beyond your time and a willingness to talk. It’s not a sales pitch — it’s simply a chance to get a feel for the process and to make sure you feel comfortable before committing to anything.
If you decide to go ahead after the consultation, the formal process begins.
What this stage asks of you: 20 minutes and an open mind.
Stage Two: The Interview Process (Weeks 2 to 8)
This is the heart of the whole thing. A series of conversations, usually conducted over video call or phone, in which the memoir writer draws out the story that will form the basis of the finished book.
For a full legacy memoir, this typically involves eight to ten hours of interviews spread across several weeks. For a love story memoir, the interview time is usually four to six hours. For a coming of age package, the process involves reaching out to contributors individually, which takes a little longer to coordinate.
The interviews themselves are relaxed and unhurried. There’s no script, no right or wrong answers and no pressure to remember everything perfectly. Rather, the memoir writer’s job is to ask the questions that help the story surface — and to follow wherever the conversation leads.
Most people find the interview process more enjoyable than they expected. It’s rare to get the chance to talk about your life, or someone else’s, with someone whose only job is to listen properly.
What this stage asks of you: Between four and ten hours of conversation, spread across several weeks. Some people like to do one session a week. Others prefer to space them out more. The schedule is yours to shape.
Stage Three: Gathering Materials (Weeks 2 to 6, Alongside Interviews)
While the interviews are underway, it helps to gather any photographs, letters, documents or other materials you’d like to include in the finished memoir.
For a legacy memoir, this might mean digging out old family photographs, finding letters or postcards, or locating documents like birth certificates or newspaper clippings. For a love story memoir, it might mean collecting photographs from different stages of the relationship. In both cases, you don’t need to organise any of this formally — a shoebox of old photos is perfectly fine. Scanned images shared by email work well too.
What this stage asks of you: A rummage through the attic, if you have one. An email with some scanned photographs. Nothing more complicated than that.
Stage Four: The Writing (Weeks 6 to 14)
Once the interviews are complete and you’ve gathered the materials, the memoir writer goes away and writes. This is the stage that asks the least of you — but it’s also the longest.
Writing a full memoir takes time because the writer isn’t simply transcribing the interviews. Instead, they’re shaping the material into a narrative that flows, that has structure, that captures the voice and personality of the subject and does justice to the life it’s telling.
For a full legacy memoir of 30,000 words or more, this stage typically takes six to eight weeks. For a shorter love story memoir, it’s usually three to five weeks. During this time, you’ll hear from the memoir writer periodically with updates or clarifying questions.
What this stage asks of you: Very little. Some availability to answer occasional questions by email.
Stage Five: Revisions (Weeks 14 to 18)
When the first draft is ready, you’ll receive it to read and review. This is your opportunity to make changes — to correct anything that’s not quite right, to add details that were missed or to adjust the tone of any section that doesn’t feel true to the person it’s about.
All packages include up to three rounds of revisions, which is usually more than enough. Moreover, most memoirs reach a final draft after just one or two rounds of feedback.
The revision process is collaborative. There are no bad notes — if something doesn’t feel right, it’s worth saying so. Ultimately, the finished memoir should feel completely true to the person whose life it tells.
What this stage asks of you: Reading the draft carefully, ideally more than once, and sharing honest feedback. This typically takes a few evenings spread across a week or two.
Stage Six: Production and Printing (Weeks 18 to 22)
Once the text is finalised, the memoir moves into design and print production. A designer lays out the interior to complement the content, places the photographs and prepares the book for printing.
Printing typically takes two to three weeks. Subsequently, the finished books are delivered directly to you.
What this stage asks of you: Approval of the final design and delivery details. That’s it.
The Total Picture
For a full legacy memoir, here’s how the timeline typically looks:
- Consultation: Week 1
- Interviews and materials: Weeks 2 to 8
- Writing: Weeks 6 to 14
- Revisions: Weeks 14 to 18
- Design and print: Weeks 18 to 22
Most legacy memoirs are complete within five to six months from the first conversation. A love story memoir or coming of age package typically takes three to four months. Furthermore, if you have a specific deadline — a birthday, a wedding, a family reunion — it’s worth mentioning this at the consultation stage, since the timeline can often be adjusted to meet it.
What the Process Actually Feels Like
People sometimes worry that commissioning a memoir will be demanding or intrusive. In practice, the opposite tends to be true.
The memoir writer does most of the work. Your role is simply to show up for the interviews, share what you have and stay available for occasional questions. Many families describe the process as one of the most enjoyable things they’ve done together — a series of conversations that brought out stories they’d never quite heard before.
The finished book, when it arrives, tends to feel like something that was always meant to exist. As though the story had waited all along for someone to tell it properly, and now, finally, someone has.
If you’re curious about what the process would look like for your family’s story, the best place to start is a free 20-minute consultation. No commitment, no pressure. Just a conversation about the memoir you want to create.