Frequently asked

HOY (The History of You) is a private place to gather stories that bring a person to life — told by the people who knew them best. You start with one person, write a question or let HOY suggest one, send it to the family and friends who knew them, and weave their answers into a warm Chronicle. Many voices, one biography.

Yes. HOY is for anyone whose memory matters — a teacher who shaped you, a neighbor who became kin, a friend’s parent, a community elder, a mentor. Contributors are family and friends, both; the person at the center of the story can be anyone.

Yes — it’s one of the things HOY does best. You invite the people who knew them, family and friends, both, to contribute the stories they remember. HOY weaves those voices into a single biography that brings their life back to the page.

Genealogy preserves the data of a life — names, dates, documents, and lineage. HOY preserves the experience of a life — what they were like, what they believed, what they passed down — in the voices of the people who knew them. The two work beautifully together.

Storyworth is a wonderful gift for one storyteller: weekly questions by email, written replies, and a beautiful book at year’s end. HOY adds the dimensions Storyworth doesn’t reach for — multiple contributors collaborating on the same memory, multiple modalities (text, audio, video), and a person at the center who can be living, gone, family, or friend.

Remento offers a guided solo interview — a great fit when one person wants to record their own story alone. HOY is built for collaboration: the keeper gathers memories from family and friends and weaves them into a single biography. Different shapes, different strengths.

Simirity is a private family social network — a shared timeline where everyone posts. HOY is a curated biography — multiple voices weave into one coherent memory. Both have their place. HOY is built for the moment you want to step back from the timeline and put it all together.

HOY helps you, the keeper. It can suggest questions when you want a starting point, spot gaps so you know where the story still needs filling, and help you weave contributors’ answers into coherent memories. Smart help where you want it — and the rest is between people.

Contributors join with a single email link. Click, answer, done — from any device, in any modality. Most never need an account at all; HOY makes participation easy so the people who matter to your story can show up without friction.

Yes. Contributors can record from mobile Safari or Chrome directly. If they tap the link from inside an email app (Gmail, Outlook), we’ll suggest they open it in Safari or Chrome because in-app browsers block recording. It’s a tap away.

Yes — text, voice-only, or video. Some people write best; others tell; others want a camera on while they cook. HOY captures memories in whichever modality is natural to the contributor. We transcribe audio automatically so the Chronicle can include their words.

Yes. Content stays inside HOY. We don’t sell your data, run ads, or build public profiles. Contributors only see the questions you send them. Only you and people you explicitly invite can see the full Chronicle.

Yes. Email us and we’ll remove the answer and (if they want) any quotes in the Chronicle. As the keeper, you can also remove or rework any contribution at any time.

Your gathered content stays read-only forever — you don’t lose anything. You won’t be able to capture new memories or refresh the Chronicle without a subscription, but what you’ve gathered is yours.

You do. Nothing we do gives us rights to it; you can export and take it elsewhere whenever you want. Digital Chronicle access for the people in the story is included; physical artifacts — a printed hardbound Chronicle, audio book — are à la carte when you want one.