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Tally Tells

From one photo to a book on the shelf

It usually takes about 11–19 days from order to door. You approve twice along the way, and we look at every page in between. The pictures below are from one of our sample books, made exactly the way yours would be.
  1. Photo of Mateo, an invented boy with glasses and wavy dark hair, made with AI
    Mateo’s photo. Mateo is an invented child, made with AI for this sample book.

    Step 1: You send one photo

    A clear phone photo, face to the camera, uploaded by a parent or guardian after signing our consent. It travels encrypted and is stored privately.

  2. Mateo’s likeness sheet: his face from the front, three-quarter and side, and standing in a blue hoodie and jeans, made from his photo
    The drawing made from Mateo’s photo.

    Step 2: We draw your child once, and you approve the drawing

    From your photo we make one drawing of your child: their face from the front, the side and three-quarters, and standing. If it isn’t quite them, ask for another version (you get 3) or send a different photo. We paint nothing else until you say yes.

  3. Mateo knocks at the round green door
    Mateo sinks into the squashy middle-sized chair
    The bears walk Mateo home at sunset; that night he is tucked up in his own bed
    Spreads 2, 5 and 14 of Mateo’s sample book.

    Step 3: We paint your child into every scene

    Each story is painted once, as a finished book. Once you order, we paint your child into its scenes from the drawing you approved, and leave the rest of every painting alone. The child who knocks on the bears’ door is the same child who walks home at sunset.

  4. Mateo sits on the rug among the pieces of the little chair. CRACK!
    Spread 6 of Mateo’s sample book.

    Step 4: A person checks the whole book

    Before you see it, someone on our team goes through all 32 pages, one by one, looking at the face, the hands, the colours and the words, and anything odd, like a sixth finger or a bowl that changed colour.

  5. The whole cover opened flat: the back with the wood mouse and the butterfly, running on round the spine to the front with Mateo at the bears’ door
    The whole cover, opened flat: back, spine and front.

    Step 5: You approve the finished book

    We aim to email you the finished book within 1–2 days: every page, and the whole cover opened flat. You can still change the name or the dedication until you approve it. Nothing prints before then.

  6. Front cover: Mateo and the Three Bears. A boy with glasses holds a mended wooden chair at a round green cottage door, a bear cub peeking round the frame
    A drawing of the hardcover: 8.5" × 8.5", about ¼ in thick.

    Step 6: We print it and post it

    The pages you approved go to our print partner. Printing takes 3–6 business days, then 7–8 days in the post, with tracking. Shipping is in the price.

  7. Step 7: We delete your photo

    The original photo is erased within 72 hours of upload, or sooner when you approve the drawing. We don’t use your photo to train AI.

Where AI comes in

Our stories are retold from the old public-domain tales. AI helps with the first draft, and a person edits every line. The pictures are made with AI from your photo, and we check them before print.

The children in our sample books are invented, made with AI, so we never needed a real child’s photo to show you how the books look.

You say yes to the drawing, then yes to the book. We print what you said yes to.

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