Upload it all to the Shoebox
Upload photos and scanned papers whenever you find them, a few or a hundred at a time. They wait safely in the Shoebox until you sort each one into a home, so nothing gets lost along the way.
Welcome! You found us through a family book.
Opening soon to our first families
A home for your family's stories.
EMBR™ helps your family save its stories while the people who carry them are still here to tell them.
Hey, I'm EMBR! Ask me a question!
Quick answers about EMBR, any time.
The heart behind EMBR
Why I built EMBR
My mom gave me a love for family history, for writing, and for passing our stories down to the next generation.
When the people we love pass away, their stories, memories and life lessons too often go with them, never to be heard by the generations who come after. There is power in those lessons. I want my kids and grandkids to learn from my successes and my failures, the way I have learned from the people who came before me.
About two years ago, my parents and I started sitting down together to write our family's stories. It was one of the best times of my life. I heard stories I had never heard before.
But we didn't have a good system. We didn't have a home for what we were building. We tried program after program, and each one was good at one thing. One was good for stories. Another was good for photos. Nothing brought it all together on one beautiful family timeline we could build together, and then turn into a book to pass down.
That's when EMBR was born. I believe every family's story is part of a bigger story God is writing, and it's worth keeping. After a year of planning and building, we're ready to share it with you.
Daniel GardnerFounder, EMBR Story Studio
Want a place like this for your family's stories?
Free to join. We'll email you when your invitation is ready.
How it works
Gather it. Keep it. Pass it down.
Gather it
Add your people and the homes you lived in. Upload your photos to the Shoebox and sort them when you have time.
Keep it
Write a memory in a few sentences or tell the whole story with photos. Invite your family to add their perspective.
Pass it down
Everything connects on one timeline across the generations. When you're ready, gather your stories into a digital book your family can keep and share.
The Shoebox and the timeline
Every family has a shoebox.
Most families have one: a box of photos and papers under the bed or at the back of a closet. Nobody is quite sure who is in every picture, what order they go in, or how to share them with the rest of the family.
EMBR gives that box a home. Upload your photos and papers to the Shoebox, sort them into homes when you have time, and watch your family's story fall into order on the timeline.
1953
1954
1975
1995
1998
2008
2025
Give every photo a home
Connect a photo to the people in it, the house it was taken at, or the memory it belongs to. Sort a few at a time, whenever you have a minute. Gather favorites into albums too, like a wedding, a summer trip or every Christmas morning.
See it all in order
Once a photo belongs to a memory or a story, it takes its place on the timeline in the right year, so your family's story reads from the beginning to today. Turn the timeline sideways and scroll through it like a strip of film.
Share it with everyone
The people you invite see the same timeline and can add what they remember, so one box of photos becomes the whole family's story.
Everyone in one place
The pieces that bring your timeline to life.
Every person, home, place, vehicle, pet, heirloom and recipe gets its own page. Connect them to your memories and stories, and you can see how your whole family fits together.
People
Everyone in the family, across every generation.
Give each person a page with their photo, life events and the stories they're part of, from great-grandparents to the newest baby.
Pets
The family dog counts too.
Biscuit was part of the Roberts family for thirteen years. Pets get their own page, photos and stories, just like everyone else.
Homes
Homes are the chapters.
Every house you lived in holds part of the story. Open the house on Tuckaleechee Road and see who lived there, the stories told there and the photos taken there.
Places
The places you keep going back to.
The beach, the lake, the church, the cabin. Hunting Island holds every summer the Whitfields spent on that beach.
Vehicles
The truck everybody remembers.
Old Blue hauled lumber, church pews and three kids to Little League. Cars, trucks and boats get a page and a story of their own.
Heirlooms
The things that get handed down.
Cecil's pocket watch, June's recipe box, Hal's workbench. Keep track of where each one came from, who has it now and the story behind it.
Recipes
The recipes that taste like home.
June's chess pie, Maggie's she-crab soup, Rosa's tamales. Save each recipe with the story of who made it, and for whom.
Start your family's story.
Join the waitlist, or take the tour of a sample family first.
Every story is connected.
In EMBR, a story isn't a file in a folder. Connect it to the people who were there, the place it happened, the dog that came along and the boat they took out, and every page shows how it all fits together.
Whit's perspectiveTommy's perspective
Connect anything to anything
People, homes, places, vehicles, pets, heirlooms, recipes, photos, memories and stories all link together.
Follow the thread
Open Big Ray's page and find his boat, his dog, his fishing rod and every story he's part of.
Every perspective stays together
Whit and Tommy each add their own telling of the shark story, and both stay connected to it.
The Story Builder
Write the stories only you can tell.
The Story Builder gives you a quiet place to write. Start with a few sentences or tell the whole story, add photos as you go, and connect the people, places and things it's about.
DashboardTimelines
HelpSettingsFamily Records
PeopleHomesPlacesVehiclesPetsHeirloomsRecipesTell Your Story
Story BuilderDraftsBookshelfMedia & Documents
The ShoeboxMedia Library
Cancel and exitOnly you can see your draftsHelp
New story
Gary Builds the Cabin
Spring 2010
Gary's cabin
Marco Navarro
GRGary RobertsMarco NavarroConnect
Marco NavarroConnectThe foundation
Gary called on a Tuesday night in March of 2010. He didn’t call often, and this time his voice had something I hadn’t heard in years. It was hope.
I found some land. Twelve acres outside Marshall. I’m going to build on it.Gary Roberts
We spent two days pouring it. I mixed, Gary leveled, and we didn’t talk about the years between.
Saved just now
Ready to publishUndoRedoAdd blockSave draftPublish
Ready to publishUndoRedoAdd blockSave draftPublish
Start small or go deep
A memory can be a few sentences. A story can be as long as it needs to be, with its photos right beside it.
Drafts only you can see
Save a draft and come back whenever you're ready. Nobody sees it until you publish it.
Connect as you write
Add the people, homes and places your story is about, and it shows up on each of their pages.
Ideas when you're stuck
Your Dashboard shows the people and things that don't have a story yet, so you always know where to start. Fill in the Blanks asks for one missing detail at a time, like a birthday or a move-in year, so your records fill in a little at a time.
Perspectives
One moment, told by everyone who was there. Big Ray told the shark story one way. Tommy tells it another. With perspectives, each person adds their own telling of the same moment, and the photos stay with the story.
Books
Your stories, gathered into a book. Choose the stories, pick a cover and read it together in EMBR, or download it as a PDF your family can keep and share.
Narration
Tell it in your own voice. Record yourself reading any story, right on its page. Your family can play it there, or open Timelines and choose Listen to hear every recording in order. Want to share one with someone who isn't in EMBR? Send a listening link, and they can hear it without an account. Books can carry a code too, so anyone holding the printed page can scan it and hear the story told.
Private by design
Your family's stories stay with your family.
Only the people you invite can see your family's stories.
Your drafts are yours until you share them.
You can download your family's stories and photos whenever you want.
Private to your family. Yours to keep.
Free to join. We'll email you when your invitation is ready.
Join the waitlist
We'll email you when your invitation is ready.
See what families make
A book
Stories and photos, printed, with a code that plays the recording.
A family tree
Everyone, and how they connect.
Then and now
An old photo beside today's.
A listening link
Share a recording. No account needed.
Questions families ask
Who can see our stories?
Only the people in your family on EMBR. You choose who to invite: contributors can add and edit, and viewers can read and add their own perspective.
Who owns our stories?
You do. EMBR keeps your stories, photos and recordings only so it can work for your family. We don't sell your information, we don't show ads, and we never use what you add to train AI.
What happens after the beta?
We'll email you before the beta ends to tell you what comes next. You won't be charged unless you choose to continue.
Can I get everything out?
Yes. Anyone can download their own data from Settings. You get your stories as readable text, your original photos and recordings, and a full copy of your records. The family's owner also gets everything in the families they own.
What is the Shoebox?
It's where your photos and scanned papers wait until they're sorted. Upload them whenever you find them, a few at a time or a whole box at once. When you have a minute, give each one a home, a date and the people in it.
Can I add stories about family who have passed?
Yes. Many of the most loved family stories are about grandparents and relatives who are gone. Anyone in your family can add what they remember.
Can I print a book?
Not yet. Books are digital for now. You can read them in EMBR and download a PDF your family can keep and share.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes. EMBR works in your phone's browser, and you can add it to your home screen like an app. For writing longer stories, sorting lots of photos and building books, a computer gives you the best experience.
What if EMBR ever shuts down?
We'd tell you well ahead of time so you can download everything first. Our Terms explain how.
When can we start?
We're opening EMBR to families in small groups. Join the waitlist and we'll email your invite. Beta families use EMBR free while we test it.