The intake wizard

# Part 4 — Creating your first project (the intake wizard)

This is the part where the family's story is captured. The wizard has **twelve steps**, each a single‑purpose form. It's designed so you can do it in one sitting (about 30 minutes for a typical family) or break it up — your progress is saved at each step.

The steps are:

1. **Tier & Add‑Ons**
2. **Basic Info**
3. **Family Details**
4. **Goals**
5. **Key People**
6. **Major Events**
7. **Culture & Faith**
8. **Tone & Style**
9. **Boundaries**
10. **Animated Portraits** *(only if you bought the add‑on)*
11. **Logistics**
12. **Review**

Below each step, you'll find **Back** and **Next** buttons. On the final **Review** step, **Next** becomes **Create project**.

> **A note about saving:** every step writes a draft locally and to the server when you click **Next**. If you close the browser mid‑wizard, your draft will still be there when you come back — just go to **`/dashboard/projects/new`** again.

## 4.1 Step 1 — Tier & Add‑Ons

Choose the **service tier** that fits the story you want to tell:

- **Starter** — a single bound volume with research, story, and basic media
- **Standard** — Starter + audiobook + animated portraits
- **Premium** — Standard + extended research, multiple volumes, custom design

Underneath, an **Heirloom Add‑Ons** section lets you layer in extras (animated portraits, a heritage map, additional interviews). Add anything that fits — pricing is confirmed after the team sees your materials.

If you don't pick a tier, **Next** is disabled.

## 4.2 Step 2 — Basic Info

Two text fields and a description:

- **Project name** — what you want this project to be called (e.g. *"The Johnson Family Legacy"*)
- **Family name** — the surname this project is about
- **Description** — a short paragraph describing the project

Project name and family name are required. The description is optional but useful — it appears in the dashboard tile and in delivery metadata.

## 4.3 Step 3 — Family Details

- **Family members** — comma‑separated names (e.g. *Jane Doe, John Doe, Alice Doe*)
- **Relationships** — free‑form description of how they're connected

At least one family member is required.

## 4.4 Step 4 — Goals

What you want this project to achieve. Three comma‑separated fields:

- **Goals** — e.g. *Preserve family stories, Document heritage, Create a memory book*
- **Themes** — e.g. *Immigration, Resilience, Tradition*
- **Priorities** — e.g. *Oral histories, Photo archive, Written memoir*

At least one goal is required.

## 4.5 Step 5 — Key People

For each person at the heart of the story, fill in:

- **Full name** *(e.g. Maria Elena Rodriguez)*
- **Nickname or what family called them** *(e.g. Nana)*
- **Relationship to you** *(e.g. Paternal grandmother)*
- **Birth year** *(approximate is OK)*
- **Death year** *(if applicable)*
- **Where they lived** *(e.g. Oaxaca, Mexico → Chicago, IL)*
- **Three words that describe their personality** *(e.g. Stoic, generous, quietly funny)*
- **A signature story or memory** *(the one your family always tells about them)*

Click **+ Add another person** to add as many as you'd like. Each person becomes a chapter spine.

## 4.6 Step 6 — Major Events

Pivotal moments to anchor the book around. For each event:

- **Title or short description** *(e.g. Crossing the border in 1962)*
- **When** *(date or approximate year — "Spring 1962")*
- **Where it happened**
- **Who was involved**
- **Why it matters to the family**

Click **+ Add another event** to keep going. These become the spine of the timeline.

## 4.7 Step 7 — Culture, Heritage, and Faith

Five fields:

- **Cultures or heritages that shaped this family**
- **Languages spoken across generations**
- **Traditions, foods, rituals worth capturing**
- **How central is faith to this family's story?** — pick one: *Central / Present but quiet / Minor mention / Not part of the story*
- **Sensitive cultural or religious topics to handle carefully**

This step tells the AI engine and the editorial team how to handle religious and cultural texture.

## 4.8 Step 8 — Tone & Style

Two radio groups:

- **Overall tone** — *Epic saga / Intimate memoir / Children's storybook / Faith‑centered / Documentary / Mixed*
- **Narrative perspective** — *First person / Third person / Mixed*

A free‑text field at the bottom lets you list **reference works** (books, films, family histories) whose tone you'd like the AI to learn from.

## 4.9 Step 9 — Boundaries & Sensitivities

Three fields:

- **Topics we should handle gently** *(e.g. a grandfather's alcoholism)*
- **Topics we should omit entirely**
- **Audience considerations** *(children, certain relatives, privacy of living people)*

This step is read by every AI prompt downstream — it's how the platform learns where the edges are.

## 4.10 Step 10 — AI‑Animated Ancestor Portraits *(if add‑on selected)*

If you bought the Animated Portraits add‑on, this step asks:

- **Yes, include animated ancestor portraits in this project.** (checkbox)
- **Which ancestors should we animate?** *(list, mention if you have photos)*
- **What should they talk about?** *(a favorite memory, a piece of advice — 30–90 seconds on screen)*
- **Voice preference** — *Warm Grandfatherly / Gentle Maternal / Neutral Documentary / Soft Historical / Clone from a real recording / Help me decide later*
- **Consent acknowledgement** — required when "Clone from a real recording" is chosen

A link to the **Ethics page** explains voice cloning policy in detail.

## 4.11 Step 11 — Logistics

- **Is there a date you'd like this delivered by?** *(e.g. Christmas 2026, before grandma's 90th birthday)*
- **How should we reach you?** — *Email / Phone / Text*
- **Your timezone** *(e.g. America/Chicago)*

## 4.12 Step 12 — Review

A final read‑through showing every section you filled in. You can click any section header to jump back and edit. When you're happy, click **Create project**.

The platform creates the project, drops you on its **detail page**, and kicks off the pipeline.

> **Tip:** the wizard doesn't lock anything. Every field can be edited later from the project detail page.

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