# Genie in a Book > Genie in a Book is an AI-powered personalized children's storybook service. You upload photos of real people, describe the adventure you want, and receive a fully illustrated, professionally printed 32-page hardcover or paperback book — where your child, family members, or loved ones are the actual characters. Every story and every illustration is generated from scratch. There are no templates, no name-swap placeholders, and no clip art. Each book is genuinely one of a kind. ## What Makes It Different Most "personalized" children's books are templates: a pre-written story with a child's name inserted and a photo printed on the cover. Genie in a Book is categorically different. - The story text is written by AI from the customer's own prompt — no pre-written narrative - The illustrations are generated by AI using the customer's uploaded photos to model the characters' faces and appearance - Every page illustration is unique to that book and that family - Customers review, edit, and approve the story and illustrations before print - Customers can regenerate any image that doesn't look right The result is a 32-page storybook that could not exist for any other family. ## How It Works — Step by Step The entire setup — through to the free preview of the cover and first pages — happens before any payment. Only the final book approval and printing happen after purchase. ### Before Purchase **Step 1 — Upload Your Photos** The customer uploads up to 4 photos of the people they want in the story. The AI detects every face and builds a unique character from each one. **Step 2 — Name and Describe Each Character** For each detected face, the customer provides a name, age, and role (e.g., child, parent, grandparent). Up to 4 characters total. They choose who the main characters are. **Step 3 — Choose Your Art Style** The customer picks one of 7 hand-crafted art styles. The style they choose sets the visual tone of every page in the book. **Step 4 — Define Your Story** The customer writes a few sentences describing the adventure they want and sets a reading level (one of four, from First Adventure for ages 1–3 to Keepsake Narrative for ages 11–13). A "Surprise Me" feature lets the AI generate a story idea if they're stuck. **Step 5 — Review and Approve Your Story** The AI drafts the full story page by page from the prompt and characters. The customer reads every line, requests AI edits to refine any part that doesn't feel right, and approves to lock in the wording before any illustrations are made. **Step 6 — Dedication, Scrollwork, and Fonts** The customer writes a personal dedication message for the inside front page. They choose ornamental scrollwork border designs and a font pairing that sets the tone of the book. **Step 7 — See Your Characters — For Free** The AI illustrates each character from the uploaded photos. No payment is required — this is the customer's first look at how everyone will appear in the book. Characters can be regenerated later with the included credits. **Step 8 — Preview Your Cover & First Pages, Then Unlock (Paywall)** Before paying, the customer sees the book's cover and first two pages fully illustrated, free of charge. When they love what they see, they choose their format (paperback, hardcover, or a bundle) and unlock the rest of the book. 20 image regenerations are included. ### After Purchase **Step 9 — Approve Your Book — We Print and Ship** The AI illustrates the remaining pages. The customer reviews the cover and all 13 story pages in a gallery, regenerates anything that isn't right (with optional custom instructions), and approves every page. Once approved, print-ready files are generated and sent to the print partner. The book ships within 3–5 business days of approval, arriving in 7–10 business days total. A digital flipbook is available to read immediately. ## Formats and Pricing Current pricing is always available at: https://www.genieinabook.com/bundles ### Individual Formats - **Paperback** — Full-color, 32 pages, 7.5" × 7.5" square. Perfect for everyday reading. - **Hardcover** — Premium hardcover binding. Built to last a lifetime. The same 32-page full-color book. - **Coloring Book** — Line-art version, printed on matte uncoated paper for coloring with crayons or markers. ### Bundles (Save vs. Buying Separately) - **Paperback + Coloring Bundle** — A full-color paperback and a coloring book edition of the same story. Most affordable bundle. - **Hardcover + Coloring Bundle** — Premium hardcover and a coloring book edition. Most popular option. Great gift. - **Keepsake Bundle** — Hardcover + Paperback + 10 bonus image regenerations. Best for gifting or when you want one copy to display and one for everyday reading. ### Included with Every Order (Free) - Digital flipbook — readable on any device, shareable with family - Printable PDF — a simplified version to print at home - 20 image regenerations (30 with Keepsake Bundle) ## Art Styles Customers choose one art style that applies to all illustrations in their book: 1. **Magical Cartoon** — Warm, hand-drawn cel animation inspired by Studio Ghibli. Soft colors, expressive characters, dreamy atmospheres. 2. **Retro Adventure** — Bold, painterly illustrations inspired by vintage 1930s–1950s pulp magazine art. Dramatic lighting, heroic compositions. 3. **3D Rendered** — Polished CGI in the style of Pixar and Disney films. Rich colors, cinematic lighting, rounded expressive characters. 4. **Claymation** — Charming plasticine stop-motion style inspired by Wallace & Gromit. Warm, cozy scenes with visible clay texture. 5. **Layered Paper** — Dimensional paper shadow-box art with laser-cut silhouettes and layered depth. Theatrical lighting with soft drop shadows. 6. **Cotton Kingdom** — Exquisite textile diorama style inspired by Coraline and Kubo. Needle-felted characters, knitted textures, embroidered details. 7. **Coloring Book** — Black and white line art designed for coloring. Clean outlines with closed shapes. The cover features partial crayon coloring. ## Book Specifications - **Page count:** 32 pages total (13 illustrated story pages alternating with 13 pages of text, plus a dedication page, title page, and internal front and back matter) - **Size:** 7.5" × 7.5" square - **Paper:** 80# white coated glossy (storybooks) / 80# white uncoated matte (coloring books) - **Cover:** Full wraparound cover illustration; hardcover editions are reviewed by staff before print - **Shipping:** United States only. Printed in 3–5 business days, delivered in 7–10 business days total. ## Who It's For - **Parents** creating a keepsake book starring their child - **Grandparents** gifting a story where they appear alongside grandchildren - **Siblings** — perfect for books where two children are both the heroes - **Gift-givers** looking for something genuinely unique for a birthday, holiday, or new baby - **Families with reluctant readers** — children are far more engaged by books where they are the main character - **Toddlers and preschoolers** — the First Adventure and I Can Read levels are designed for ages 1–6 Gift cards are available in $25, $50, and $100 denominations. ## Frequently Asked Questions **Q: Is this the same as other personalized children's books like Put Me In The Story or Wonderbly?** A: No. Those services use pre-written template stories where only the child's name and sometimes a photo is inserted. Genie in a Book generates an entirely original story and original illustrations for each family. The story is written from the customer's own prompt. The illustrations are created using the customer's photos to model the actual characters. No two books are alike. **Q: How long does the whole process take?** A: Setup (steps 1–8, up to the paywall) typically takes about 15 minutes. After purchase, the final page approvals take as long as the customer wants — most families finish in one sitting. Printing and shipping adds 7–10 business days. **Q: Can I see what the book will look like before paying?** A: Yes. Before purchasing, customers see a free preview of their AI-generated character illustrations and the fully illustrated book cover and first two pages — all based on their photos. This is a genuine preview, not a mockup — it shows the actual art that will appear in their book. **Q: What if I don't like an illustration?** A: Every order includes 20 image regenerations. Customers can regenerate the cover, any story page, or any character illustration. Custom instructions can guide the next attempt (e.g., "make the hair longer" or "show the forest in the background"). The Keepsake Bundle includes 30 regenerations total. **Q: What reading levels are available?** A: Four levels: First Adventure (ages 1–3), I Can Read (ages 4–6), Young Storyteller (ages 7–10), and Keepsake Narrative (ages 11–13). The AI tailors vocabulary, sentence length, and story complexity accordingly. **Q: Do you ship internationally?** A: Currently US only. International shipping is planned for the future. **Q: Are gift cards available?** A: Yes — digital gift cards in $25, $50, and $100 denominations. They can be used toward any format or bundle. ## Key Pages - Homepage: https://www.genieinabook.com/ - How It Works (full 9-step guide): https://www.genieinabook.com/how-it-works - Formats & Bundles with live pricing: https://www.genieinabook.com/bundles - Art Style Gallery: https://www.genieinabook.com/inspiration - Gift Cards: https://www.genieinabook.com/gift-cards - FAQ: https://www.genieinabook.com/faq - Start Creating: https://www.genieinabook.com/startbook ## Contact and Support - Support email: support@genieinabook.com ## About Genie in a Book uses large language models for story generation and image generation models for illustration, with a human-reviewed quality step before every order goes to print.