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Version: 2.x

Welcome to Storyteller

![storyteller logo of a campfire](sts.png)

Storyteller is a self-hosted platform for creating, reading, and managing ebooks with guided narration across all your devices.

Guided narration — also called “immersive reading” — is similar to Amazon’s WhisperSync where the text of your eBook is aligned and highlighted with the spoken sentences in your matching audiobook. The two progress together, so you are always in the same place! In Storyteller, we call these aligned books readalouds.

Storyteller is made up of two components: the server and the mobile apps. Together, these components allow you to take DRM-free audiobooks and ebooks that you already own and automatically align them, so that you can read or listen to (or both!) the resulting aligned books anywhere, any time on virtually any device.

What does alignment mean?

The process that Storyteller uses to line up the text of your ebook with the audio of your audiobook belongs to a category of algorithms called “forced alignment.” We call a book that Storyteller has processed “aligned,” and the process itself “alignment.”

Who is Storyteller for?​

Storyteller is for anyone who wants personal control of their owned media and to be able to enjoy their books any way they want whenever they want, and wherever they want.

Read, listen to, or read-listen to all of your books​

  • Switch between listening to a book in audiobook format, reading it as a digital, visual book without losing your place, or read and listen at the same time on virtually any device.
  • Integrated online web reader, Android and iOS apps, and easy export and download of files.

Library management​

  • Organize and access all your ebooks (EPUBs) and audiobooks (most standard audio files) in one place.
  • Edit metadata and customize cover art. (Automatic metadata fetching from Hardcover coming soon.)
  • Easy book ingestion via manual addition or auto-import to library or collections.

Multiuser support​

Sharing your library with friends and family is as easy as sending them an email or messaging them a personalized link.

Individual control <span style={{fontSize: '1rem', fontWeight: 'normal'}}>(coming soon)​

  • Create notes and highlights which sync across devices.
  • Keep track of their last read date and personal ratings.
  • Create personal shelves to organize books in their own way.

Storyteller is self-hosted software. This means that instead of running on servers owned by a company or other organization, it runs on your servers. You own your content and your data, and it will always be available to you!

How Do I Use It?​

  • If you're looking to host your own Storyteller instance, step-by-step instructions start here.
  • If someone you know has already created a Storyteller instance and invited you to it, and you'd just like to read the books they've shared with you, these streamlined instructions will get you reading, litening, or read-listening in no time.

Requirements​

  • Resource Requirements - Before going further, take a moment to read the documentation on minimum necessary resources and make sure that you have a machine that will be able to run Storyteller!
  • Docker - you will need to run Docker and easy instructions to get you going for Stroryteller without too much work are available.
  • Storyteller Server - You will need to either run the Storyteller server locally or on a paid hosting service.
  • Storyteller Apps - The Storyteller apps are by far the best way to enjoy your aligned books, but there are several other options available as well.
  • DRM-free ebooks and audiobooks
    • Storyteller can only process and play files that are free of digitial rights management (DRM).
    • For audiobooks:
      • Libro.fm is an online platform for audiobooks that sell only DRM-free audiobook files, and they share revenue from your purchase with your local book store. Without a monthly membership, their prices for some books can be very high, but they have a massive selection of books; I have yet to be unable to find what I'm looking for there.
      • Downpour.com also sells DRM free audiobooks that can be downloaded as .m4b or .mp3 files.
    • For ebooks (a little harder to find):
      • Some publishers, like Tor and Dragonsteel (Brandon Sanderson's publishing company) simply provide books DRM-free, though that doesn't mean that all online storefronts make it straightforward to actually access the book files directly.
      • Rakuten kobo: it's easy to download book files from your purchased books, and books that are sold without DRM can be downloaded as EPUB files.
What is DRM?

DRM ("Digital Rights Management") is a category of software that attempts to limit access to digital goods. iTunes used to use DRM for music bought through the iTunes store; the MP3 files that users downloaded from iTunes could only be played on their Apple devices. In the book publishing world, the most common DRM schemes are from Adobe, Amazon, and Apple.