Personalised story commissions, featuring your child as the hero of their own tale.
Exclusive, hand-crafted stories written especially for your child, tailored to their personality and designed to become a one-of-a-kind family keepsake or a treasured gift suited for bedtime reading.
Stories are commissioned and created from the very beginning: inspired by the details you shared and shaped by the child’s interests and character. The narrative is crafted with literary finesse and elegance, and enriched with hand-drawn illustrations. As a result, each commissioned story offers a distinctive, personal charm, allowing the child to feel that this is genuinely their own story.
All works are created entirely by human author, never mass-produced, duplicated or copied.
In addition, I offer bespoke stories for adults. These are for those who, as children, dreamed of stepping into the pages of their own book, or who wish to return, if only briefly, to the carefree magic of childhood and embark upon one more adventure.
Artistic story commissions involve
- Story: a short, original narrative personalised for a child or an adult
- Format: presented as a designed digital PDF or a printed storybook
- Illustration: either minimalist text-only or illustrated pages, depending on the nature of the commission
- Reading experience: a thoughtfully paced story, designed to be shared across several bedtime readings, at your child’s rhythm
Discretion and privacy are integral to every commission.
Pricing
Each story is individually crafted, and its pricing reflects the level of personalisation and the depth of creative involvement in the process.
Factors such as story length, narrative complexity and depth, the inclusion and the nature of illustrations, digital vs printed format, all contribute to the final price.
For this reason, pricing proposal is provided upon request.
Discover the story waiting for you.
A story as unique as the one who lives it.
About me
My name is Ela. I have loved storytelling for as long as I can remember. As a child I dreamt that someone would write a book about me — created especially and only for me — or design an original adventure game just for my own amusement. That dream never came true. Instead, it set me on a path to make it real for others: for children and for grown-ups too.
My journey into writing bespoke stories and hand-crafted games began with gifts for children closest to my heart. Those early creations earned me the reputation of being “the favourite auntie in the world”, and the joy of the children who received my storybooks inspired me to imagine ever new adventures, set within increasingly imaginative worlds.
Over time, requests from friends and family grew. Each new project strengthen my belief that I was laying the foundation for the boutique illustrated storytelling of Ciocia Ela™.
This led me to expand my writing beyond my own circle, so that I could share my passion with many more children and their families.
Every tale is a treasure, waiting to unfold
Embark on a personalised journey
Discover more
“Ciocia”
Ciocia is a Polish word meaning aunt. In Polish culture, ciocia is merely a simple family title; she is a figure of closeness, one who offers safety, trusted presence and a gentle source of magic.
She is the one who tells stories, keeps secrets whispered in confidence, and knows how to turn ordinary moments into unforgettable adventures. She is the one who secretly brings sweets and invites children on clandestine excursions for hot chocolate or ice lollies. Ciocia allows climbing trees while singing at the top of one’s voice, or leaping over fences; because Ciocia is just a “little less grown-up than parents” and delightfully unconventional enough to step into a child’s world, understand child’s emotions and create a space, in which imagination may roam freely and without limits.
As Ciocia Ela, I wish to be a companion in adventure for my young readers. It is this very approach that allows me to create deeply personal stories, infused with a gentle sense of magic and an affectionate wonder for childhood dreams, which — in the world of Ciocia Ela™ — aways come true.
Creative process
Each illustration is created by hand on paper or canvas, using traditional media such as ink, watercolour, coloured pencils, gauche, acrylic or charcoal, or by combining different techniques.
Each piece is then scanned, digitally cleaned and integrated into the storybook, preserving the warmth, texture of the paper, as well as the character of the original work.
Commissions include a defined proofing process at key stages of creation. Clients are invited to review the narrative for tone, emotional fidelity and personal detail, and to confirm the overall illustrative direction.
As these works are conceived as bespoke pieces of literary and visual art, revisions are undertaken in a considered and limited manner and are not offered on an unlimited or ongoing basis. Minor refinements are included within the scope of the commission. Any substantial amendments or additional revisions beyond this scope are subject to discussion and mutual agreement.
Completion time
Each story is carefully crafted by hand, based on the information you provide about your child’s personality and interests. I undertake every commission with care and patience, allowing the story to unfold at its own pace.
The completion time vary depending on the narrative’s complexity, the level of personalisation, the nature of the illustrations involved, and my current availability. As each commission is fully bespoke, projects typically unfold over a period of months. An estimated delivery timeframe will be provided once your commission is confirmed.
Ownership notice
Each story and its accompanying illustrations are uniquely crafted by Ciocia Ela™ for a specific child, representing careful consideration and human creativity.
Purchasing a printed book or digital PDF grants you a single copy, solely for personal use.
The illustrations are created by hand on paper or canvas and are then integrated into the final version of the storybook, which is delivered as a complete, personal keepsake. Individual artworks are not part of the commission and are not included with the story you purchase.
While you will receive your copy of the storybook to enjoy, the copyright to the words and illustrations remains the intellectual property of the author. The author may display, share or offer individual elements of the work, including illustrations and excerpts of the text, in other projects, including the sale of individual illustrations or portfolios, regardless of their similarity to the content in the book you have purchased. The illustrations may be exactly those from the storybook, or similar to them, and the rights to sell remains with the author.
However, the personalised story as a whole remains unique and is neither offered nor duplicated for other clients. The content of your child’s book remains their truly private, one of-a-kind keepsake.
Privacy and sample usage
To protect the privacy of my clients, I never publish the real names of children or adults featured in these stories. In the selected excerpts on this website, I have altered character names and some details to ensure no real person can be identified.
For consistency, all excerpts use the same set of placeholder names, regardless of the names used in the original works.
To see an example of how an original story is adapted for display as a part of a public excerpt, please click here.
Enquire about a bespoke commission
You may also wish to explore my published works, including a workbook with exercises designed to help seniors cultivate and enrich their mental vitality. The workbook for seniors is currently available only in Polish, however, versions in other languages will be offered soon.