Denyse Allen

Screenshot essay titled 'What are the best AI tools for genealogy research?' The essay discusses the overwhelming number of AI tools available to genealogists and provides a starter toolkit to help manage genealogy tasks. It presents three recommended AI tools: Perplexity for searching obscure records and building research plans, ChatGPT for analyzing and generating timelines and summaries, and Claude for reading long documents like wills and land records. The author advises choosing one tool for one task at a time to avoid distractions from shiny technology and constant updates.

I used to think family history was all about the words I used.

Then I learned my readers find all those words tiring.

So now I add:
• Maps
• Photos
• Family trees
• Even AI visuals

Images make the story engaging.

Ever written about three Johns and two Marys in the same story?

I have. Total chaos.

Now I:
• Use nicknames
• Add “Sr.” or “Jr.”
• Explain naming in a note

History stays honest. The story is readable.

A good family story isn’t just about facts. It’s about feeling.

If someone remembers how it made them feel, they’ll remember the people in it too.

So I always ask:
Who am I writing for?
What will move them?
What will they remember?

I used to write family history like I was writing a research log.

Now I write like I’m talking to someone I love.

Because my goal isn’t to sound smart. It’s to make someone care.

Ohio Roots Podcast - Ohio Genealogical Society Ohio Genealogical Society Ohio Roots Podcast - Ohio Roots is the official podcast of the Ohio Genealogical Society (OGS).

Loved talking with Noel at OGS on the sessions I'm teaching at the Ohio Genealogical Society Conference end of April.

Listen to the on the Ohio Roots Podcast anywhere you get your podcasts or here --> ogs.org/podcasts/

I used to think if I didn’t do a proof argument, the reader wouldn’t trust me.

I just confused my readers.

Now I say:
• “Her father”
• “My great-grandmother”
• “Their uncle”

If the proof is tricky, I tuck it in an appendix. The story keeps moving—and the reader stays with me.

Once upon a time, there was a search engine just for us.

It didn’t sell DNA.
Didn’t lock records behind paywalls.
Didn’t pretend generic search worked for family research.

It was called Mocavo.
And it felt like someone finally understood what we needed.
👇

Ohio Roots Podcast - Ohio Genealogical Society Ohio Genealogical Society Ohio Roots Podcast - Ohio Roots is the official podcast of the Ohio Genealogical Society (OGS).

Preview the sessions I'm teaching at the Ohio Genealogical Society Conference end of April. Hope to see you there!

Listen to the on the Ohio Roots Podcast anywhere you get your podcasts or here --> ogs.org/podcasts/

I'm looking for your examples of bad AI writing for family history. I have a few in this post, but I know there are at least dozens more out there.

open.substack.com/pu...

I don’t put a lot of text on my slides (that goes in the handout/syllabus) so I go through 45-50 slides in 45 minutes. But it all depends on your content, your personal style, the audience and your goal.

RootsTech has hundreds of online sessions I want to watch. Impossible to do.

So I’m using AI to:

• Generate personalized transcripts
• Highlight key insights
• Save notes effortlessly with voice mode

Now, instead of drowning in info, I end classes with a solid plan.

Here's how to do it 👇

Carrier pigeon delivery would be amazing. Hope some mad scientist brings them back.

The best fix I ever made to my writing was choosing a specific reader—like a niece or a cousin—before I wrote a single word.

• I pictured them
• I wrote for them
• I tested my draft with them

That one shift made writing 10x easier and better.

The overwhelmed with data and despondent over too many gaps is the reality of family history writing, isn’t it?

The memories section of FamilySearch profiles will hold anything. I believe the limit of words is generous, like 3k? Have the check. Ancestry also allows for the upload of jpgs if you converted it. I need to make a list of these!

Wonderful to hear that you pushed past your thoughts and write anyway!

😂 The perfect genealogy April Fools!

Centre County Library's Historical Museum recently shared this image of estate filings in their original file cabinet. These filing cabinets used to line the walls of the Register of Wills who kept the filings for both testate and intestate probates. Amazing piece of history!

That’s amazing! Most people skip the writing altogether

Such an great accomplishment! Are you publishing the blog posts into a book?

Surveyed 350 genealogists, and the top reasons for not writing:
• “I need to organize my research first.”
• “I’m not a good writer.”
• “I don’t have enough details.”
• “I don’t know how to start.”
• “No one will care about this.”

My advice is to people uploaded to 23&Me is to delete their files now. The buyer(s) and their purposes are unknown, so why risk it?
The CEO is trying to buy the company back, so hopefully the court allows it.

Sad news this morning of 23&Me’s bankruptcy filing. Genealogists will lose access to yet another database for research.
If you don’t want your data sold to whoever shows up to buy it, delete it now.

investors.23andme.com/news-release...

If you are looking for Pennsylvania ancestors, I have an online course that walks you through:

• Where to find rare records that could answer your exact questions.
• How to document every discovery ensuring no lead was missed.
• New techniques to interpret and analyze records.

DM for details

With family history there are no gatekeepers.

You have the power to write and publish anything you want about your ancestors.

There’s no need to wait for someone to grant you permission.

Just write!

Write your first draft of family history with ease with this week's video

98% of genealogists are not writing their family history. You don't have to be one of them.

Here is how you can get unstuck and start writing today.

Does it feel sometimes like a bad dream and it never really happened? It feels like that to me.

What do you think of including the inherited things with a disclaimer they are unproved? I’d would have loved to get my great grandmothers stories of where she came from even if they weren’t true.