How we write our guides

Ditty City makes personalized songs people give as gifts. That work puts us in the middle of thousands of birthdays, anniversaries, apologies, and just-because moments, and our guides exist to share what we learn from them: what to give, how to celebrate, and what to write when the words won't come.

Who writes them

Our guides are written by the Ditty City editorial team under house bylines. Each byline is a real editorial lane with a consistent voice and standards, not a claim to outside credentials:

• June Calloway, Managing Editor. June runs the editorial desk at Ditty City. She reviews guides before they publish, checks claims against their sources, and cuts anything that reads like it was written to fill space. The 'Accuracy checked' line on our guides is her signature.
• Maya Ellison, Gifting & Occasions Editor. Maya has spent more than a decade writing about celebrations, gift-giving, and the small rituals that hold families together. She covers sentimental gifts, milestone birthdays, anniversaries, and every occasion where the present has to say something the giver can't.
• Priya Anand, Words & Sentiment Editor. Priya is a copywriter who covers the hardest part of any gift: the words. Card messages, toasts, vows, and speeches, written for people who feel everything and freeze the second the pen is in their hand.
• Tom Reyes, Party & Entertaining Writer. Tom writes about parties, playlists, and hosting. He has planned surprise parties in living rooms, backyards, and one memorable parking garage, and he believes the difference between a fine party and a great one is usually three small decisions nobody notices.

How we use AI, honestly

We build AI products, so we won't pretend we don't use them. Drafts are AI-assisted. Every published guide is then edited, fact-checked, and approved by a human editor before it goes live, and the "Accuracy checked" date on each guide is the date that review happened. If a guide is wrong, that's on us, not the tools.

Our rules

• Help first. Every guide has to be useful even if you never buy anything from us. Where a personalized song genuinely fits, we say so and say why; where it doesn't, we don't force it.
• No invented facts. We don't fabricate statistics, studies, or traditions. Claims of fact link to a primary source you can check yourself.
• No medical, financial, or legal advice. Gifts and parties only. If a topic drifts into territory that needs a professional, we cut it.
• First-hand where possible. The specifics in our guides (what landed, what flopped, what to order when) come from our own gift-giving and from what buyers and recipients tell us.
• Corrections. Spot an error? Use the contact form and we'll fix it and update the guide's date.

How guides get published

1. We plan topics around real questions people search, one guide per question, so you never land on filler.
2. A writer drafts the guide in their lane, with sources attached.
3. An editor reviews it for accuracy, usefulness, and honesty, and signs it.
4. We revisit guides on a schedule and after reader feedback; the "Updated" date is real.