Decide who the book is for
A book for a grandparent, a child, a reunion group, and a family researcher should not all have the same scope. Write down the reader and the family branch they are most likely to recognize. That choice gives you a starting person.
If the book is a gift, begin with the recipient or one of their parents. If it is for cousins, begin with the ancestor they share.
Check the closest profiles first
Open the starting person and their parents in FamilySearch. Look at names, dates, relationships, portraits, stories, photos, and documents. Fix obvious errors at the source. Add a missing caption or story when your family knows it.
Do not wait until every distant relative is complete. The closest profiles will shape the reader's first impression of the book.
Choose a small first build
Two or three generations and the 25-photo option make a practical test. Include living people if the book should connect the recipient to the earlier branch. Leave them out for an ancestor-only record.
Build the book and read the preview. Note where a profile feels empty, where a scan is hard to read, and where the book becomes too long.
Revise the source, then rebuild
Memories Book is not a full page editor. The cleanest way to improve names, dates, relationships, and source memories is to correct them in FamilySearch and build a new version.
Once the preview looks right, choose Premium PDF delivery, a print order, or both. Save your PDF outside the app if you want a permanent digital copy.