Children’s storytelling has a rich history, from ancient fables to mid-century fairy tales and today’s almost infinite world of wonderful stories in apps.

One such app is Kidly, which was co-founded by Yağmur Demirtutan, Mert Güven Kayaalp and Alican Çetinyalçın in 2021. It is a virtual library of bedtime stories, known for its elaborately illustrated tales that explore themes such as adventure, science, philosophy and much more.

We spoke to Demirtutan to learn about how Kidly came to be, and how it crafts magical stories that captivate children the world over.

The idea for Kidly came to Demirtutan while she was writing a children’s book for a digital advertising campaign in her previous role. Excited by the process, she formed a team who shared her passion.

Initially set up as a production company, the brand attracted readers and attention from the industry, which prompted it to become a publisher. Today, the app’s library includes Kidly Originals, stories written by authors from all over the world and digital editions of beloved printed books.

As you browse the app, it becomes clear that the catalogue is built with set intentions in mind. The team cites emotional development as their main criterion and works with experts – including psychologists and authors with experience in children’s literature and education – to get things just right.

Working alongside these experts enabled the team to identify two key requirements for their content: the need for a sleep routine and for emotional expression. This led to the app’s popular Sleep and Mindfulness categories, which are inspired by children’s themes, but suitable for parents and adults, too, with the hope of fostering quality time and understanding.

“Books that encourage children to stop, slow down and explore independently excite us,” Demirtutan says.

We particularly enjoyed stories such as Star Beetles, which captures intergenerational warmth through a relatable experience of stargazing in a rural setting, and Barnie of Africa, which tells the story of a stray dog who accidentally finds himself in Africa among animals rescued from the zoo.

Innovative features such as Choose Your Own Adventure, the Badge Awarded Leadership Board, which rewards top users who spend the most time reading with an in-app badge, and Read Aloud, which allows children to record and replay their narration, aim to keep young readers engaged.

The right content and approach are both crucial, too. Demirtutan says, “Kids don’t want simplistic stories anymore. They prefer themes of spiritual wellbeing, the environment and sustainability, as well as stories about coping with challenges.”

Kidly’s RoBoBo is an AI story robot that inspires children to create their own stories. Kids select their characters and theme – a mermaid and friendship or a superhero and animals, for example – then make choices that guide the narrative.

To train the AI on the art of storytelling, Kidly’s editors took a hands-on approach, guiding the creation of a story, weaving paragraphs and building to a crescendo moment.

Parents’ feedback on RoBoBo has been positive, Demirtutan says. Those who had encouraged their children to start real-life gymnastics classes, for example, were delighted with RoBoBo’s stories on the theme and requested more gymnastics-related stories.

The app initially offered content in English and Turkish, but today, readers can also enjoy its extensive library in other languages, such as Portuguese, Spanish, French and Arabic.

Building this library requires finding stories that are able to resonate with children globally. Demirtutan emphasises the importance of localisation without caricatures or cultural cliches to create a shared experience, highlighting that “the bond children form with a good story transcends borders”.