Manual Story

Instagram's Stories API doesn't support the native "Share to Story" link-back flow that users often want — the API always posts a standalone Story with no tap-through to the original feed post. When that matters, Manual Story is the better option.

With Manual Story, you still schedule the post in posterly with all the usual media and targeting. But instead of auto-publishing, posterly emails you 5 minutes before the scheduled time with everything you need to post it yourself from the native Instagram or Facebook app.

How to use it

1. Open the composer and select an Instagram or Facebook account with media attached
2. In the platform post-type selector, pick Story or Story Series
3. Toggle on Manual story — I'll post it myself (right below the post-type buttons)
4. Optional: paste a URL you plan to add as a Story link sticker — it'll be included in the reminder email so you can copy it straight into the app
5. Set the scheduled time and save

The post will show up in your dashboard with the status Your turn to post. It won't be sent to the Instagram or Facebook API — posterly is only tracking it so it can remind you.

What arrives in the email

Five minutes before the scheduled time you'll get one email containing:

• The account that should post it (platform + username)
• The media file, with a download link
• The optional link sticker URL, if you added one
• A "Mark as posted" button that links back to the post in posterly

For a Story Series, you receive one email listing every slice with its scheduled post time, so you can work through the series in the Instagram app at the right moments.

After you've posted

Open the post in posterly and click Mark as posted. That flips the status to Published so it stops showing in your Awaiting list. For a Story Series, marking one slice marks the whole series at once.

If you never post it, posterly leaves it in Awaiting indefinitely — there's no auto-failure and no follow-up email. You can delete it from the dashboard whenever you want.

Why it exists

The native Instagram "Share to Story" flow is only available inside the Instagram app itself. The API can't replicate it — posts created through the API always appear as standalone Stories with no link back to a feed post.

If you don't need the share-to-story link-back, use a regular scheduled Story instead. If you do need it, Manual Story keeps your posting schedule in posterly while handing off the actual tap to you.

Availability

Manual Story is currently available for:

• Instagram — Story and Story Series
• Facebook — Story and Story Series

Other platforms publish through supported APIs that don't have this limitation.