Tree Letters Goes Live

I’m excited to launch my latest literary project: Tree letters. I’m hoping that people will take part by writing letters with me which I aim to publish as a collection in a future book.

Whether eight or eighty, love writing or if it’s been a while, anyone can take part in the project. I hope that these letters and the wonder of nature will inspire people to write and submit something in response.

Over the course of a year or two I will be visiting trees throughout Britain and writing a personal letter to the tree and to the place. I will leave it behind in a letter capsule where it will wait to be discovered. A unique password attached to the capsule will allow the discoverer to write their own letter. Ultimately the letters may be published in a book.

So far, I’ve only written and released a few letters, but many more will come over time. I’ve launched a dedicated website at www.treeletters.com where all the letters are accessible and contributors can sign in to take part.

“In your final moments our lives entwined. I discovered words and dreamt of writing, even while your bark turned to dust and those lab’ring words faded into history.” 

The Poem Tree Letter

One of the letters already published is sited within the grounds of a school in Oxford (read the Ox Tree Letter), where I have been collaborating with the students in a special project (news to come!). Another is a short note scribbled on an unusual till receipt – read the Woodall Tree letter.

My letter (note) to the Woodall Tree might be my shortest ever, scribbled on a till receipt where there’s more than meets the eye at first glance.
“Just wanted to say thanks. What a bargain!”

The letters are tucked inside biodegradable letter capsules where they will wait to be discovered (afterwards the capsule will make a great bug hotel). A unique password attached to the capsule will allow the discoverer to write and submit their own letter on the dedicated TreeLetters.com website. The password will only be available from the letter or container left with each tree, and will be specific to that tree.

The discoverer of the letter might come across it by chance, or deliberately seek it out after reading about the project online and exploring the interactive map of tree locations.

Over time, Tree Letters will appear across the length and breadth of Britain, nestling deep in the countryside or hidden in plain view among our urban emeralds.

Ultimately the collection of letters, both from myself and members of the public, may be published in a book, but that will depend on the success of the response.