The letter you never knew how to write, written with someone who knows how to listen.
A service that helps you find the words you've carried for a long time — to a dying parent, to a child for their eighteenth birthday, to someone alive you no longer say anything to.
Who it's for
For the letters we owe, and don't write alone.
To a dying parent
When you have a few weeks to say what you never managed to say, and on the phone you freeze, and face to face it's worse.
To a living parent
When you call twice a year and talk about the weather. When you'd just like to say you love them, without making it a thing.
To a child
For their eighteenth birthday, ten years from now. So they know things about their eight-year-old self they're bound to have forgotten.
To a friend of twenty years
Who you never told they mattered. Because between friends you don't say those things, and one day you regret not having said them.
To an ex
To close it cleanly. Not to get back together, not to explain. To set down one last line that asks for nothing.
To yourself, ten years from now
A capsule. What today's you wants to tell the later you, before forgetting who you were.
A few letters already written
Here's what we help write.
To someone who is leaving
Papa,
Je sais pas bien écrire les trucs importants. D'habitude je m'arrange pour pas avoir à.
Rue Lecourbe, j'avais 8 ans. Tu m'avais dit "je tiens, je lâche pas". Je me souviens du bruit du vélo derrière moi. J'ai mis des années à comprendre que c'était fait exprès, le moment où tu avais lâché. Qu'un père ça lâche, mais avant que le gamin le sache.
Martin
These letters are not written by an artificial intelligence. They are written by the people who carry them, with an artificial intelligence that asked the right questions. That's the whole difference. (Shown in French, the language the service launches in.)
How it works
Three moments. No more.
We start by talking.
No form to fill in. We ask a few simple questions — who you're writing to, why now, what you never managed to say. Twenty minutes on average.
We write together.
From what you've said, we draft a first version. You read it out loud. You tell us what rings false. We rework it. Two or three rounds are usually enough.
You leave with your letter.
As text, ready to send. If you want, we can print it on fine paper or schedule it for a precise date. You can also ask us to erase everything.
What we're not
We'd rather say it upfront.
We don't write in your place. The content comes from you. We ask the questions that bring it out, we organize it, we adjust it — but a letter you hadn't thought of would be spotted as a fake by the person who receives it.
We promise nothing about the reply. The letter may never be read. It may be read and ignored. It may be read and taken the wrong way. Our work stops the moment you hold your text. What comes next isn't ours.
We're not a tool for manipulation. We help you say what you really mean — not what “works”, not what “gets results”. If the goal is to manipulate, to guilt-trip, to come back into the life of someone who asked for distance, we're not the right place.
We keep your words private. Your answers are erased within thirty days. Your letter is kept for two years, and only its link opens it. Nothing is sold. You can ask us to erase everything, at any time.
How much
The price,
we leave it to you.
We can't say what your letter will be worth — not to you, not to the person who receives it. So you're the one who chooses.
Set the cursor yourself
€3 — €9 — €30 — free
€3 if that's what you can. €9 if it feels fair. More if it really matters.
No subscription, no plan. You pay once, the moment you decide to keep it.
At €3, we're exactly at break-even — it pays strictly what your letter costs us to make. What goes above is what lets us still be here tomorrow for someone else.
If it doesn't ring true at the end, you pay nothing. We'd rather you left with nothing than with something that doesn't sound like you.
The questions we get asked
What to know before you start.
What is Letters We Owe?
Letters We Owe is a service that helps you write a difficult personal letter — to a parent, a child, a friend, or someone who is leaving. We ask questions that bring out what you want to say, then draft it with you over a few rounds. The letter sounds like you, not like a machine.
Does an artificial intelligence write my letter for me?
No. The content comes entirely from you. The artificial intelligence asks the right questions, organizes your words and adjusts the rhythm — but it invents nothing you didn't say. A letter you hadn't thought of would be spotted as a fake by the person who receives it.
How much does it cost?
You choose the price: €3, €9, €30, or a free amount. There's no subscription. You pay once, at the end, if the letter rings true. If it doesn't touch you, you pay nothing and can leave without putting anything down.
Do my words stay private?
Yes. Your answers are erased within thirty days. Your letter is kept for two years, and only its link opens it. Nothing is sold. You can ask us to erase everything, at any time, by writing to [email protected].