Anniversary letters get left late because people think they need to sound poetic. You don't. You need to sound like yourself on a day when you're paying attention. Here's how I help couples find the words, whether they're writing privately or through the Love Story Registry.
Start With One True Thing
Forget the opening that sounds like a greetings card. Start with one specific truth: a habit you love, a hard year you got through, a moment from the last twelve months that you'd forgotten until now. Specific always beats grand.
If you're stuck, answer these on your phone without editing:
When did I feel proud of us this year?
What do they do that nobody else notices?
What am I still grateful they said yes to?
Keep It Short Enough to Read Aloud
A good anniversary letter lasts a minute or two when read slowly. Any longer and it starts to feel like a speech. Three or four short paragraphs is plenty: then, now, next, and a closing line that doesn't need a flourish.
Write the way you speak. If you'd never say "my darling" at the kitchen table, don't put it on the page.
Letters Versus Registry Letters
Writing your own letter is personal and immediate. The Love Story Registry is different: it's a way for me, as your celebrant, to mark the date with a commemorative letter, imagery from your album and wild flowers. Past couples can still join, and there's a free year to claim. More on that in already married? you can still join the Love Story Registry.
You can do both. Many couples write something for the morning, and let the Registry carry the anniversary itself.
If Writing Feels Impossible
Try a voice note first. Talk for two minutes as if you were telling a friend why you're glad you married them. Then listen back and write down the lines that made you smile. Those are usually the keepers.
For the proposal version of this craft, Where Two Bloom has how to write a proposal love letter. The muscles are the same; only the chapter number changes.
Make It a Habit, Not a Performance
Put a reminder in the calendar a fortnight before your anniversary. Draft once, leave it a day, trim anything that feels stiff. Put the finished letter somewhere you'll find it next year.
When you want the wider experience around letters, albums and ceremonies, start at plan your experience.
An anniversary letter doesn't need to be impressive. It needs to be recognisably yours.