Some Preliminary Notes

Dear Reader,

I thought I would write to remind you that you are currently subscribed to Letters from Watson, and over the next year you will periodically receive emails containing the doctor’s short story memoirs about his friend, Mr Sherlock Holmes.

There are a few housekeeping notes which I feel obliged to mention before the festivities begin!

Firstly, content at the beginning and end of emails which is given entirely in italics is not part of the original canon of the stories and has been added by myself (at Dr Watsons dictation, of course!)

It is worth noting that Dr Watson has not always had a good mind for dates and has on occasion been required to change the specific details of cases to protect the privacy those involved. This has created inconsistencies which appreciators of his work hotly debate. This project will be following the chronology set out by William S. Baring-Gould in The Annotated Sherlock Holmes (1967), however it does not claim that this is a correct or singular order of events. You may well decide you disagree with it!

Please be aware that the Sherlock Holmes stories are mystery stories which feature various difficult topics such as murder, violence, abuse etc. They were also written over a hundred years ago and contain racism and misogyny typical of their era. Many wonderful people have helped put together a document listing content warnings, which will be linked in each email. The content warning document does contain some spoilers where necessary!

Sherlockian societies are renowned for their excellent pin badges, and so by popular demand you can buy a Letters from Watson pin badge if you’d like!
I’m not pricing them intending to make any money, but I'll be sending any profits raised over to the Bee Friendly Trust, who work to create pollinator-friendly habits on railway and surface tube station platforms around the UK.

Finally, you can join the community chatroom on discord.
Please feel free to discuss your opinions of the cases online (I will humbly suggest #lettersfromwatson as a hashtag?) and share this project with friends.

Whew, I think that’s everything! Thank you all for joining this community. I hope you have a lot of fun!

Miss H Jabbage
Temporary Secretary to Dr John H Watson, MD