“Secrets, secrets are no fun, secrets are for everyone,” must have been the thought going through PostSecret.com creator Frank Warren’s head in the fall of 2004 as he printed off nearly 3,000 blank postcards inviting people to reveal a secret.

The only stipulations – the secrets had to be true, and they had to never have been shared with anyone before.

These cards were cleverly hidden in library books, left at art galleries and passed out in downtown Washington D.C.

A few weeks later, Warren got a multitude of custom-made cards, written in various languages and made from wedding invitations, photographs, magazine clippings and other personal items.

“I had secrets in my own life,” said Warren, who will visit the University today. “I guess it was a way to come to terms with difficult situations
… through the strength and courage of other people.”

Warren’s blogspot, postsecret.blogspot.com, which he created Jan. 1, 2005, features a variety of postcards expressing regret, hope, belief, fear, betrayal, desire or confession.

The site has become a cultural phenomenon, receiving nearly 1 million hits a week. Warren since then has published three PostSecret books, with a fourth one coming out later this year.

Warren will hold a discussion at Tate Theater tonight, for the second annual Depression and Suicide Awareness Week, sponsored by Nuci’s Space.

The issue of suicide hits close to home with Warren, who has lost both a friend and a family member to it.

Warren has devoted himself to nearly four years of volunteering for the 1(800)SUICIDE helpline and actively endorses it on the PostSecret Web site.

He said it is gratifying to make the connection between the blogspot and the helpline because more people are made aware of its existence.

At the discussion, Warren will talk about how and why PostSecret got started, share inspirational stories, show censored postcards and even share a secret of his own.

“All of us have a secret that would break our heart if we knew what it was,” Warren said. “If we remember that, there will be a lot more tolerance and compassion in the world.”