There are several long-term literary projects lead by different organisations and institutions in Tartu, among others the following:

Tartu in Fiction

The database Tartu in Fiction compiled by the Tartu Public Library is based on the idea of presenting Tartu through fiction. The database contains texts by mostly Estonian writers which describe Tartu, its people, places, historical landmarks, and everyday life as well as the spirit of Tartu and its characteristic phenomena such as students, cafes, jackdaws, or slum architecture. One can search it by names, book titles, or keywords and find whole poems, fragments of prose and poetry, maps, and pictures. The aim of the project is to preserve our cultural history, create ties between mental and physical space, and help a student, researcher, or local historian in finding and linking sources and data. A further goal is to introduce Estonian culture to other countries. First and foremost we aim to inspire people to read and discover.

More information is available on the webpage teele.luts.ee

Bus Poetry

Bus Poetry is a project initiated by the Estonian Literary Society in 2015 with the aim to introduce literary works in the everyday urban space. Poems are displayed on stickers on the interior of city buses, and the selection of authors and texts alternating regularly. In 2017, 2019, and 2021 the selections included poems from UNESCO Cities of Literature introducing texts and authors from partner cities. 

The Voices of Writers

Kirjanike hääled/The Voices of Writers is a collaboration project of the Estonian Literary Society and the Estonian Literary Museum. Estonian writers are recorded reading their own works, the recordings are stored at the Estonian Cultural History Archives of the Museum and CDs of each writer's readings are released by the Society. So far CDs of 10 writers - Indrek Hirv, Jaan Isotamm, Ain Kaalep, Hando Runnel, Ene Mihkelson, Jaan Kaplinski, Hannes Varblane, Paul-Eerik Rummo, Jüri Talvet, Viivi Luik - have been released.