By WB Intern Cathy Sheafor
We writers love libraries and today is a perfect opportunity to show our gratitude!
Today is Valentine’s Day, broadly known as a celebration of romance and love. While romantic love may be foremost in the minds of many, there are writers and readers who embrace today as Library Lovers Day. In fact, the entire month of February can also be spent honoring libraries, librarians, and library lovers.
In order to recognize this special day, we thought we’d share some photos of some beautiful libraries around the world. Perhaps they’ll spark some ideas for your next romantic novel, picture book, or your next YA mystery series. Maybe you’ll add these amazing libraries to your travel destinations OR, maybe they’ll inspire you to visit your local library.
If you don’t find inspiration from these photos, consider exploring other photos of mobile libraries, beautiful libraries, futuristic libraries, nature-inspired little free libraries, unusual libraries, pop-up libraries, and ancient libraries. Alternatively, you could read more about libraries that lend unusual items to the public like animal skeletons, prom dresses, or dogs.
Now, if you still find yourself at a loss for ways to include these wonderful spaces in your writing, perhaps a few library words will get you brainstorming. Try weaving these words in your next short story, poem, children’s book, or novel: author, circulation desk, card catalog, borrow, keyword, publisher, collection, media center, print materials, boc-hord, kütüphane, kirjasto, bibliotheca, reference, periodicals, shelves, library patron, or stacks.
Wherever your library exploration has taken you, don’t forget to thank a librarian for their work to maintain these accessible collections of precious gems.
For some of our local writers, we highly recommend checking out Austin Public Library!
About the Author
Cathy Sheafor is a writer from North Carolina. She is a graduate of Duke University and Washington University School of Law. She is currently working on picture books and her first middle grade novel. Apart from writing, Cathy loves swimming, hiking and traveling.