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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#142: Librarian Love

April 16th is National Librarian Day in the US! You may know your local librarian as the person who helps you find your next great read, but librarians accomplish a lot that we may never notice — acquiring new books, helping patrons conduct research, and working with schools or other community groups. 


Ultimately, a librarian’s main job is to continue democratizing information so everyone can have access to whatever it is they want to learn. Pretty cool!


We believe librarians are massively important public servants in any thriving community, so to celebrate them we’re inviting you to write a story based on one of these five prompts:

This week's prompts

Start your story with someone being given a book recommendation.

Middle School – 33 stories

Write a story about a librarian that doesn’t fit into the common librarian stereotypes.

Fiction – 62 stories

Write about a character on the hunt to solve a mystery who uses their local library (or librarian) as a source of information.

Thriller and Suspense – 25 stories

Write a story that includes one character reading aloud to another.

Dialogue – 30 stories

Write about somebody who likes to work in silence.

Dialogue – 25 stories

Stories

“The Whistler” by Jacob Wimett

Submitted to Contest #142

 His breath was frosted in the chilly air as he rushed to his campsite; dodging Scouts as they made their way to the dining hall in the exact opposite direction. Everyone was going to eat, but Neil needed to find Thomas.Thomas didn’t show up for anything after Geocaching, not Communications, not First Aid, not even Mining in Society, and he was really excited about that. “Weird, and my dad was a coal miner, so it’ll be interesting to see.”He didn’t get to see, because he never came to the pavilion where they held the merit badge lesson....

4 comments 4
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“Silence Is Deafening” by Brie Leishman

Submitted to Contest #142

As far back as any of the scholars had recorded, the Royal Library of Hercynia had always existed. There were simply no reasonable explanations as to when it was built, or by whom. Most theorised that it was built by monstrous slaves once the humans had won the war and laid claim to the fertile land. There were some however that held the belief the library came to be by the very same beings they moved to enslave. History was a fickle thing when written by the victors. Morrigan supposed that if the library had been here first, and the pal...

2 comments 2
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“Children of the Earth: Volume in The Book of Evil” by Felice Noelle

Submitted to Contest #142

Children of the Earth: Volume in The Book of EvilIt's a book about the history of the world and mankind. Here, read it, see for yourself. But first I'll need to warn you...Evil is unspectacular and always human and shares our bed and eats at our own table.Evil writes these tales in blood and tears, leaving behind devastation and chaos. It inscribes on the tender surface of the human heart and carves into the delicate tissues of the human brain, spreading dissension, fear, and devastation, leaving a trail of shattered lives and broken hearts....

11 comments 11
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“Ye Olde Library ” by Gemma Kovacs

Submitted to Contest #142

It was a foggy afternoon in the city. Claire had finished her shift at the convenience store and was making her way back home. Having lived in the city for so long, she had gotten to know all the short cuts and alleyways. She made her way towards one of the alleyways, but instead was greeted by a red sign saying ‘Road works’. Claire huffed, before turning on her heels and walking towards another of the alleywaysShe rarely used this route, as it was longer than her usual walk, but also the roads were cobbled which made them difficult to walk ...

6 comments 6
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“The Oath” by Fi Brie

Submitted to Contest #142

‘You promised.’ Juliet thought her voice wouldn't betray her disappointment, but it did. It came out like a whimper, small and pathetic. She cringed and swiped at her wind swept hair, currently invading her vision, so that she could keep her eyes locked on her betrayer. Romeo looked back at her, across the table, a small smile flickering on the corner of his mouth. He opened his arms out and rested them on the tops of the lounger he sat on, slouching. ‘What’s the harm in one more?’ he drawled, rolling his eyes slowly in a circle. Juliet sh...

1 comment 1
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“Bookworms and Body Slams” by Greg Gillis

Submitted to Contest #142

           Slade McGrath, at 268 pounds was considered one of the most feared men in professional wrestling. His six-foot-eight-inch frame stood towering over everyone as he scanned the room for anything that seemed out of place.            Suddenly, from out of nowhere, Slade felt a tug on his shirt. As he spun around, he found himself staring down at a small boy with a book in his hands. The boy trembled with fear at the sight of t...

10 comments 10
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“The Escape Clause” by Lavonne H.

Submitted to Contest #142

Please note: child/spousal abuse and alcoholism are mentioned.Errors with science are all mine ;)144 517.25 Librarian CalendarUpdate: Clients 25672 and 25673Female and male human couple have chosen Infinite Realities package 2A.Choice by Client 25673 has grave issues and will negate the Escape Clause. Request alternative options for her contract.EeeoooshyiiiLibrarian, Highest Order***In a room with diaphanous walls, billowing white as if blown by ocean winds, a couple sits with the Librarian. Alongside the illusion of breezes, come the ...

26 comments 26
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“The Librarian” by Ralph Aldrich

Submitted to Contest #142

Billy Anderson has always been a fan of books. His favorites are mostly fictional thrillers or horror and some sci-fi if there are space creatures in them. He has read about every book that the Salem Public Library has to offer in these categories. The librarian, Miss Myers, will always inform him if a new book has been added to the library. Billy can't help but wonder about Miss Myers sometimes. He's been coming to the library ever since his mother started taking him when he was five years old. He's twenty-three now, and Miss Myers ha...

2 comments 2
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“Hobo Jesus Wants his Weed Money” by Jonathan Park

Submitted to Contest #142

Hobo Jesus says he’s returning to the wilderness soon. Forty-days and nights of fasting, solitude, silence, and temptation. Up in the mountains. When the snow melts. For work. He says. Before that he asks, “Don’t you still owe me some ganja?”  The day is dark grey, cloudy and cool behind my sunglasses, but Hobo Jesus is wearing cargo shorts and a green t-shirt with “Heaven is a Place on Earth” in purple print, peeling across the front. He squints and shades his eyes looking up at me, so I squat down beside him on his concrete slab.&nb...

2 comments 2
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“Illusory” by Heather Johnsen-Gisi

Submitted to Contest #142

Danny Groop walked down main street with heavy steps. His day couldn’t have been any worse. He had been turned down at three job interviews and somehow lost a twenty dollar bill out of his pocket. His self-esteem could not take any more blows today. And on top of it all it was raining, and he didn’t have an umbrella. Danny’s stomach growled as he passed all the scents fighting through the precipitation from the delis and cafes. But his twenty-dollar bill was supposed to pay for dinner and…it was gone. He sighed again. Four years he had ...

2 comments 2
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“heartbeat” by Claire Creely

Submitted to Contest #142

I've always liked the sound of silence. The absence of sound is the catalyst for ideas and the perfect condition for success. Or so I always thought. Some will use music to bring ideas to light. Lyrical words rush into their ears and morph into new ones as they flow out onto a page. I've never been that way. Even the pouring sounds of soothing rain or deep, dark thunderclaps irritate me. Oh how I wish the calming waves of a blue, powerful ocean could help me sleep or get anything done. That the constant turning of a fan's white noise would c...

1 comment 1
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“Memories of the Lost Soul” by Charly Woods

Submitted to Contest #142

The sunlight came in through the thin curtains. Its orange warm beam fell on a stack of books in a room. A bedroom. Someone was waking up. There she is, Stacy Wildwood. Her brown shoulder-length hair looked golden in the sunlight. She sat up and wiped the sleep out of her eyes. Stacy took her place in the driver’s seat of a 4x4 truck. And saw something laying on the passenger’s seat. A book with a note on it. This will change your life Stacy took the book and opened it. There was nothing, just blank pages. She threw the book back and ste...

4 comments 4
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“In Transition ” by Dora Acosta

Submitted to Contest #142

The plane ride from Florida to Haiti was shorter than I expected. It was forty-five minutes of clear skies, sunshine highs, and windy lows. Since leaving months after my eighth birthday on a humid summer night under the full moon’s light, I have not been back. The last time I looked up at the moon was from the rooftop of my grandfather’s house. I promised myself and Patrice, my cousin who was more of a sister to me than a cousin, to be back. I figured if I believed it hard enough and made promises with every fiber of my being, this change wo...

6 comments 6
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“Past Life” by Michael Reeves

Submitted to Contest #142

(Authors note: Remember, Nazis were terrible people. Sadly, there probably weren't any Nazis back then like Johann. Enjoy.) I am an old man, and I sat in my rocking chair as I cleaned the lenses of my glasses. My grandson sat on the rug. "Grandpa Gregor, tell me a story. One with a villain. One with an army. One with a happy ending!" My grandson said. I stopped cleaning my lenses and smiled. "I will tell you a story, and in fact, it's true. There is a villain, several armies. But it depends on the person if you're asking for a happy ...

1 comment 1
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“Turning Back Time” by Emily Hardcastle

Submitted to Contest #142

I prefer to work in silence.  The yowls and mews of my apartment and the incessant barking above make it impossible to get any work done, therefore I’m left to find a new solution. Some place quiet. Some place vast.  Every time I walk up the marble steps to the front doors, I think aaah – this feels like home. I knew it the first time my rough hands pushed open the glass door and my old, worn shoes clacked against the marble as if they were made to dance. That’s how you should feel at home, right? As if you could dance, s...

4 comments 4
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$250

Prize money

175

Contest entries

129

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 22, 2022 EST

Won by Deidra Whitt Lovegren 🏆

Title: What You Can Do With Your Book

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

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