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

Posted in Fiction on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 61 stories

Jack the Ripper

Submitted to Contest #142

“What can I help you with?” Jack asked the middle-aged woman standing in front of him at the information desk. He was always happy to help. The woman’s wiry, grey streaked hair looked like it hadn’t been brushed in days. Jack rubbed his hand over his bald as he looked down at the woman, glad for once that he didn’t have to worry about hair care.“My book is missing the last page,” she said urgently, pushing a copy of The Help towards Jack as if it were diseased.Jack frowned and put on his glasses. “Missing, you say?” he questioned as he picke...

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The Living Library

Submitted to Contest #142

Despite our best efforts, Emily and I were no nearer starting a family or finding a replacement to manage the Library. She was eager for stability, and my unwillingness to commit and guarantee a departure date was a source of contention. Emily refused to believe that I couldn’t just serve my notice and leave.‘It’s not like you’re saving lives, Jim,’ she’d say. ‘You’re a librarian, for God’s sake.’#I’d accepted the post a year before meeting Emily and adored my work. The first time she appeared, I recall being on the granite steps outside the...

47 likes 29 comments 29
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The Harpy Librarian

Shortlisted for Contest #142 ⭐️

Sylise was one of Grand Isle Library’s most beloved and committed librarians. Born of harpy descent, her scaled hands and taloned feet made her stand out from her peers. The brown feathered wings that sprouted from her back made traversal around the grand library easy, especially when she needed to grab a book on the top shelf. Be it human or elf, thief or hero, she gave everyone a chance to take out her books, on the one condition that they return them on time. Sylise’s golden eyes carefully watched the three hourglasses that sat in front ...

29 likes 24 comments 24
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Once an Enemy, Now a Prince

Submitted to Contest #142

To Lupita Smith the smell of a library was heaven. To Sir Danielle Longbow it was a sharp reminder that she’d spent most of her life illiterate. It was also a reminder that she sneezed in dusty places.            “Welcome to my humble commode,” said Carl Northman brightly, arms spread with a book in one. “No, wait. Wrong word.” He flipped the book open again. “Abode. My humble abode.” He frowned.            “You don’t live ...

23 likes 26 comments 26
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Afterclap

Submitted to Contest #142

“You know where you’re standing, Mister?... You’re on Hell Street and I intend sending you right down to the bottom of it.” Confronted in the middle of the town’s thoroughfare by a mere slip of a girl dressed in men’s clothing, the inebriated cowboy wasn’t quite sure whether to fight, run, or laugh the girl home to her momma’s teet. Wynonna Belle was as tough as librarians come in the scheme of things all western. Youngest born of three siblings – all girls – she had to be hard as old nails to survive the harsh realities of living in one of ...

20 likes 10 comments 10
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Shhhhh!

Submitted to Contest #142

Shhhhh! They called it spring. Intellectual crocuses sent shoots peeking through encrusted snow. After years of unrest followed by martial law, curfews began to be relaxed. The generation who came of age during the darkness began to explore the potential offered by their rediscovered liberties. The young man known as ‘Roach’ entered the library. Though warm outside, he wore a hoody pulled over his shaven head. He stepped to the counter and asked for Twigs. From her desk, Madeline looked at him. “Twigs? A book…? Oh, uhm… You mean Dorothy?” ...

16 likes 2 comments 2
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Dewey Decimal Disasters

Submitted to Contest #142

TO: reports@macroshift.com FROM: smreed@metropol.lib.gov RE: Archivobot Initial Performance Report DATE: January 15, 2029 To Whom It May Concern: Per your company’s request and as required by the terms of our contract in exchange for the preferential, discounted financial terms extended to our library as a governmental entity, I am hereby submitting my first periodic report regarding Archivobot’s performance. I must report that, despite being in only the late experimental phases of its development, Archivobot performed above expectations...

15 likes 12 comments 12
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Can I love you from afar?

Submitted to Contest #142

She is a mysterious one. Or so I have heard. They say she hides secrets behind those tortoiseshell rimmed glasses and whispers tales of her past to those who gain her trust. Maybe one day she will trust me.I find her unlike other librarians, usually so strict and hmm how do you put it - simply librarian-like. But this woman is different.She is wearing pants. Soft beige corduroy slacks that flare slightly at the bottom. A loose fitted t-shirt with some brand I don't recognise printed on it. Her feet are clad with leather birkenstocks and a br...

15 likes 1 comment 1
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Conan the Librarian

Submitted to Contest #142

The world is awash in words, short words and long words, hasty words and well-thought-out words, words that cluster to form books and magazines and all kinds of semi-permanent media. What, then, to read? What teaspoonful to sip at while the tsunami breaks over your head? Behold Conan the Librarian. Conan is ready to recommend what you should read next. He is a librarian par excellence but is most brilliant at recommendations. His spectacles sparkle, his mouth moistens as he matchmakes a reader with what ought to be read. He recommends to an...

15 likes 6 comments 6
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The Librarian

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...

14 likes 2 comments 2
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Bookworms and Body Slams

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...

14 likes 10 comments 10
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The Escape Clause

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 ...

14 likes 26 comments 26
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Ye Olde Library

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 ...

14 likes 6 comments 6
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Library of Lost Souls

Submitted to Contest #142

Passing through the Great Empty of this country, there is a small closet of a Library with a sign on the door that reads “Library of Lost Souls.”  I was thumbing my way across the country when I happened to find this obscure corner of the world.  Now in my profession, I don’t rightly have much time or chance to do any reading, but the small sign hand painted in gold paint on a back door caught my attention and curiosity.   “Greetings.” The woman at the desk said when I walked in.  There was an icy wind blowing from ...

13 likes 7 comments 7
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Encyclopaedias

Submitted to Contest #142

I was startled when something slammed down on the desk, it was the encyclopaedias from the back. Of course, there was also the culprit, whom I instantly recognised as one of my regular patrons. Her head sticking up above the desktop, such a slip of a girl, she’d barely managed to heft three of the old books onto the table in front of me. I refrained from rolling my eyes at her refusal of taking multiple trips. “You can’t take those home.” “What! What do you mean? It’s a library – that’s the whole point,” she stated, devastated that the libra...

12 likes 2 comments 2
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