We are Book People
I’m sitting in the middle of my local public library, gazing around. From small children to the elderly and everything in between, these rooms are full of book people–readers, word lovers, educators, students, story seekers and idea chasers.
I can’t help but wonder how many have put pen to paper, spinning their own stories or setting down life as they knew it.
Sitting here in the middle of the main floor, slightly irritated at the staccato clack of DVDs being re-shelved and rearranged, I watch people come and go. I watch them browse, selecting piles of books and then reluctantly culling those piles to a manageable size. The line to the check out is long.
My feet don’t reach the floor in these chairs so I leave them to swing underneath the table…a reminder of my early childhood visits to the library.
I feel connected in a way I’ve missed. I am among flesh and blood book people in a room heavy with the scent of books and the winter chill carried in on coats and jackets. At my fingertips, should I care to move from my table, is wisdom, comedy, enlightenment, romance, adventure, tragedy, classics, speculative fiction, children’s picture books and YA explorations of life. There are rows of faith, customs, heritage, history, science and myth…a composite picture of life as we know it, might imagine it, and what it used to be resides in the three floors of this building.
This is but one reason we writers do what we do. We are book people. I’m convinced you can’t write well if you are not also a reader. The two are intrinsic, like two sides of the same coin.
I came here to write through a dry spell. I found myself observing, absorbing, and reconnecting. We are, in this library, all readers, word lovers, educators, students, story seekers and idea chasers. We, as writers, are who we write for.
my eldest LOVES libraries… they make her very happy.
I remember curling up at the foot of the bookshelf in my elementary classroom, reading all sorts of stories, then trading books over the bed with my sister, one of us getting the pile each night to pass along to the other…
hope the dry spell felt some precipitation fall!
Exactly right! For me, it’s bookstores more than it is my public library. Walking around and browsing through the books, especially the genre I like to write, energizes me. I haven’t written anything while still in the store – not yet – mostly because I don’t usually go there alone. But I might have to give it a try one of these days.
@Anna Yes, indeed, I got more done in two hours at the library (longhand, no less!) than I would have all afternoon at home. I’m definitely going back.
@Diane Hi! Thanks for stopping by. Our local borders has a very large area with tables that is out of the way. I would love to go browse, sample, and then write while still there. Unfortunately, if I even hint at a trip to the bookstore, I never go alone either, lol.
[...] This chap added an interesting post on We are Book People |Enriched by WordsHere’s a small excerptFrom small children to the elderly and everything in between, these rooms are full of book peopleâreaders, word lovers, educators, students, story seekers and idea chasers. I can’t help but wonder how many have put pen to paper, … found myself observing, absorbing, and reconnecting. We are, in this library, all readers, word lovers, educators, students, story seekers and idea chasers. We, as writers, are who we write for. Topics: Musings, Write Your Mind Journals Blog | … [...]
Oh, this post made me miss the library. I especially used to love visiting the school library when I was in elementary school. Such fond memories!
Today I spent 8 hours traveling and my companion was a book, a young adult book I’m reading for my online tutoring.
It was a good book with a good characters and a great plot. I love reading………………..:)
@Melissa I was raised with a reverence for libraries and the ability to read anything you wanted based on the promise that you would return it when done. Still so amazing to me.
@Lisa If I’m not writing, I’m reading.
That reminds me. I need to update my library page!
Hi BJ,
I am a book person! And I’m glad to have found another in you. Love old-fashioned libraries where you can smell the books. Love your site!
I love books more than most things in life. I am a bookstore person more than a library person mostly because I love books to much to return them. My house is wall to wall books, and I love it!
“When I get money, I buy books. If there is any left, I buy clothes and food”
Hi BJ,
Books…I do love books. and I love visiting the library. This reminds me that it’s been a long time since I’ve been there. It feels like a magical place, where you can explore the many paths you mind or your heart desire to. I want to get back there, to explore the shelves, to search for new paths…
It’s great to be here, BJ! Great stuff you have!
@ Daphne Thanks for coming to visit me! I agree…the smell of books is intoxicating.
@Jay Thanks for stopping in, Jay. I am also a book store person (was just there tonight), though the cost is getting up there, and use the library for books, research, and quiet. I’d love to give at least half my budget for books. The other half would be for new shelves, lol.
@Lance Hey, buddy.
I think there’s a lot of plots out there for magical events in a library. I should write a few down. And they have so many more books than the book store…you can follow your whim from one section to another all day. 