Why a Library?
Good question. First, let's look at the definition of what a "library" is: A place in which literary and artistic materials, such as books, periodicals, newspapers, pamphlets, prints, records, and tapes, are kept for reading, reference, or lending. In keeping with that description, this site will attempt to pull together a wide variety of materials, both "actual" items like books and DVDs and "virtual" materials like web sites and podcasts online. This Library is intended as an expanded version of A Conlanger's Bookshelf, a print resource which has been available since 2005. Earlier versions of the Bookshelf were circulated through library conference presentations, at the 2007 Language Creation Conference, and as a companion handout to the Esperanto, Elvish, and Beyond: The World of Constructed Languages exhibit held at the Cleveland (Ohio) Public Library from May through August 2008. This site then is an evolution of A Conlanger's Bookshelf in an attempt to make those materials both more widely available as well as more easily accessible. There will also be links to sites like Amazon.com if people decide to purchase materials as well as search boxes to WorldCat to make it easy to locate items in libraries around the world. Some materials will be provided to simply provide inspiration to conlangers (like our Poetry and Quotations pages).