Welcome to the Haunted Library, a collection of comics and stories from me, Becca Lee (aka the Haunted Librarian).
My name is Becca Lee (they/them). I’m a writer and illustrator with a couple of advanced degrees and a heart of gold. I live and work in Utah Valley (it’s actually a very cool place to live!) and I’ve been sharing my comics online since 2019.
I’ve been writing and drawing my entire life, and I’ve wanted to make comics professionally since I was a kid.
Comic artist wasn’t a serious career path at the time, so when I got to college, I decided to become a Serious Literary Writer instead. I earned an MA in English literature and an MFA in Creative Writing back-to-back. I got some recognition for my writing—I won lots of university awards and even a scholarship—but I always felt like something was missing from my work.
In the 2010s I graduated and had some babies. I still wrote regularly, but I found it difficult to do deep creative work during those intense early years of parenthood.
In 2020 I had a career crisis.
Besides the whole pandemic of it all, my best friend in the world (a beautiful, creative person named Annie) died of cancer in December that year. It was gutting, and after she died, I realized how much time I’d spent going after things I didn’t care about. I realized that being a Serious Literary Writer actually sounded kind of awful.
That’s when I started making comics again in earnest.
At first, I shared all my work on the haunted librarian instagram, but these days you’ll mostly find me here on Substack. Since moving my comics here, the Haunted Librarian has been a Substack Featured Publication two years in a row.
On a personal note, Substack feels like a much better home for my work—far away from the ads and algorithms of other platforms.
So, what can you expect from the Haunted Librarian Substack? Words and pictures, mostly! Beyond that, it’s really whatever I’m thinking about at the time, with an emphasis on creativity and comics. Here’s what I plan on sharing:
Original art and illustrations, accompanied by top-notch writing
Haunted Librarian news (in-person events, art shows, updates to the shop, comic classes, book launches, etc.)
Goofy comics about everything from medieval art to Edgar Allan Poe
Ghost stories, Christmas Demons, and other spooky lore
Graphic memoir-style essays
Reflections on grief, change, and living through hard times
Occasional gossip from my personal life
Behind-the-scenes peeks at upcoming projects
Activities and exercises to get your creativity flowing
Anything synonymous with wabi-sabi (the Japanese concept of perfection in imperfection, not the sushi condiment)
If you follow me elsewhere on the Internet, you’ll know that I love to share all my art and stories with a personal touch—this newsletter will be all that, and more.
It’s my best work, algorithm-free.
I’m delighted that you found yourself on my corner of the internet. You make my whole world possible.
See you out there, boys and ghouls.
🖤 Becca Lee, Haunted Librarian 🖤
