Kristin Aune spends her afternoons shelving books at Eagan's Wescott Library.

Last week, for the first time, she shelved a book that includes her own work.

A short story she wrote last summer, "Mystery House," was published in the science fiction and fantasy anthology "Next Time: Alternate Reality/Time Travel" from Missouri-based Lame Goat Press. Now the cheerful part-time shelving assistant can call herself an author.

"It's exciting to see your work in a book," said Aune, 19. "My parents are just as excited as I am. My friends think it's really cool, too."

So do the other people on the library's staff.

The staff threw a book release party last Friday to celebrate the anthology's addition to the shelf featuring Minnesota authors. For an afternoon, the softspoken teen who told her supervisor she didn't want too much attention was in the spotlight.

"She's just a joy to have around," said Denise Schroeder, the assistant circulation supervisor at Wescott Library. "It's exciting for us here."

Schroeder said others at the library did not know that Aune, a student at Dakota County Technical College, was involved in writing until a couple of weeks ago. That's when she told Schroeder that her story had been included in the anthology. After hearing that, Schroeder said, the library decided to purchase two copies to put in circulation for Dakota County readers.

"It was a big surprise for me," Schroeder said. "She's got it all in her head. She seems to be very much into it and loving it."

For Aune, the creativity that writing demands, especially in the fantasy and science fiction genres she prefers, is the best part.

"The characters sometimes come out on their own," she said. "You don't know what they're going to do next."

The idea for Mystery House, a short story about a woman who investigates the paranormal events at a haunted house, came to Aune during class. It took literary form on her laptop computer while she was sitting at the kitchen counter in her Eagan home.

Editing was the toughest part, she said, noting that grammar is one of her pitfalls. But after a few rounds of revisions the story was headed for publication. That was a thrilling moment for someone who has been writing almost every day since the third grade.

Since that first literary triumph, she has successfully submitted two more pieces -- one a poem and one a short story -- for another Lame Goat Press collection, "Kings of the Realm: A Dragon Anthology."

"It should be in the mail when I get home," she said, smiling last week during a break from her shift at the library.

And Aune doesn't plan to stop writing anytime soon.

"I'm trying to write a novel right now that I hope to publish," she said.

Katie Humphrey • 952-882-9056