If you haven’t yet encountered them, Milwaukee Public Library has pushed the boundaries of what social media content can look like for a library and has been part of the charge in creating a section of the internet affectionately known as LibraryTok. (While MPL was one of the first major metropolitan libraries to experiment with TikTok-inspired content, staff say accounts like the Fowlerville District Library in Michigan (@fowlervillelibrary) served as a source of motivation.)
MPL’s online voice, described by staff as joyful, silly, unhinged and heartfelt, has produced many viral videos and made MPL embrace and sustain its social media stardom.
“I remember seeing the TikToks before I started working here and thinking ‘How are they getting away with that?’” says Melissa Howard, communications and community engagement director, who previously used MPL as a case study of how to use social media “the right way.” She now oversees the social media team.
What does it take for a short-form video to break through the noise of an internet always chasing something new, exciting or trendy? And how does a public library, an institution not typically associated with wackiness, manage to stand out and spin the narrative on the general public’s perception of the library?
To find out, Programming Librarian visited Milwaukee Public Library to observe behind-the-scenes filming with the creative duo behind (and sometimes in front of) the camera: Fawn Siemsen-Fuchs and Evan Szymkowski.
The 10 steps behind MPL TikTok
Step 1: Inspiration and research
When you enter the front entrance of Milwaukee Public Library’s Central Library, you’re greeted by the warm glow of the rotunda, set beneath a large marble dome. The floors are a colorful mosaic of floral tiles, and vintage chandeliers hang from above.
Staff members from various library departments gather in the rotunda before filming begins. Fawn Siemsen-Fuchs, marketing and communications coordinator, explains the inspiration for today’s video: a trend called “Life with Her” but with a library twist. The final video will capture all of the little ways the library can improve everyday life.
This type of video — heartfelt and fun — seems like the bread and butter of MPL’s internet presence. What began during the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to attract local patrons and reach new audiences has now evolved into a more evergreen approach, promoting library love and advocacy more broadly.
“We want our videos to say, ‘Our library does this and has this — and yours probably does, too,’” says Siemsen-Fuchs. “The messaging is broad. If the content resonates with someone outside of Milwaukee, that’s great. It’s more about building excitement and inspiring viewers to go to their local libraries.”
The first step in creating an MPL video is to stay up to date with current trends for inspiration. Siemsen-Fuchs says it's important for MPL’s content to be intentional. “It was a desert when we first started, but now there are so many libraries posting,” she says. “We decided not to copy videos that other libraries do. Rather, we want to celebrate their success and let them have their moment. However, we definitely participate in trends at large and even copy them.”
Siemsen-Fuchs says that the challenge in participating in trends is twofold: first, relating them to the library, and second, adding the MPL touch so that it makes sense for the tone of their platform. “It can also be fun to level up a trend,” she says. “What spin can you add that is unique?”
For today’s filming, Siemsen-Fuchs has saved several TikToks as references to guide the pacing and tone and capture the heartfelt essence of the trend. Once a trend or theme is selected, the team moves on to visualizing the video and adding MPL’s signature voice through scripting and storyboarding.
Step 2: Storyboarding
When the pandemic prevented volunteers from entering the library, Siemsen-Fuchs, then serving as volunteer coordinator, began creating video content with a sassy and attention-catching voice. When Evan Szymkowski, a member of the accounting staff, joined the social media team in 2022, the two began experimenting with more cinematic styles of content.
With Szymkowski’s artistic background, the team quickly saw new possibilities. “We knew that Evan was a really good actor and dancer, and they can be really funny,” says Siemsen-Fuchs. “And I have an English background, so now we’re working on scriptwriting and longer-form content. Using our own strengths and having these resources at our disposal has been really vital.”
Today, Szymkowski devotes five hours a week to social media, while Siemsen-Fuchs, who joined the communications/marketing team full-time in early 2025, devotes 40% of her time to social media tasks.
Together, the duo generates all video concepts and often drafts storyboards and scripts for their more ambitious projects. A recent example was the “If libraries made perfume ads” video, which required a script, storyboard and long hours of filming. Other videos come together more spontaneously: after realizing they had never appeared in a video together, the pair took advantage of a free moment to film in a nearby park.
When a video isn’t so spontaneous, thoughtful location scouting becomes part of the process, ensuring each concept is matched with the perfect backdrop.
Step 3: Location scouting
MPL’s Central Library is a monumental building with numerous rooms and beautiful nooks and crannies, making it an ideal location for filming. Over time, the building itself has become a star in the library’s social media content.
Once inspiration strikes and a script or storyboard is drafted, filming areas are scoped out in the central library, at branch libraries or around the city of Milwaukee.
For today’s video, the team hits four locations. They begin in the Old Board Room, then move to a cozy window nook just outside the room, followed by an older space staged to resemble a small apartment. Filming wraps in the Business Commons, where the team shoots against a bright teal wall. Each location is carefully chosen to best capture the warmth and coziness that are central to the “Life with Her” trend.
