Banned Books by Emily Berg

 LUCY BURDETTE: I wanted to do something to mark banned books week, but I was on the road and hard put to come up with something meaningful. Fortunately, our friend Emily Berg, who is the manager of the fabulous Books and Books in Key West, has just the right words. Welcome Emily!

EMILY BERG: One of the great joys of working in an indie bookstore is the freedom to select which books we showcase. Being an independent store means we, the staff, get to decide which books go on the tables.

Most booksellers will agree putting up a new display is one of the most fun parts of working in a bookshop. Curating a themed table of books is a creative endeavor, drawing attention to favorite authors and titles that may otherwise go overlooked. Our Beach Reads table, for example, is an annual favorite with each staff member picking their favorite summer reads. It’s currently Hispanic Heritage month which means we have a table showcasing Hispanic authors.    

There is one display in the store in which we don’t choose the books, and unfortunately, it’s growing: our banned books display. The books on this table end up there largely due to the efforts of pressure groups and in some case government entities. We decided to focus in specifically to books banned or challenged in Florida but that doesn’t really narrow it down. Florida has the most instances of banned books with 2,304 titles in 2024-2025 according to PEN America. 

The number alone is concerning but what does it really mean? The display sparks questions from visitors. Here are the most common. 

Q: “They made me read this in school when I was a kid. How can it be banned?”

A: More titles are banned each year. A book can be banned in one place and required in another. The list is growing exponentially. This means some of the classics that Americans read in school in previous years are no longer available to students.

Q: “Why is this banned?”

A: Whatever the book the answer is nearly always the same: “for no good reason”. It doesn’t take much for a book to be challenged and ultimately banned. Overwhelmingly  books with LGBTQ+ characters, themes of race, and sexual content are the ones targeted for bans.

Q: “If it’s banned how can you sell it?” 

A: Government entities and private organizations don’t have the power to control what a business sells… for now. We’re part of a free market economy which means we get to make decisions on what we buy and sell. Book banning in America mostly effects schools and public libraries. 

Q: “As long as it’s available for purchase is it really a problem? Can’t the student just come buy the book from you if it’s not in their library?”

A: Perhaps some students have the resources to come to a bookstore and pick out whatever they like, but what about those who can’t? School libraries are available to those students who might not have an adult to take them to a bookstore and purchase their books. 

Overhearing that last question is most likely to see me stop what I’m doing and come speak with the asker. I was extremely fortunate as a child to have parents that encouraged reading but the majority of my books came from the school library. Both of my parents worked long hours so a trip to the bookstore was rare. A trip to the school’s media center was not.

The display of banned books is one of the few that stays up year round in this bookstore. While other tables rotate and change this display never goes out of season. Hopefully, someday, it will. 

Reds, let us know about your experience with banned books, or any questions you have for Emily!

Bio: Emily Berg is a graduate of the University of Puget Sound where she studied art with an emphasis on steel sculpture. After graduating in 2007 she moved to Juneau, AK where she worked in the non-profit world for several years before returning to the lower-48 to be closer to family. Originally from Minneapolis she moved to Key West in 2013 from Chicago. She has been the manager of Books & Books at the Studios since 2018. She serves on the board of Directors of the Friends of the Key West Library and Key West Literary Seminar.

A Prompt, A Pivot, and a Brand-New Novel by Katie Tietjen

LUCY BURDETTE: I think you’ll remember my fellow Crooked Lane writer, Katie Tietjen, with her wonderful first novel, Death in the Details. I’m delighted to welcome her back to the reds to discuss the inspiration for her new book, Murder in Miniature. Welcome Katie!

KATIE TIETJEN:

“Walk slowly all the way around the outside.” 

After Erin read these words off one of her pomodoro writing prompt cards and we all turned off our Zoom cameras, I’m not sure what everyone else did, but I know what I did: I wrote the first scene that would become my second novel. 

It was 2022, and I was participating in a virtual reunion for anyone from the various cohorts of the (now, sadly, no longer active) 5th Semester program. Run by authors and teachers Ann Garvin and Erin Celello, it emphasized what they felt was missing from most traditional MFA programs: a fifth semester (get it???) in which creative writing students learned how to market and sell their writing. 

For me, the 5th Semester was life-changing. When I went to Chicago for the long weekend that kicked off my cohort in February of 2020, I was one of four aspiring writers participating. The first night, we sat around in the cozy living room of our rented house and told the rest of the group about our works-in-progress. When it was my turn, I explained that I had a complete draft of a young adult novel inspired by Frances Glessner Lee, the mother of forensic science (I previously blogged about her here). I told them how Lee used her dollhouse-crafting skills to make miniature re-creations of death scenes in order to train investigators. She called them her Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death. Everyone oohed and ahhed about how interesting that sounded. 

In fairness, it’s not hard to make FGL sound interesting; she was awesome. 

But when I described my main character, the mood in the room shifted. I explained that she was a teenage girl who reluctantly became Frances Glessner Lee’s assistant, and then the two of them solved a crime together. I went on to say I had also completed a second manuscript in which another teenage girl was paired with FGL against her will. For each book, I explained, I had used a different one of FGL’s real nutshells as the impetus for the plot.

From her plush armchair across the room, Ann gave me one of those looks when someone’s about to give you bad news and they’re not sure how you’re going to take it—you know, like they’ve made up their mind to say the thing, but they figure there’s at least a 50/50 chance you’ll start crying or yell at them or something? 

Yeah. That look. 

She proceeded to tell me the concept of death dollhouses was a great hook, but that she felt my focus was misplaced. She said the Frances Glessner Lee character was the most interesting and deserved to be at center stage. She also pointed out that rotating narrators in a series could be problematic because readers like returning to the same character. 

Then she shrugged and said something I had never thought of before: “I don’t know where this book would go on the shelf.”

And there—right there, that very moment—is why the 5th Semester was so important for me. I had never considered how, as an author, part of my job was to make it easy for booksellers and librarians to promote and recommend my book to readers. By writing a novel that didn’t have a clear place on the shelf, I was inadvertently muddying the waters. 

I wasn’t crying or yelling, so Ann went on: “I think you should re-frame this as an adult historical cozy mystery series and put the spotlight on the Frances Glessner Lee character.”

And then, since I had just told everyone I already had not one, but two, complete novels already written using my YA concept, she winced—preparing, I presume, for my meltdown.

Instead, I felt like a bolt of (sensible) lightning had just hit me. I went on to write a completely new manuscript that eventually became my first published book, DEATH IN THE DETAILS, centered around a fictional protagonist inspired by Lee. Then, in that 2022 Zoom, Erin gave me the freewriting prompt that became the second book in the Maple Bishop series, MURDER IN MINIATURE. I immediately pictured my main character walking slowly around the perimeter of a dead man inside the remnants of a fire-ravaged house. I recognized my mental image as Frances Glessner Lee’s nutshell called “Burned Cabin.” I didn’t know yet who the dead guy was or really much else except that would be Maple’s case in book two, but I was really excited to write it so I could find out. 

Have you ever thought you were on the right path only to have to fall back and start all over again—and ended up all the better for it? 

Has a small, off-the-cuff comment (or a pomodoro-style freewriting prompt) inspired you to create something big and meaningful? Let me know in the comments! 

Katie Tietjen is an award-winning writer, teacher, and school librarian. A Frances Glessner Lee enthusiast, she’s traveled thousands of miles to visit her homes, see her nutshells, and even attend her birthday party. Katie lives in New England with her husband and two sons. The Mary Higgins Clark Award-nominated Death in the Details is her first novel; the second book in the Maple Bishop series, Murder in Miniature, hit the shelves in September. Katie is an unrepentant tea snob, but otherwise a very nice person. Find her on Instagram.

Inspired by the true story of Frances Glessner Lee, whose miniature replicas of crime scenes are still used to train forensic investigators today, this follow up novel to Death in the Details continues the adventures of intrepid amateur sleuth Maple Bishop. Maple Bishop has a thriving dollhouse business and a new career as a crime scene consultant for the local sheriff's office. On the surface, she seems to be doing well, but deep down Maple is still reeling from the death of her husband. When the body of an aspiring firefighter-who was close childhood friends with Kenny, the sheriff's deputy and Maple's confidante-is discovered in the charred remains of a burned cabin, Maple is called in to help determine whether the fire was an accident or a case of murder by arson. Realizing there's more to the crime than meets the eye, she sets out to unearth the discrepancies from the scene by re-creating the cabin in miniature. The investigation leads them to Maple's old Boston neighborhood, forcing her to confront the past she's desperately trying to forget. As Maple and Kenny sift through clues, they uncover dark secrets that hit close to home, unravelling in unexpected ways-and putting their lives in danger.

Destination Murders: Inside a Cozy Mystery Anthology

Hello, Jungle Red Readers and Writers!


We’re Cathy Wiley and Karen Cantwell, cozy mystery writers and the editors/publishers behind the Destination Murders short story anthology series. Many thanks to the Jungle Red Writers for inviting us to share a peek behind the scenes at how we put a short story anthology together.

Recently, we sat down for a Zoom chat to talk about how the series began, how it’s evolved, and what we’ve enjoyed along the way.

Karen: So Cathy, if memory serves, I pitched you on this idea of partnering up to publish a cozy mystery anthology.

Cathy: That’s right. I loved the idea because I was starting a new cozy mystery series and wanted to find readers. An anthology seemed like the perfect way to do that—something that could help me find new readers while also giving other cozy writers that same opportunity. It’s a win-win: established authors bring their loyal fans to the collection, and those readers get to discover new voices (and hopefully fall in love with them, too).

Karen: It’s been a while now, but I remember sitting at a coffee shop in the hotel where they held Bouchercon that year, and we listed writers we knew who were established authors with one or more series and/or well-known short story authors.

Cathy: Yes. Next came the theme and title. We wanted something that would hit shelves right before Memorial Day—just in time for beach-read season—so Murder on the Beach felt like the perfect fit. Once we had that nailed down, we started inviting authors, and before long, the plan was officially in motion.

Karen: You found the perfect pre-made cover for it!

Cathy: I love our polka-dot diva, though I still don’t know how she could walk on the beach in those high heels! Plus, even though it was pre-made, our designer kindly added a gun and knife to her purse to give it that perfect murderous vibe. I loved the cover so much I wanted to keep the series going just to see where we’d send her next. Since then, our designer has outdone herself: we’ve had her skiing in a polka-dot snowsuit for Murder in the Mountains, sneaking a knife aboard a yacht for Murder at Sea, and—probably not the safest choice—bringing a firearm in a hot-air balloon in Murder in the Air. And of course, she’s right at home among the tombstones (still in polka dots) for Murder in the Graveyard.

Karen: I really love these covers too.

Cathy: What part of the process do you enjoy?

Karen: As time has gone on, I love the editing job more and more. As you know, the authors submit their stories, then we both put in our editorial suggestions for tightening the storylines, improving sentence structure, etc. I’ve found that to be a really fun task. Working with our authors is very rewarding. They’re committed and professional. Can’t ask for more.

Cathy: The authors are great! While I also love editing, I was excited this time to be the one to format the files for both eBook and print using Atticus, since that can be done on a PC (as opposed to Vellum, which was exclusively Mac-based). Now we have to focus on marketing. Thankfully, the other authors help as well, through their individual newsletters, blogs (like this one!), and social media postings.

Karen: I can’t believe that Murder in the Graveyard is already out! It’s now time to think about the next anthology. I’d love to ask everyone here: What should be the next murderous destination? Let us know!