side. They say write what you know about so for me the
easiest thing was to write about a forensic anthropologist.’
At that time, she believes forensic anthropology as an aid to
detection was beginning to permeate the public consciousness.
And those readers were ready for crime fiction with a new kind
of investigator. ‘People were beginning to know about forensic
anthropology – I felt that the general public were beginning to
learn about it. I wanted to write a strong female character, and
one with an expertise that was new. She isn’t a detective or a
coroner, she was something completely new.’ She certainly piqued
the popular imagination: the Fox TV series of Bones, based on
Kathy’s books and starring Emily Deschanel as Temperance
Brennan, first appeared in 2005 and ran until 2017.
Juggling the roles of scientist and novelist, Kathy
enjoys the imaginative freedom of writing fiction.
‘As a writer you get to make things up. As a scientist
you’re not allowed to. I started out in archaeology,
working on ancient skeletons. In forensics, you’re
going to impact on people’s lives, so you have to
be correct. That was the appeal – forensics had a
relevance archaeology did not. You were going to
research a specific issue for a specific individual.’
She appreciates the way genre fiction allows a
resolution not always possible in real-life cases.
‘There’s a formula to writing thrillers. Whatever
the issue is, you’re supposed to resolve it by the
end. I like that, because in real life every case
does not get solved. You can take a wrong-doing
and the victim gets justice.’
In each of Kathy’s books, precise, accurate
science is used to solve crime, but she says that’s
only one of the necessary ingredients. ‘The main
point to my books is the story. They’re good old-
fashioned murder mysteries. In my books the solution is driven
by science. There is police work involved but it brings together
science. In each book I try to use a different forensic science – forBrennan, first appeared in 2005 and ran until 2017.
Juggling the roles of scientist and novelist, Kathy
enjoys the imaginative freedom of writing fiction.
‘As a writer you get to make things up. As a scientist
you’re not allowed to. I started out in archaeology,
working on ancient skeletons. In forensics, you’re
going to impact on people’s lives, so you have to
be correct. That was the appeal – forensics had a
relevance archaeology did not. You were going to
research a specific issue for a specific individual.’‘There’s a formula to writing thrillers. Whateverdoes not get solved. You can take a wrong-doingfashioned murder mysteries. In my books the solution is driven
by science. There is police work involved but it brings together
science. In each book I try to use a different forensic science – forexample, DNA or bite-mark analysis. The challenge is to present
the science in a way that’s understandable: brisk and jargon-free.
And I have to be entertaining. So these three elements have to
come together. Keep the facts correct but keep it brisk, jargon-
free and entertaining.’
The bottom line is a good story. ‘If a reader is not entertained
they’ll probably put the book down,’ she says. ‘You need to have
characters people care about, and keep them evolving so readers
keep coming back. Our TV show was on for twelve years, so how
do you keep these characters fresh? You can’t do the same thing
over and over again. As a crime writer your job is to be honest with
your reader but keep them guessing. You can’t rely on coincidence.
You want your writing to be satisfying but also surprising. Setting
too – you want a setting that is appealing to a reader.’
With all this in mind, each new Kathy Reichs story involves
fresh ideas and scientific developments. ‘I keep my eyes and
ears open for what’s going to be in the general interest, down
the road. Maybe it’s a case I’ve worked on that triggers an idea.
This one was inspired by a case I’d worked on where a woman
who’d been living with her lover was found – her corpse had
been savaged by bears. I changed everything – sex, injuries. And
then I combine that with an issue that’s going to be interesting
down the road. I want to try something new each time. Beware
of the formula. I want to use new science – I still attend
professional meetings, I go to presentations in all the different
disciplines – forensic disciplines – and look out for cutting edge
developments and read the journals of forensic science and see
what people are working on.’
Using science in crime fiction mirrors real-life procedure – and
requires a rigorous professional approach, she believes. ‘A lot more
books are driven by forensic science now than when I started
writing. If you want it to be authentic, for today’s world, it would
be hard to write an Agatha Christie-style book because it’s not
how crime is investigated. But if you use science you have to get
it right. If you get it wrong, that’s science fiction.’
If you aren’t a professional scientist, what would she advise?18 APRIL 2020 http://www.writers-online.co.uk