I've been accused of being a minimalist writer. I don't like a lot of verbiage in there.

I'm not writing great literature. I'm writing commercial fiction for people to enjoy the stories and to like the characters.

One of the surprising things I hadn't expected when I decided to write crime fiction is how much you are expected to be out in front of the public. Some writers aren't comfortable with that. I don't have a problem with that.

If you want to be an anthropologist, you need to study physical anthropology specialized in bones. If you want to be a forensic chemist, get a degree in chemistry. Do you want to do DNA work? Get a degree in microbiology. And do well. Study hard and go to graduate school.

Bones tell me the story of a person's life - how old they were, what their gender was, their ancestral background.