I was struck by the most recent Nielsen ratings in which 8 out of the top 20 TV shows focused on law enforcement in some form, including the three CSI shows, NCIS, Cold Case, Without a Trace, Law and Order, and Criminal Minds. Most of these touch upon, in varying degrees and forms, forensic science.
I wondered if this TV-watching trend had translated over to education, and found a recent USA Today article that indicated indeed, it has. More than 130 forensics programs are being taught at colleges and universities across the U.S., although only 16 programs at 14 universities are accredited by the American Academy of Forensic Sciences (according to Jim Hurley, director of accreditation, who expects the number to rise as more programs adopt the rigid science course work required). At one of the largest programs, West Virginia University, since the forensic science program launched in 2002, it has grown to 500 students from 35 countries. A Money Magazine profile in 2006 listed forensic science as one of the best jobs in America, with a projected 10-year growth rate of 36.40%, from 9,823 total jobs in 2004 to 13,399 jobs forecast for 2014.
Has there been a tie-in to mystery writers? It's difficult to say without hard-and-fast statistics, but on the following lists of forensic-themed novels, Forensic Detectives, Forensic Pathologists, Anthropologists & Chemists, and Fascinating Forensic Novels, it's hard to find one older than the mid-80s, with most dating from the past 5-7 years. Leading the way, for the most part, has been Patricia Cornwell, a a former reporter who worked in a medical examiner's office, with her 1990 debut "Postmortem" featuring medical examiner, Kay Scarpetta.
Although subgenre fads come and go within the crime fiction publishing business, this is one trend that has been around for at least a couple of decades and doesn't presently showing any signs of diminishing, with titles popping up on various best-seller lists each week. If you have a yen to try your hand at writing a forensic science novel, you might start with the Forensic and Crime Scene links from The List. There are over 200 links there to get you started, with more on the way as I find them.
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