I’m Richard Shealy.

Professionally, I did doctoral work in linguistics; language is in my heart’s blood. I have taught language at the high school and college levels (French and English), using my innate grasp of the mechanics of language to foster an understanding of not only what we are saying but how what we are saying can work best. I spent well over a decade as a translator, which demands an in-depth comprehension of a language’s full set of mechanics…and then requires that this comprehension extend not only to two separate languages but also to how they interact.

Personally, I’m quite convinced that I’ve been a fan of the science fiction and fantasy genres since before I was born. There’s a level of imagination wound through the very fabric of these genres that is unequaled elsewhere, and I suspect that I will continue reading and enjoying them until I flip my final page. I like them so much that I’ve become a beta reader for some well-known names in the fantasy genre.

The combination of the professional and the personal has created someone uniquely well equipped for the rigors of smoothing away the rough edges of your next genre work. As a professional, I have all the tools, but as a fan, I add the love for the genre that makes this more than just a job. Yes, bluntly put, I do like a paycheck, but I extract great satisfaction from making a genre work shine so that other people can love another manifestation of the genre as much as I do.

Yes, I’m here to help.