I love writing—letting my imagination run free to create alternate realities where anything is possible, populating those worlds with intriguing characters, and getting lost in them. Writing is my creative outlet, my escape. It’s a way to prove, at least to myself, that I can accomplish something worthwhile, and it is how I pay my bills. If you are an aspiring author, writing can be your bread and butter too if you learn how to write well and create interesting stories your readers enjoy. I have supported myself by freelance writing most of my life, and if you have set your heart on that goal, I will try to offer advice and inspiration in this blog to help you move forward. I began writing as a kid. I sold my first article to a national magazine at age 14, and I signed a multi-book contract with a West Coast publisher at 18. Since then, I have written and published 25 books, including a 2018 English grammar bestseller, two bestsellers in the self-help genre early in my career, and three novels under pseudonyms. During a five-year stint as a journalist in Southern California, I wrote more than 600 news and feature stories published under my byline. I taught journalism and creative writing at Los Angeles Valley College and Learning Tree University in Southern California, and I went on to create and teach a dozen writing courses for Virtual University. Beyond my writing, I am an editor with 30 years of experience in books, magazines, newspapers, and the Web. I was a bylined editorial staff member for the late multi-bestselling author Irving Wallace, and I have held senior editor and managing editor positions at publishing houses. Last year, several of my clients nicknamed me “Jedi Editor,” which was flattering, and I do my best to live up to that reputation. My recent editing projects include “Apocalypse Orphan” by Tim Allen, an Amazon Bestseller in 2016, and “Eden’s Serum,” an award-winning sci-fi/fantasy novel by Angelique Anderson. I work, live, and relax online, but in my offline world, I live south of Morro Bay on the scenic central coast of California. My leisure interests include writing, programming, anything psychic or metaphysical, numerology, natural healing, ancient religions, reading and writing science fiction, and pondering the possibility of life on other worlds. I offer professional editing, proofreading, and book formatting services to my clients. I am happy to share many years of experience to help promising new writers break into print and to help my clients become the truly successful writers that they aspire to be. To learn more about the services I offer, and my favorite editing projects over the past few years, please browse this link. https://spectrum.org/richard ~~~