Richard Paolinelli is a successful author with a diverse background in writing, including both fiction and sports journalism. He began his writing career in 1984 as a freelance writer and gained his first fiction credit serving as the lead writer for the sci-fi/fantasy series, Seadragon, published by Elite Comics.
After his early foray into fiction, Paolinelli shifted his focus to sports writing, where he enjoyed a successful 20-year career. During this time, he worked for various newspapers such as the Gallup Independent, Modesto Bee, Turlock Journal, Merced Sun-Star, Tracy Press, San Mateo County Times, and the San Francisco Examiner. Paolinelli's hard work and talent paid off when he won the 2001 California Newspaper Publishers Association award for Best Sports Story while at the Turlock Journal.
In 2010, Paolinelli retired from sports writing and decided to return to his fiction writing roots. Since then, he has released several works, including two short stories, a full-length sci-fi novel called Maelstrom, and a non-fiction sports book, From The Fields: A History of Prep Football in Turlock, California. Paolinelli has also ventured into the world of mystery and detective fiction with the Jack Del Rio series, which began with the publication of Reservations in 2015. In addition, he has contributed to various anthologies, including Beyond Watson and Holmes Away From Home, which feature original Sherlock Holmes stories. Paolinelli's biography of National League Umpire, Babe Pinelli, titled Perfection's Arbiter, was released in 2016. He has also continued to explore science fiction, with the release of novels such as Escaping Infinity and When The Gods Fell. Paolinelli's work has been recognized with several awards, including being a 2017 Dragon Award Finalist for Best Sci-Fi novel for Escaping Infinity. He is currently co-writing a six-novella series called Timeless with his grandson.