Alec H.

Hi, I’m Alec. I’m a historian, fiction writer, interdisciplinary researcher, and editor with a B.A. in History and a minor in Geology from the College of Charleston. After college, I spent almost a decade working in hospitality, primarily as a bartender and bar manager—and I still make the best whiskey sour this side of the Mississippi, no matter which side of the river you’re on. My academic training taught me to work carefully with evidence and write with purpose: stay organized, build a narrative, and turn complex material into clear, intentional writing. Whether I am checking a historical claim, proofreading a manuscript, or developing a fictional world, my approach is the same: understand the task, do the work, and present a polished, well-constructed final product that I am proud of. My historical research includes archival work and historiography, U.S. and world history, environmental history, and film studies. My undergraduate thesis examined World War I trauma through James Whale’s Frankenstein and Curt Siodmak’s The Wolf Man, combining cultural analysis of the films with historical and biographical research. The skills and knowledge I have developed as a historian allow me to locate and evaluate sources, identify unsupported claims, compare competing accounts, establish what the evidence supports, and build and defend an argument. My scientific research includes geology, paleobiology, wildlife biology, and environmental science, and is complemented by my experience as a professional safari guide in South Africa. As an undergraduate, I also spent four semesters as a teaching assistant in the geology department, evaluating hundreds of assignments, maintaining detailed records, and helping students strengthen their scientific reasoning and writing. I continue my studies in both disciplines as an independent researcher, and I maintain a catalogued personal library of more than 400 volumes that I continue to expand to deepen my understanding of the world around me and enrich my work as a writer. I have spent more than a decade developing original fiction in which narratives, characters, cultures, politics, timelines, and mythologies interconnect while remaining coherent, organized, and internally consistent. I am especially comfortable with historical fiction, fantasy, speculative fiction, Gothic and horror themes, and projects requiring extensive worldbuilding or continuity. History informs how I approach institutions, geopolitics, and cultural identity; geology and professional safari guiding inform landscapes and ecosystems; and my years in hospitality provide a deep reservoir of human dialogue, behavior, and social dynamics. Extensive international field and travel experience has also made me comfortable approaching unfamiliar subjects and perspectives with curiosity and respect. Today, I operate Alecville Fine Curios, where I draw on provenance, material culture, written presentation, and self-directed research to curate, catalogue, price, and sell vintage and collectible material. I can help with: • Creative writing and research-based writing • Academic, historical, archival, and online research • Source, citation, and argument evaluation • Fact-checking, editing, proofreading, and content review • Historical accuracy and fiction research • Worldbuilding, story development, and narrative continuity • Beta reading and developmental feedback