The Team

Heather Ivatt

Founder and Lead Editor

Heather is the founder of the Ivatt Editorial Consultancy and the creator of their unique editorial approach. She’s a former academic and non-fiction editor, an experienced change manager, and has been editing fantasy fiction for years. She has an academic background in the genre, and a research degree that grew into an investigation and in-depth study of the creation, construction and maintenance of magic systems. The magic systems analysis and editorial impact assessment services of Ivatt Editorial were created by her, and were based on her qualifications, experience and research.

She was diagnosed with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) in 2024, was made redundant from her change manager role in 2025, and after experiencing how near-impossible it is to find another role that accommodates her health needs, she started her own business. She lives in Nottingham, UK, with her fiancé Alex and their golden retriever, Rufus.

Qualifications

  • BA (Hons) Creative Writing and Journalism: First Class

  • Masters by Research (MRes) in Creative Writing: thesis ‘How is Shamanism Represented in Fantasy Fiction)

  • Level 4 Proofreading Diploma

  • Trained by The Publishing Training Centre and the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading

  • Certified BEE Change Management Practitioner

  • Yellow, Orange and Green Lean Six Sigma Belts

Other Info

  • Has written 25 novels over 17 years (debut Of Blood and Ink is currently being queried via literary agents)

  • Accepted on Curtis Brown Creative’s Writing Fantasy course in 2025

  • Mentored by Stephen Aryan via the British Fantasy Society (BFS)

  • Article related to MRes research published in Volume 20 of the British Fantasy Society Journal. Article: ‘Magic in Fantasy: Making Fiction Out of Fact’

  • Former production editor at The Open University

  • Twice-time juror for the BFS annual awards

Rufus

Editorial Assistant, Social Media Model and Overall Good Boy

Rufus has been with Heather since he was eight weeks old, joining her household in April 2024. He is a fun, friendly and motivational character who excels in boosting team morale. He has been known to distract staff with his antics, demanding belly rubs during meetings and trying to satisfy his chicken twist addiction by abusing his ‘cuteness’ factor.

He has been supporting Heather with her chronic illness since she first fell sick in July 2024, which means he has had to grow up quite fast. He is skilled in knowing when she needs to take regular breaks, and makes an excellent foot-warmer under the desk.

Slightly lazy and not too keen on performing official editorial assistant tasks, but is a natural at greeting clients and marketing.

10/10 Good Boy