A developer is basically a multiclassed writer/editor. If Paizo were making movies, the writer would be the movie's screenplay writer, the editor would be the editor (that one's easy), and the developer would be the movie's director. (A designer, by extension, would be the person who gives the rest of us the tools we need to build the story—they're the ones who build the sets and invent the cameras we use and create the technology that allows a movie to be made and all that. The art director's the makeup, special effects, casting, and cinematographer. The publisher is the movie's producer.)
A developer takes the raw text turnover of the author and rebuilds it, massages it, edits it, and in many cases rewrites portions of it to fit our needs for the setting. A developer sharpens the writing and rules and story elements. If an author turns in a grade A work, the developer's job is to make that an A+ work. If an authro turns in a grade C work, the devloper's job is to make it as close to a grad A work as possible. If an author gets an F (it happens more often than I wish it did), then the developer's job is often "write what the author failed and we have no time or resources to hire a NEW author to fix, and then make it as close to a grade A work as possible.
AND ALSO! Welcome to the team, Linda! Great to have you on board!
