NotWriting, the blog

Hello, and welcome to the forty-seventh installment of NotWriting.com, an open journal on how one writer spends his time when he really should be writing.

If you're a literary agent——and I hope you are——thank you for taking the time to hear more of my pitch for representation of me and my novel, A REAL PIECE OF WORK. Since you've come this far, I'm going to assume you're open to some shameless self-promotion. The following are reasons why I'm a good catch for your agency:

1. Consistent, Professional Writer

The second book in the Dakota Stevens series is already written, and a third is underway. My short fiction has been published in over a dozen literary journals, and nonfiction articles of mine have appeared in magazines like Writer's Digest. Finally, as a former newspaper reporter for a weekly and a daily, I am accustomed to deadlines and can produce under pressure. In 1992, I won a New York Press Association Award for my work with The Millbrook Round Table.

2. Experienced Teacher/Speaker

I have taught English and American history at the college and secondary levels for almost ten years. As an instructor who specializes in teaching 15- to 20-year-olds, I am very good at getting and maintaining an audience's attention. In 2004, I was awarded Baruch College's Presidential Excellence Award for Distinguished Teaching—an honor awarded to only one full-time and one part-time faculty member per year.

3. Strong Web Presence

My name has a #1 ranking on Google.com, which ensures that readers searching for me and my works can find them easily. I own all of the following personal domain names: Orcutt.net, ChrisOrcutt.com, and ChristopherOrcutt.com. I am skilled at registering websites for top search engine placement. Further, in anticipation of the publication of A REAL PIECE OF WORK, I also own these domain names: Dakotapi.com, DakotaStevens.com, and RealPieceofWork.com.

4. Strong Web Marketing & Design Skills

One of my concept sites, NotWriting.com (Stuff one writer does when he should be writing), won a Yahoo! Editor's Pick for Best of Web award. This site has a revolving readership of approximately 50,000, and has accumulated over 8 million hits since its inception in late 2002. Readers of NotWriting.com hail from over 28 countries—far too many to list here.

Another site designed and marketed by me, DaveKingWriter.com, showcases National Bestselling Author Dave King. Before this site, Dave had no presence on the web; his name now appears on the first page of a Google search. The site has been complimented by the marketing and publicity staff at Time Warner Books as contributing to the success of Dave's debut novel, The Ha-Ha.

Lastly, I have worked as a web development manager for Merrill Lynch, and as a web consultant for Fortune 100 companies including Merrill Lynch, J.P. Morgan, Heineken U.S.A., and United Airlines.

5. Photogenic / Experience on Camera

As a final note, I am relatively photogenic (Katie Couric once called me "adorable") and have appeared on camera and in print ads for my alma mater, Northeastern University.

Well, there you go——my attempt at shameless self-promotion. The whole time I wrote this, I found myself wanting to swallow my own tongue. Thank you, dear agent, for taking the time to read this. Have a nice day.