From: Barrett Brown [mailto:barriticus@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, August 28, 2007 5:41 PM
To: gigs-407458805@craigslist.org
Subject: Freelance Copywriter

I understand that your company is in need of a copywriter to handle various projects on a freelance basis, and I'd like to be considered. I've performed work under similar arrangements both for ad agencies as well as my own clients, including tech, energy, and real estate firms, my other freelance work has appeared in dozens of publications ranging from humor mags like National Lampoon and The Onion A.V. Club to B2B pubs covering dining, nightlife, and retail, and my first non-fiction book was released last March to praise from Rolling Stone, Air America Radio, Skeptic, and Harvard constitutional scholar Alan Dershowitz, among other sources.

 

I've pasted a couple of samples below; the first is a pretty straight-laced pamphlet for a tech company based in New York, the second is a series of restaurant write-ups, and the third is a short B2B piece on gadget accessories aimed at retailers. My per-hour rate is $20. Please take a look and let me know if you'd be interested in discussing this further.

 

Thanks,

 

Barrett Brown

512-560-2302

 

 

(Cover)

 

Organic Motion

 

Reinvisioning Vision

 

"What's not to like here?" - Newsweek

 

(Page One)

 

TBA – Reinvisioning Motion Capture

 

After four years of under-the-radar development, Organic Motion Inc. is set to release the product that will not only redefine motion capture as we know it, but will also bring the technology into the day-to-day lives of those who may never have even heard of it.

 

Organic Motion's newly-released TBA system shatters the barriers inherent to pre-organic motion capture implementation by ditching the assumptions that have limited the field's potential for more than twenty years. TBA is not an incremental advance in established mopac techniques – rather, it is a comprehensive, top-down overhaul of the entire process, fueled by scientific breakthroughs in computer optics, AI, and the methodology by which the two are combined, and further augmented with a streamlined workflow implementation that cuts time, cuts costs, and cuts manpower requirements. We haven't improved on the wheel; we've reinvented it.

 

Fundamental to this reinvention is TBA 's extraordinarily unique optical computer intelligence engine, which allows for computerized visualization of the actual human subject itself by way of a pre-programmed conceptual "map" of what a human body looks like, how a human body moves, and where a human's natural body points are located. Bringing the human into human movement detection is not only a natural progression of mocap tech, but is also one of tremendous benefit to every stage of the process, from initial capture to finished product.

 

The extent of TBA's strength and accuracy is such that one major Northeastern research hospital has partnered with Organic Motion to obtain a grant from the National Institute of Health to use the technology in a study of the effects of cerebral palsy on human movement; the extent of TBA 's customability and ease of use is such that several diverse firms are already making plans to implement it in ways that would have been previously impossible due to the constraints of earlier mocap. Imagine what it can do for your studio.

 

(Page Two)

 

Reinvisioning Entertainment

 

Whereas pre-organic mocap systems required a human subject to be clad in an expensive, cumbersome bodysuit studded with reflecting markers, TBA requires no suit, nor any prep time at all; subjects may simply walk onto the camera zone dressed in street clothes, and the system will immediately capture their every move. Whereas previous mocap systems recorded the positions of a few dozen attached markers, thus giving only a general impression of the body's movement, TBA tracks the body itself – and does so at thousands of natural points recognized by the system's advanced visual mapping AI, from the joints of one's limbs right down to the corners of one's eyes. And whereas previous mocap systems entailed a severe degree of lag between capture and usability, the necessity of technician oversight during use, and weeks of manual data cleanup before an accurate recording could be put into play, TBA eliminates all of these things, delivering clean, usable data in real time, not at some unknown time in the future.

 

The implications are profound for game developers, 3D animators, university project managers, special effects broadcasters, and anyone else who has already incorporated mocap into their studio output – as well as those who haven't. By lowering the financial threshold for mocap implementation, we turn it into a viable option for those entities engaged in lower-budget projects of the sort that might not have justified the advantages of the technology due to cost considerations. And with the hundred-fold increase in capture accuracy, teams of every shape and size will see dramatic benefits in the quality of their finished product – and they'll see those benefits immediately, thanks to the clean, real time feedback which allows animators to get a full sense of how the data is playing out during the recording process itself, thus freeing them from the technical concerns inherent to pre-organic mocap (did we mention that TBA's organic approach to point tracking entails absolutely no occlusion whatsoever? Pretty sexy, huh?) and encouraging them to get more closely involved in every stage of the creative process.

 

Our reinvention of mocap promises to similarly redefine the industry, which is why TBA's unveiling at the 2007 Game Developers Conference in San Francisco and subsequent demonstrations of the technology's revolutionary potential have so far won us some rather unreserved accolades from Newsweek, Macworld, Engadget, Game Daily, Gamasutra, and others. Organic Motion has already received deposits in advance of the initial product release, with the first one hundred units set for delivery in September 2007.

 

Get on board. We're reinvisioning vision.

 

***

Fran's Hamburgers

 

With the faux-classic hamburger stand being a moderately popular motif among several large fast food chains that shall remain nameless, it's refreshing to hit up a genuine article in which the waitresses are caustic in a cute, endearing way and in which the interior is done up all wacky not out of purposeful irony, but because the Eisenhower-era designers really thought that this was how a restaurant should look. Fran's is a burger-lover's burger joint, offering their wonderfully greasy item of specialty in three sizes, and further supplementing one's caloric intake with sides representing the fries-and-onion-rings school of understated accompaniment. Things tend to get understandably hectic around midday; resign yourself to lunchtime delays. Great For: Cheap burgers, people who enjoy being called "darlin'." Entrees: $2-6 (1822 S. Congress, 444-5738; 6214 Cameron, 458-6007)

 

Freda's Seafood Grille

 

Although the restaurant's billing of itself as "American-Cajun" may be technically redundant, the description does get the point across - in matters of decor, Freda's opts for Upscale Antiseptic chic over the Anarchic Crawfish Shack Out In The Swamp sensibility which has served so many informal Cajun joints so well for so long; in matters of cuisine, Freda borrows liberally from all comers, with the result being such things as bacon-wrapped sea scallops, pine nut-crusted trout, and a selection of steaks and pastas benefiting from the sort of ingenious Cajun culinary preparation in exchange for which the rest of the nation has duly forgiven Louisiana its rampant, eternal corruption. Great For: When only the fanciest gumbo will do. Entrees: $14-29 (10903 Pecan Park, 506-8700)

 

Green Mesquite Barbeque & More

 

Green Mesquite is pretty serious about the "more" mentioned in its extended moniker; beyond brisket and such, the Barton Springs mainstay (and its West Oak counterpart) deals in catfish, po' boys, burgers, tacos, chicken fried steak doused in enough gravy to drown a baby elephant, and even jambalaya; all of this is made more accessible by way of the restaurant's all-you-can-eat option, which goes for even cheaper on Mondays and Tuesdays, when it becomes one of the city's truly great culinary bargains. In a nod to Texas BBQ orthodoxy, Green Mesquite offers bottles of Sunkist and Big Red; in rebellion against same, it also offers salads and even veggie burgers. Great For: Getting stuffed after a dip at Barton Springs. Entrees: $3-14 (1400 Barton Spring, 479-0485; 710 Highway 71, 288-8300)

 

***

 

The Restaurant at The Mansion on Turtle Creek (1980?)

2821 Turtle Creek Boulevard

Dallas, Texas

75219

214-559-2100

 

If the walls at the Restaurant at The Mansion on Turtle Creek could talk, they'd probably bore you to death with real estate lingo and commodities jargon, such things being the most common topics of conversation on the premises. Rather than talking to the walls, then, visitors are advised to instead focus on the award-winning menu that's brought in so many real estate moguls and commodity traders over the years in the first place; awaiting the diner are such high-end treats as wild river salmon served with braised bok choy, green curry and coconut sauce, and red curry foam.

 

St. Martin's Wine Bistro (1977)

3020 Greenville Avenue

Dallas, Texas

75206

214-826-0940

 

Whereas most restaurants pair wine with food, St. Martin's Wine Bistro pairs food with wine – over two hundred varieties are on hand. Consequently, the menu is dominated by steak, seafood, and pasta dishes seemingly chosen for their vino-complementing attributes (fairly representative of these is the Farfalle Pasta, a compilation of shrimp, scallops and crawfish served in a tomato pepper-jack cream); meanwhile, nightly specials help to keep things even more interesting. Similarly, the restaurant space itself complements both food and wine alike by way of an elegant, pre-war interior first built in 1925 and carefully renovated on a few occasions since.

 

The Grape (1972)

2808 Greenville Avenue

Dallas, Texas

75206

214-828-1981

 

Over the course of a storied history spanning several decades, The Grape has been the scene of countless first dates - along with countless wedding proposals, countless wedding anniversaries, and countless rare nights out for couples with young children and spotty babysitter access. The menu itself fairly reeks of romance, listing such items of amorousness as steamed Prince Edward Island Mussels prepared with white wine and Warmed Blood Oranges with arugula and toasted hazelnuts. And despite the nuanced offerings to be had here, The Grape features a surprisingly cozy and unpretentious dining room that's as suitable for popping the question as it is for popping out of the house for a casual night out.

***

 

Go Go Gadget Retailer!

 

Nothing sets the summer heart aflutter like that perfectly stylish, ever-so-necessary electronics accessory – and that goes double if you're the one selling it. But with fashionable designers increasingly jumping into a product genre that not so long ago was dominated by geek chic, as opposed to chic chic, retailers are facing a similar increase in mind-boggling stocking decisions – and that goes double for those whose fashion sense may have frozen in time in 1986. Never fret; we'll bring you up to speed on the things everyone needs.

 

·         Laptop Cases

 

The girl-friendly gadget community is all abuzz about the Lexie Barnes 2007 Echo line of laptop carriers – not so much due to the water-resistant fabric and extra pockets perfect for power cords and old-fashioned reading material; rather, it's the neo-retro (yeah, you heard us) design scheme that has everyone excited.

 

http://www.lexiebarnes.com/

 

·         Mouses

 

Well, it's finally happened - someone's gone and blinged out the mouse. The culprit in this case is British design firm The Crystal Chick, whose 2007 lineup includes a three-button optical laptop mini-mouse that's encrusted with swarovski crystals and available in clear, topaz, rose, and sapphire color schemes. Will wonders never cease?

 

http://www.thecrystalchick.co.uk

 

·         Portable Comm Cases

 

For those whose tastes don't quite run to the jewel-encrusted, Otterbox is set to release a decidedly utilitarian see-through Blackberry case that allows for total functionality while protecting the device from liquid, dust, crushings, and other hazards of the modern workplace. It's a must-have for today's busy klutz-on-the-go.

 

http://www.otterbox.com

·         Gaming Cases

 

Billing its product line as being "For People Who Hate Wallets," Jimi seeks to serve as savior to portable game enthusiasts with its Jimi Game Shell, a shockproof, liquid-resistant polypropylene case that keeps Nintendo DS and PSP game cards safe from the elements (not to mention their owners).

 

http://thejimi.com