ABOUT ME: ORLO J. OTTESON
I'm a professional writer, editor, and educator. For the past twenty years, I've helped various individuals and organizations develop books, articles, and other materials that seek to inform and explain.
I offer a broad range of writing, editing, and research services.
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Research. Effective and thorough research leads to persuasive and compelling writing. My interviewing and research skills can help you explore subjects, develop concepts, and formulate strategies. With a solid research foundation in place, we can then move effectively toward a strong writing plan.
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Writing. Writing moves through stages and drafts. I can work with you on conceptual and structural development. Then, working from your background materials (notes, comments, data), I can help you assemble a preliminary manuscript. With a well-developed first draft—based on mutually understood objectives—we can then proceed toward a publishable product.
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Rewriting. Rewriting involves the reorganization, reformulation, and revision of existing materials. I can help you compile diverse materials into well-organized, well-synthesized documents—and I can creatively rewrite existing text in ways that enhance focus, impact, clarity, and readability.
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Editing. Editing occurs at various levels. Developmental editing addresses conceptual and broad restructuring issues. Substantive editing targets content, organization, tone, and readability issues. Copy editing looks at grammar, usage, syntax, spelling, and punctuation issues. I can assess your overall editing requirements—and meet your needs at all levels.
All these editorial services lead to materials that effectively inform and explain. My access to design and self-publishing expertise supports my writing and editing services.
I can work with you personally through all phases of a project. I can work with you onsite, offsite—and online. With my online services, editing assistance is as near as your computer.
Let's get acquainted. I may be able to help you avoid the expense of an in-house editor and the hassle of finding and managing a freelance professional. An initial cost-free conversation will get us started—and we'll go from there.
Orlo J. Otteson
651-278-4824
otteson@aol.com
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In resume form, my experience looks like this:
ORLO J. OTTESON
651-278-4824
otteson@aol.com\
EXPERIENCE
President (1988-present), Otteson Associates. Otteson Associates provides a wide range of research, writing, and editing services. Specialties include the development of memoirs, nonfiction books, and publishable articles.
Editor (1985-1988), Medical School, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Assisted faculty members in the development and placement of scientific articles. Conducted writing workshops that helped faculty members plan, prepare, and place journal articles. Prepared patient information, public relations, and marketing communications materials.
Editor (1980-1985), American Journal of Preventive Psychiatry & Neurology Assisted authors in the formulation and development of scientific articles. Supervised all phases of journal development, production, promotion, and distribution.
Public Information Officer (1977-1980), City of Saint Paul. Conducted a comprehensive internal and external communications program. Prepared articles for special purpose publications. Maintained a media relations program. Planned and coordinated special events activities.
Public Information Specialist
(1973-1977), Century, North Hennepin, Inver Hills community colleges—Twin Cities. Designed and directed a communications program that informed prospective students about educational opportunities.
English Instructor, Academic Advisor (1967-1973), College of Liberal Arts, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
English Instructor, Wrestling Coach (1964-1967), Thomas Edison High School, Minneapolis.
EDUCATION
Master of Arts degree in American Studies, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
Bachelor of Arts degree in English, Luther College, Decorah, Iowa.
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In essay form, my background reads like this:
ORLO J. OTTESON
(self-interview)
To begin at the beginning, I was born in Chickasaw County, Iowa, in a house my immigrant grandfather built. The house still stands, although the other buildings on the small farm are no longer there. The town of Jerico, a mile away, has had the same number of inhabitants—twenty-five, more or less—ever since I can remember. When I turned six, my family moved to Osage, where I entered school.
The country around Osage, in northeastern Iowa, is gently rolling farmland, breaking here and there into patches of woodland and an occasional stream. It is fine country and well-adapted to the pursuits of boyhood. The streams seem somewhat shrunken now and the woodlands denuded of their shadowy romance, but certain spots there, and farther east, where I spent summers on my uncle's farm, are among my most vivid recollections.
With a dedication that I look back on with a mixture of admiration and some disbelief, I pursued and captured an Iowa state high school wrestling championship—an achievement that earned me a scholarship to the University of Wisconsin. After three years of intercollegiate competition—this following six years of interscholastic competition—my interests turned to literature, history, and politics; and I returned to Iowa, where I received a bachelor of arts in English from Luther College.
Following a stint in the U.S. Army and after three demanding but rewarding years as a Minneapolis high school English teacher, I entered the graduate Program in American Studies at the University of Minnesota, where I immersed myself in the task of further understanding what Henry James called "the complex fate of being an American." During that time, I taught courses in English composition and American Studies and served as an academic adviser in the College of Liberal Arts. After some further work in the field of education, my interest in writing deepened, and I turned to a journalism career.
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I'm an optimist. I think God loves Americans and drunkards and keeps them, for the most part, out of the way of passing cars. I'm a skeptic though. I believe that wise skepticism is the first attribute of a good critic. I accept Mark Twain's view that soap and education are less sudden than a massacre, but more deadly in the long run. I admire those who have the audacity to speak out—and keep speaking out—against injustice, sham, and inequality. I believe in writing good, standard English, but I also believe that writing is an act of faith, not a trick of grammar. I try always to do right: this gratifies some people and astonishes the rest. I yearn for significance. I can take a joke.
