Richard Belzer to write mysteries about himself

Except for the occasional one-liner, Richard Belzer doesn't get a whole lot of face time on Law & Order: SVU. That leaves him with some time to spend on other projects, like these comedy videos and--now--he's writing two books. Belzer, 62, has signed with Simon & Schuster to write two mysteries where he's the star. In the stories, he'll get "caught up in his own plot."

While the books are being billed as mysteries, you know they're going to be chock full of comedy because that's what Belzer really is: a comedian. In fact, he released a great statement about his new venture, "A potent mix of Dashiell Hammett, Oscar Wilde, Lenny Bruce and Robert Altman seasoned by the Belzerian vision of life, as the wry and raucous, raunchy worlds of make-believe and reality converge, this is the first 'reality novel' of the new millennium that explores a unique universe that poses the question, 'What is reality?'"

I'm sure we can expect many more long-winded sentences from Belzer when his first book, "I Am Not a Cop", comes out in fall 2008.