Very Nice Eric, and the pen does stand out more without the wavy background in your last few pictures.
Since you've been experimenting and working to improve your photos, one more thing I would suggest you try (just to see how it works for you) is try this same pen and lighting with a background that's a light to medium gray. I have a feeling the colors of the pen will stand out more against the darker background. I wouldn't do anything close to black though, as the pen would likely come out overexposed then.
I really like the colors in this one!