Tiffany Rambles

This is a reply (well, in the sense that I'm gonna answer the question for myself) to Michelle Davidson Argyle's blog post.

Just like Michelle, I officially call 2011 the Year of No Writing. I can't remember what happened the whole first half of 2011. I actually have to go back through all my old posts here at Tiffany Rambles to refresh my memory. For me, it was a wild year on the personal side and a lame year on the writing/professional side. Here's a recap of my 2011:

• High School Academic Competitions: I didn't do as well in the 2011 Academic Decathlon as I did in the 2010 one. In 2010, I was like an Aca Deca goddess. I won an award in every topic. At state, I won three awards. This year not only was the school unable to afford a lot of the materals, but I didn't study as hard. I won maybe three awards and failed entirely at state. However, I got first place in the Spell Bowl. I've been doing spelling bees since the 6th grade. For a long time, I wanted to win a spelling bee. I didn't win one until my senior year of high school. -_-
• Freelance and Contests: I entered into the IRT Young Playwriting Contest. I thought I won. The e-mails they sent me gave me the impression that I did, but I didn't. It saddened me. I did get interested in playwriting again, though. I became a contributor for the Best Damn Creative Writing Blog and Caleb Breakey's blog, two blogs that are now closed. I was also let off as a reviewer at Suspense Magazine.
• Short Stories and Publishing: I came up with a bunch of short story ideas after, in a fit of fear, thinking that I couldn't come up with any ideas outside of my novels. Rhemalda Publishing replied to me, saying that, though my novel needed some work, they'd still be willing to consider me in the future. THAT made me very excited. Unfortunately, as far as the short stories go, I haven't written any. I plan to, though.
• The Groups Scholarship Program: This felt like FOREVER. I spent my summer at IUB, taking college classes and being part of an intensive scholarship program. Don't get me wrong; I'm grateful to have been chosen for this scholarship and I know it was a wonderful opportunity, but I...almost lost my sanity there.
• Fell in love: For the first time ever, I fell in love. Before this year, before Matthew, I was a bitter unbeliever of true love. I didn't think any guy could ever want me for longer than a month or two. There was always some other girl. I was never good enough. Blah blah blah. But then Matthew came along and proved me wrong. We're going on nine months now.
• Battled Depression: Oh boy, did I. I was at my absolute lowest in college. There were so many negative voices. I thought nothing but bad things of myself. Then, after one hell of a week, I finally said something POSITIVE about myself. Lots of other positive thoughts came pouring in, and it's been like that for months. For me, depression is a battle with demons, and I don't like losing.
• High School: I graduated high school with an honors diploma. I went to prom, even though I thought I wouldn't go all throughout highschool, and it was great.
• College: I went. For long-winded reasons I don't think I should get into here, I left. I am the happier because of it. That is all.

2011 wasn't a waste. I trumped in self-discovery. My personal life flourished. However, 2012 will be about my professional life finally getting the attention it deserves and flourishing. Tiffany Rambles has a brand new design. Triple R, now called Reader's Den, is almost complete. In the coming week, I'll be working diligently on finishing and launching Honest Crits, my critiquing/promoting/reviewing business. I've figured out a lot of stuff in regards to my novels, and I'll be freelance submitting to magazines again.

It seems like a lot. It seems overwhelming. While it is a lot, I'm super excited to finally be back to work and following my dreams. Because I do all of this full-time and balance my work schedule with actually being social, it's a lot less overwhelming. 2012 is my year.