I began 2013 a scared pile of muscle. There was no going back: I'd dropped out of my Accountability major and decided to enroll in the NTU (That's National Technologic University) to study what I think is my life vocation.

Yes, while before I was on a fool's errand trying to get a title for something I was decidedly going to be unhappy about, now I'm actually pursuiting my dream to be involved in video-game design. I want to be the (or one of the many) programmer/system designer, and to that end I'm studying to gain experience and knowledge on coding. I plan on developing a lot of different skills over the course of the following years: White hat hacking, flash game developing on top of all the courses I need to get my technicature from the university.

I'm a very happy person right now. Swept this year, came from the ground as a college-dropout and rapidly gained confidence in my new career, managing to complete all 11 of this year's courses, all with honorary grades. I'm proud to say that I can now handle myself with both C and C++. Next year I'll add even more.

Academically, I'm satisfied and feel accomplished, but in no way this means I'm gonna take everything for granted and sleep on my bed of roses. I'll work twice as hard next year to get better faster!

Next on the list: I'm proud to say my last submission for this year is my 15th successfully completed commission. 2013 was the year when I finally left my reservations behind after one of my watchers decided to offer me money in exchange for writing what he wanted. The result was much needed money for me and satisfaction for the client.

Thanks to that first step I took, I realized that my writing skills had developed to a point where they are good enough that people seek me out to commission me to bring their ideas to life. I'm a harsh auto-critic, so it's hard for me to accept praise, which is why I'm always asking for comments and honest critique from you all. I do believe however that this is a change for the better. People have found my rates reasonable and I make it a work ethic to make sure the client is fully satisfied in proportion to their pay.

Taking commissions has been a boon not just from a financial point of view, but also has allowed me to explore different angles of growth and macro stories. Especially the gentle/playful side of giants, which I was not accustomed to do before I actually tackled commissions. I believe this has helped me grow a little more as a writer. Have to keep getting better!

As for the fans of my Stinger stories, thank you all for your support and ideas. I love it that some people have come to actually enjoy my tales of sci-fi action and comedy with a more serious approach from my part. Even more of this is coming so keep an eye out!

I have also decided to officially name the series as a whole, where I contain the universe of characters I've made and continue to make. The X-men are Uncanny, the Hulk is Incredible, Spider-man is Amazing. I've decided to take a different approach.

"Codename: Stinger"

Let me know what you think!

Other than that, I've also begun submitting game reviews to GameFAQs, under the name BlackSpyro_33. So far three out of four of them have won Review of the Month. Still waiting to see if Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag's Review will win. Hopefully it does!

I bid 2013 a fond good-bye, making sure to remember all I did to improve myself and I eagerly await 2014 for everything it promises. I aim to take an extra course for computer repair and maintenance, and I intend on asking a coding and programming firm on my college city to see if they'll take me so I can already start gathering real-world experience.

Hope that everyone's 2013 was good. Here's to the next 365 days! :D

*Grows gigantic and gives the universe a muscle-hug*