Here's a timeline with brief summaries of 22 significant points in LittleZotz history:
January 7, 1985 I was born in the afternoon on the first Monday of 1985. I was nearly a month late arriving which would end up being par for the course as I became a “late bloomer” in nearly every development stage as time progressed. I’m not entirely sure what I was working on while in the womb for that extra time (my earliest memories are from the Toddler Era), but I forgot a few key things. I’ll admit I’ve never been the best at prioritizing but putting Hair above Hip Bone for the “H” section of Body Development was one of the bigger “my bad” moments on my end. (Yep. I was born with a full head of hair and no right hip!). Thankfully, I had loving parents who took great care of me and Children’s Hospital in LA built me a right hip via bone graft.
September 4, 1990 Started public school (Kindergarten – High School). I also started my martial arts training (to help me develop large motor skills).
June 13, 1997 The start of my Uterus Issues that would torment me for over 24 years… Side Note: I started my period the morning of my elementary school graduation day — June 13, 1997; a Friday. Unlucky.
June 18, 2003 I graduated high school and officially entered the workforce (though I’d already been working/earning since I was 14). Every once in a while I would return to formal schooling (trade school, community college classes, etc.) to gain additional skills I thought were useful/interesting, but I was very much DONE with school by the time I graduated high school. I mainly worked fast food and retail jobs, but I also did a few odd jobs like modeling tiaras for a wedding supplies company/catalog. I was also earning money here and there from my writing…
June 23, 2006 I earned my first-degree black belt! (I earned my second-degree 6/13/2008, and I was my dojo’s Assistant Instructor + Office Manager from August 2005 to February 2009).
October 6, 2007 I had my paintings shown in a gallery (right next to my Mom’s work!). That was pretty cool. I actually had my paintings up twice, but this was the first time…
January 1, 2008 The incident that left me with a severe case of PTSD.
December 10, 2009 Worst day of my life. And I’ve had my fair share of bad days.
August 17, 2010 After losing everything I cared about in 2009 (my home, my job, access to my friends/family/dojo, etc.), I started something new in 2010! I began freelancing and made writing my sole source of income. I was very proud of myself! I was writing blog posts and drawing all of the accompanying illustrations… By 2012, LittleZotz Writing was winning awards for its content.
August 4, 2014 Warning: TRIGGERING TOPIC! — Everything I’d been through caught up with me (AND THEN SOME!) and when my then-roommate made the suggestion “kill yourself” I decided that was a great plan for dealing with my complete and utter breakdown… Thankfully, my life was saved (after numerous stitches inside my wrist and out), but this was certainly a very low point. Though it did help to highlight that perhaps my living situation wasn’t exactly healthy (understatement!) and that I desperately needed help to escape both my inner turmoil and my toxic environment.
October 6, 2014 I started therapy! And therapy marked the beginning of being able to take control of my life. As for LittleZotz.com, I started shifting my focus from ghostwriting to editing.
April 27, 2017 I met and befriended my soulmate.
March 2, 2018 Although I couldn’t talk about it at the time, I was putting a lot of work into (safely) leaving the environment I was in. I was also working a full-time job. I didn’t have time to maintain LittleZotz.com’s content! So, I started accepting guest posts from outside writers. It was a way to keep my site alive while helping new writers get their stuff “out there.” It was also a step back, psychologically, for me. I’d been working for years to regain myself, so willingly handing over such a huge chunk of my personal identity to others was a choice I wrestled with internally a lot.
August 15, 2018 Finally!!
April 27, 2019 Two years to the day after befriending the best person on the planet, I married him! ♥
May 2, 2019 Mere days after Frank and I got married, I lost my job. Cue no honeymoon due to needing to save all of our (now singular!) income to survive on. Cue no more health insurance/therapy/medication. Cue MASSIVE soul searching… Maybe I really just wasn’t meant to have a normal job…?? I knew freelancing was unstable and nothing lasts forever, but this one REALLY hit me. I was absolutely crushed. I felt so defeated. [I did end up employed one last time at the end of 2019, but that job – and the company it was for – ended abruptly in early 2020 (you know why)]. I moped, I cried, and then I dusted myself off and decided to take this moment as a sign. It was time to do something *I* wanted to do. And my husband was behind me 1000%!
October 1, 2019 I channeled my lifelong love for the horror genre into a brand new website: HorrorFam.com! With the help of Frank and my best gal pals (Christi Bandy + Heather Landry), I started my dream publication. I fell in love with writing again (even if I was still very bitter towards freelance writing clients!) and was having FUN for the first time in years. It was a joyous time to be alive!
February 21, 2020 Hardly anyone wants to communicate via writing so, in order to do interviews and showcase cool creators, I had to brave the verbal world. I’m not the best podcaster in the world, but I’m continually trying to get better and I’m very proud of the shows I’ve done thus far. Mostly because each one was terrifying (even though the guests were all lovely!!) and, thus, each one marked a little personal milestone/achievement for me. Fun Fact(?): I had what I thought was “a really bad cold” during the first episode, but I was determined to meet the launch deadline I’d set for myself so I did it anyway. Long story short, it wasn’t a cold and our entire household was put into quarantine and then the entire city was put into lockdown right as we were deemed a-okay!
April 8, 2020 2020 marked the first year LittleZotz Writing didn’t win any awards. I’d grown to loathe the freelance writing industry and it was showing in my posts (what few were written by me). I figured it was time to move on. I was already very busy (and much happier!) on HorrorFam.com, so I decided to hand LittleZotz.com over to its readers — stepping back entirely, letting the blog be filled solely with the words of guest writers. I’d had enough. I even tried to sell LittleZotz.com to an interested buyer on 4/29/2020!! The deal fell through because, in his words: “You ARE LittleZotz. I didn’t realize that. LittleZotz.com is nothing without you.” And that sentiment was kind of a bummer at the time (for one thing, I really needed the money!), but he was right. I will always be grateful to the guest writers (and their articles were great!) but it was wrong to try to have a LittleZotz.com with no LittleZotz.
April 26, 2020 My uterus launched its first attack in June 1997. This would be the start of its final assault. From this date, until the following July, I was in daily pain… Pain that became so bad it took over every aspect of my life. Everything came to a halt.
July 23, 2021 My final “period”/uterine bleed lasted 404 days. On July 23, 2021, my evil uterus, both of my fallopian tubes, and my defective right ovary were removed. It was one of the top five best days of my entire life! I could not be more grateful to be rid of my evil organs. To be free from the daily pain. At 36, I was REBORN! But, for this birth, I not only have my loving parents with me but also my ultra-loving husband and the most wonderful friends anyone could ever hope for. Plus, I know how to write and stuff now! Which is already way better than when I was actually born. (Literal babies have it pretty tough in regard to communication options!)
August 17, 2021 On the 11th anniversary of LittleZotz Writing, I announced that I would be taking over again — putting the “LittleZotz” (dat’s me!) back in LittleZotz.com — and that my website would be going in a completely new/different direction. It was the 11th year for LittleZotz.com existing and also Year One! I can’t wait to see what happens next!!
I Was Born
Started School
Started My Period
Finished School
Earned My Black Belt
First Gallery Show
When It All Went Wrong
Left Home
Started LittleZotz.com!
The End…
…A Fresh Start?
Befriended Frank Spear
Took a Step Back…
Returned Home
Married Frank Spear ♥
The Last Straw?
Launched HorrorFam.com!
Started Podcasting
No LittleZotz on LittleZotz.com?
Pain Took Over
Hysterectomy!
LittleZotz.com: 11 Years/Year One!
