No, but I did pretty well in that national contest, so that was encouraging. I'm concentrating now on my second book, and writing the third..trying something different with that one!
Trying not to hijack the topic (although I could discuss this all day, and thanks for asking, balmerhon), mytigoddess, you might want to check out the SOHO section of the site, which has a bit more info for self-employed people and small business owners. And I second balmerhon's suggestion that you check out the Visas and Immigration section-there's tons of info there!