This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Kaylin Marcotte, the 32-year-old founder and CEO of Jiggy Puzzles from New York ... I bootstrapped my company, so I never had the money ...

Each December, New York Times Games puzzle editors reveal their most anticipated puzzles of the year in Puzzle Mania, the annual special section in the print edition of the Sunday paper.

As the year winds down, puzzle enthusiasts have been focused on solving the New York Times' daily word game, Connections.