Words: 68
Average Length: 5.56
I had lots of fun cluing this one (favorite clue: 32 Across; I’m also partial to 2 Down and 3 Down). The seeds were the two long down answers, though I’ve wanted to include 20 Across and 24 Across in a puzzle for a while. Please enjoy!
Words: 73 (16×15)
Average Length: 5.59
I’m trying something different with this write-up because it’s a rainy Saturday afternoon and constructing complete sentences seems like a lot of effort at the moment.
Favorite clues: 25A, 61A
Favorite fill: 10A
Least favorite fill: 4D. I spent a lot of time looking for alternatives, alas to no avail.
Recommendation: 41A – if you like dark, darkly humorous crime fiction, check out the Ian Rankin books mentioned in the clue.
Favorite trivia: 51A
I’m really happy with the architecture on this one: only 29 blocks and 6 three-letter answers, with wide-open corners and lots of flow. Oh, and an opportunity to include one of my favorite Jackson Browne songs (55 Across) and historical fiction authors (30 Across). Throw in a crispy applesauce delivery device (40 Down) and a mecca for great bagels (38 Across) and you’ve got yourself a grid.
I think this one should play a bit gentler than most of my themeless puzzles. I’ll leave you with two gorgeous recordings of 47 Down, which is one of my favorite Beatles songs, early or late. (1) The original. (2) Cover version by Emmylou Harris:
Words: 72
Average Length: 5.19
Here’s an oleo of a themeless, to use some hoary crosswordese. There’s a Hindu deity, one of my favorite authors, some Aussie slang, some Vietnamese food, and a Monty Python reference, among divers and sundry other entries. I hope you find it tasty and satisfying, like 3 Down but decidedly unlike 37 Down.
Words: 68
Average Length: 5.53
The two grid-spanners were the seeds for this themeless, and once I had them in place I decided to design a grid with minimal 3-letter answers (only four, in this case). For solving accompaniment, here’s a link to the late, great Warren Zevon performing “Werewolves of London” (see the clue for 22 Across).
Words: 72 (17×13)
Average Length: 5.22
The seeds for this puzzle were 22 Across and 52 Across. Originally, I was going to use 22 Across in a themed puzzle set among the stacks; the clue was going to be PG-rated (you can reverse-engineer any number of possibilities once you solve the puzzle). I didn’t have enough good theme answers, though, so here it is in a themeless. 52 Across is something I don’t believe at all, at least with respect to individuals. People in groups are an entirely different matter:
“In individuals insanity is rare, but in groups, parties, and epochs it is the rule.” (Nietschze)
Words: 70
Average Length: 5.46
I had a lot of fun constructing this one. It started with 20 Across (a pun I’ve had in mind for a while) and 19 Down (a joke I heard from one of my fellow travelers to Australia and New Zealand, the incredibly nice and funny John C. from Ft. Worth, Texas, who along with his wife Charlotte and friends Urbin and Gay were wonderful travel companions). Next came 6 Down, crossed with 44 Across. Have fun!
Jeff's Puzzles