Tag Archives: crosswords

A Crossword Mystery Movie?

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It’s 2018, and these days, it seems like crosswords are everywhere. They’re in the paper, on the newsstands, and even in your pocket.

And now, they’re making it onto TV with a Hallmark Channel original movie!

Oh yes, check out this snippet from the recent press release:

Hallmark Movies & Mysteries has greenlit development for new mystery movie, The Crossword Mystery starring Lacey Chabert and Brennan Elliott. The movie is co-created by Will Shortz, crossword editor of The New York Times, puzzle master for NPR’s “Weekend Edition Sunday,” editor of Games magazine and founder and director of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament.

Lacey Chabert and Brennan Elliott are no strangers to Hallmark themselves, having starred in three movies together since 2015: All of My Heart, A Christmas Melody, and All of My Heart: Inn Love.

Now, they’ll reunite for a new puzzly mystery.

Here’s a sneak peek of what you can expect from the film:

A brilliant crossword puzzle editor (Chabert) finds her life turned upside-down when she is pulled into a police investigation after several of the clues in her recent puzzles are linked to unsolved crimes. Proving her innocence means leaving the comfort of her sheltered world and working with a tough police detective (Elliott), puzzling through clues together in order to crack the case, as the two are fish out of water in each other’s worlds.

As far as we know, there’s no airdate scheduled yet for the film, but we’ll keep you posted when we know more.

Perhaps Will himself will have more details for us by the time the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament rolls around in March.

Still, what an unexpected bit of news for puzzlers everywhere. 2018, what other surprises are lurking up your sleeve?

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It’s National Puzzle Day!

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Hello hello, fellow puzzlers and PuzzleNationers! It’s National Puzzle Day (aka International Puzzle Day), and we hope you’re having a fabulous time!

As you might expect, we’re overjoyed to be celebrating this puzzliest of days with you, and we’ve got a few things going on today in honor of the holiday!

There are promotions running on both the PuzzleNation Facebook page AND the Daily POP Crosswords Facebook page, so be sure to check them out! Or simply click this link for full details on today’s National Puzzle Day free coins promotion!

And that’s not all! We’ve organized an online puzzle hunt for you as well! Step 1 begins below, so why not take a few minutes and see if you can unravel an app-fueled puzzly challenge!

How are you celebrating National Puzzle Day, fellow puzzlers? Let us know in the comments below!

National Puzzle Day Puzzle Hunt: Step 1!

To complete this leg of the puzzle hunt, you’ll need to solve today’s Daily POP Crosswords App free daily puzzle.

Once you’ve solved it, keep the grid handy, because we’re going to test your anagram skills! Ready? Here we go!

Add and subtract letters from the Grid Words to form answers to the Clues. Start with the first Grid Word, subtract 2 letters, and rearrange the remaining letters to form the answer to the first Clue.

Carry over the letters you subtracted to the blanks on the next line. Now add them to the second Grid Word, subtract the number of letters indicated, and rearrange the remaining letters to form the second answer. Continue solving this way until you’re left with your final answer.

Once you’ve completed the puzzle, take your answer word (all lowercase) and plug it into the blank in this web address: https://blog.puzzlenation.com/npd-________.

If you’ve solved the puzzle correctly, that completed link will take you to the next part of the Puzzle Hunt!

Good luck!

[Note: remember to keep track of those answer words/grid words with red asterisks next to them! You’ll need them later!]

Consider the Pencil…

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We spend a lot of time talking about pencil-and-paper puzzles here on the blog, but it’s rare for us to focus on the “pencil” part of that pairing.

Whether you prefer a regular pencil or a mechanical pencil for your puzzling, there’s no denying that having an eraser is a pretty comforting feature. (Although there is a certain confidence exuded by solving in pen.)

But how much do you actually know about everything that goes into making that classic solving tool?

Well, The New York Times has you covered. They recently posted an in-depth look behind the scenes of the production process at the General Pencil Company, and the photographs alone, like the one featured above, are fascinating.

From the article:

Such radical simplicity is surprisingly complicated to produce. Since 1889, the General Pencil Company has been converting huge quantities of raw materials (wax, paint, cedar planks, graphite) into products you can find, neatly boxed and labeled, in art and office-supply stores across the nation: watercolor pencils, editing pencils, sticks of charcoal, pastel chalks. Even as other factories have chased higher profit margins overseas, General Pencil has stayed put, cranking out thousands upon thousands of writing instruments in the middle of Jersey City.

The vivid, full-color photos in the gallery are accompanied by thoughtful musings on the writing process itself, making the article a quick, thoughtful read that’s worth your time.

Here’s one more snippet that stuck with me:

In an era of infinite screens, the humble pencil feels revolutionarily direct: It does exactly what it does, when it does it, right in front of you. Pencils eschew digital jujitsu. They are pure analog, absolute presence. They help to rescue us from oblivion… When you hold a pencil, your quietest little hand-dances are mapped exactly, from the loops and slashes to the final dot at the very end of a sentence.

That excerpt about simplicity reminds me of a classic exchange from The West Wing:

Leo McGarry: We spent millions of dollars developing a pen for the astronauts that would work in zero gravity. Know what the Russians did?
Toby Ziegler: Used a pencil?
Leo McGarry: They used a pencil.

And although that story about millions spent on a space pen has been thoroughly debunked, the point remains.

Pencils get the job done.

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An Amazing New Resource for Aspiring Constructors!

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Just yesterday, I mentioned the accessibility of many modern puzzle constructors thanks to the Internet. Of course, I was referring to access to their puzzle content, but a new project has reminded me that many constructors are also very accessible when it comes to advice and encouragement.

Deb Amlen wrote an article about a new Facebook page, the Puzzle Collaboration Directory, that is encouraging new and aspiring constructors to reach out to established names in the industry and build an interactive community. This is an amazing resource for puzzlers whose enthusiasm might be undercut by lack of confidence or experience in crafting themes, building grids, and creating clues.

From the introductory post:

If you’re a puzzle constructor looking to collaborate or to be a resource to those seeking one, kindly add your name, contact info, and puzzle specialties to the file entitled “constructors list.”

If you’re here looking for someone to collaborate with, ask questions of, or something in that general vicinity, you can peruse the aforementioned file and reach out to any of the constructors listed – we’ll be happy to hear from you. If you have a question that everyone would benefit from hearing, or if you want to work with someone and you’re not picky about who, feel free to post directly in the group to that effect.

Terrific, innovative, and generous puzzlers like joon pahk, Erik Agard, Robyn Weintraub, Andy Kravis, Doug Peterson, Tracy Bennett, and more have all signed up to mentor aspiring constructors and answer questions.

This is just one more example of how awesome the puzzle community is. We’re all fans of puzzles and we’re more than happy to encourage others with the same passion. (Heck, a few years ago, we also shared some constructing advice right here on the blog.)

You never know where the next great puzzle theme will come from, or who will be wowing you with crafty clues and brain-melting themes in the future.

Good luck to all the constructors getting started there, and a hearty thank you to all the constructors who have already signed up to share their time, insights, and knowledge. I can’t wait to see what comes from this marvelous new resource.

Thanks for visiting PuzzleNation Blog today! Be sure to sign up for our newsletter to stay up-to-date on everything PuzzleNation!

You can also share your pictures with us on Instagram, friend us on Facebook, check us out on Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr, and explore the always-expanding library of PuzzleNation apps and games on our website!

Meet the Daily POP Crosswords Constructors: Neville Fogarty

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One of the Daily POP Crosswords app’s best features is the level of involvement from topnotch constructors. We’ve assembled one heck of a team when it comes to creating terrific, exciting, fresh themed crosswords.

Over the last month or so, we’ve been introducing you to some of them. You might not recognize every name at first, but rest assured… they’re all doing amazing work on these puzzles and deserve a little time in the limelight.

In this installment, allow us to introduce you to constructor Neville Fogarty!

How did you get started in puzzles?

My mom taught me how to solve crosswords in the summer of 2007, when I was home from my first year of college. I soon started toying around with making my own puzzles, and I had my first puzzle published in The Los Angeles Times in 2008. I’ve been constructing crosswords for fun ever since.

What do you enjoy about working on Daily POP Crosswords?

Daily POP Crosswords puzzles are accessible to a wide variety of solvers. It’s a lot of fun to write puzzles that I know a lot of people can solve, especially folks who are my age. I know a lot of people are turned off by crosswords because they use arcane words. Patti Varol, the Daily POP Crosswords editor, insists on accessible answers in all of the puzzles, and I think the crosswords are a lot more fun for that. (Patti is a joy to work with all around!)

The size of the puzzles makes them a little faster to construct than the other puzzles I write, which is a nice change of pace. From solving the other constructors’ Daily POP Crosswords puzzles, I know that I enjoy the lighter challenge of solving a smaller puzzle, too!

Is there a particular theme day that you prefer?

My favorite theme type to write is TV Time, because I watch way too much television. I also like the writing Remember When puzzles, because I have more familiarity with pop culture of the past. That said, I’ve been trying to expand my horizons and learn more about current events in other subjects (especially sports) so that I can write more puzzles!

How is working on Daily POP Crosswords different from constructing for some other outlet, like the Indie 500?

When I sit down to write a puzzle for Daily POP Crosswords, I’m on the solver’s side from beginning to end. I try to channel Betty White playing “Password” and give direct clues that will lead you right to the answer. I don’t want the solver to even have to decide between a pair like EVADE and ELUDE, which have so many letters in common that the wrong answer will definitely give you a false positive.

[Image courtesy of NY Daily News.]

Any other puzzle, though, and all of that changes. I’ll start using those punny “question mark” clues that are designed to misdirect you as you solve. I’ll also start making tougher cultural references to remove gimme clues. Answers will also become trickier, and they may leave the realm of our everyday vocabulary.

I’ve written puzzles for the Indie 500 crossword tournament for the past three years. In addition to the nastiness mentioned above, those puzzles all had tricky themes, like having certain clues swapped so that they didn’t match their answers! These devious themes are designed to challenge the top solvers who come to compete. Of course, I keep the puzzle fair (after all, I do want people to eventually work it all out), but to really test the experienced solvers who attend the Indie 500, we have to pull out all the stops.

On the other hand, with Daily POP Crosswords, I keep the themes simple: stars of a movie, sports teams in a city, books by a particular author, etc. You won’t have to worry about switched clues in my Daily POP Crosswords puzzles! That said, if you’re looking for an additional challenge, try solving a puzzle just looking at the down clues. It’s tough, but it can be done!

A huge thank you to Neville for his time! Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for his puzzles in the Daily POP Crosswords app, free to download for both iOS and Android users!

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Constructors’ Favorite Crosswords from 2017!

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Yesterday, I wrapped up my efforts to celebrate 2017’s contributions to the long, marvelous legacy of puzzles and games.

But before saying goodbye to 2017, I reached out to other constructors and puzzlers to ask them if they had any favorite crosswords from 2017, either of their own creation or those made by others.

So let’s check out the favorites from some world-class constructors in their own right.

Note: Wherever possible, I’ve included links to the puzzles, but for the most part, the links included filled-in grids, so if you want the full solving experience, scan for dates, outlets, and names to hunt down copies for yourself.

And remember: every single person who replied stated that there were other puzzles they loved that they knew they were leaving out, so don’t consider this in any way to be an exhaustive list. 2017 was a dynamite year for crosswords!

We’ll start off with some of crossword gentleman Doug Peterson‘s favorites:

– Monday, May 8 NY Times puzzle by Zhouqin Burnikel aka CC Burnikel. It’s an LGBTQ theme executed so nicely for a Monday. Difficulty and theme are spot-on for an easy puzzle. Lots of fresh, colloquial fill. CC is the master.

– Saturday, July 22 LA Times themeless puzzle by Erik Agard. All of Erik’s themelesses are fun, but this one stood out a bit more for me. SHIRLEY CHISHOLM, KITE-EATING TREE, TOOTHBRUSHES stacked on top of ORTHODONTISTS. Fun stuff everywhere you look.

– Wednesday, August 9 AVCX puzzle “Birthday Bash” by Francis Heaney. Broken PINATAs that have dropped their candy into the grid. It doesn’t get much better than that. 🙂 OK, slight ding for having one PINATA filled with ALTOIDS, but this was still a blast to solve.

[Image courtesy of Party Cheap.]

Several constructors, including Joanne Sullivan and Patrick Blindauer, heaped praise upon the puzzles from this year’s Lollapuzzoola event, and rightly so. They always push the envelope in terms of creativity with Lollapuzzoola, and folks went all out for the tenth year of the tournament. Blindauer cited Paolo Pasco’s tournament opener in particular as a delight.

Patrick had several other recommendations:

It’s no surprise to see New York Times puzzles getting a lot of love. George Barany cited David Steinberg’s June 8th puzzle as particularly clever. Definitely not surprised to see those words associated with David.

[Image courtesy of Snark Squad.]

David Kwong sung the praises of Mark Halpin’s Labor Day Extravaganza — which doesn’t contain any crosswords, but it is still very worthy of mentioning — making a point of mentioning that “the meta puzzle involving the spider’s web was so expertly constructed.”

Constructor Brendan Emmett Quigley did an entire post highlighting his favorite puzzles from the previous year, which marked the only overlap between today’s entry and my list of puzzles yesterday. As it turns out, we both enjoyed his “Next Level Shit” puzzle from November 2nd. He cited “Party Line” from September 28th and “We Have Achieved Peak Puzzle” from November 9th as two other favorites.

[Image courtesy of Arrested Development Wiki.]

To close out today’s rundown of killer puzzles, we’ve got a murderers row of recommendations from Evan Birnholz of Devil Cross and The Washington Post crossword:

Thank you to all of the fantastic constructors who offered their favorite crosswords from 2017! Please check out both these constructors AND the constructors they recommend! There are so many great puzzles out there for you if you bother to look!

Here’s to a terrific, challenging, baffling, and creative new year of puzzles to come!

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