5D. Many American cities may have streets called (Park place?), but you can spot the misdirection of the clue in the use of a lowercase “place.” The answer is GARAGE, that is to say a place where you park.
13D. This (Mark of Literary Distinction) is sneakily disguised as a common noun. Rather, it refers to the prolific author of “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,” Mark TWAIN. What a shame for us that he died over 100 years ago – we will never meet the TWAIN.
55D. I have a hard time keeping up with Generation Alpha slang, and I dread the day they start giving me trouble on crossword puzzles. For now, I can just continue to be ridiculed by teenagers for using FTW, which stands for (“Victory is mine!” in textual abbreviation) — it’s short for “for the win.” Obsolete textual abbreviation FTW!
Manufacturer’s Notes
I inherited my passion for crosswords from my mother, Ruthie, and have spent most of my adult life solving crosswords. I am retired and do a variety of puzzles every morning to make sure I keep my wits about me. In January 2023, I asked myself, “Who makes these puzzles?” That question led me on a journey into the world of crossword building, and I discovered an incredible community of builders and resources online.
My first crosswords were pretty awful, full of bad puns and entries that lacked “surface meaning” (i.e. discernible meaning on first reading). I had no idea about the intricacies of crossword construction: themes, consistency, grid design, filler, clues. I had to learn through research, trial and error, rejection and a lot of solving, doing four or five crosswords a day from the Times Crossword archives. I initially received standard rejections, but then editors started giving me specific critiques and advice, which led me to publish and build relationships with wonderful mentors: Patti Varol and Katie Hale from the Los Angeles Times; David Steinberg and Jared Goudsmit of Universal Crossword and the remarkable Jeff Chen, who worked with me on several versions to improve my completion for this crossword. It’s incredible to have had the opportunity to work with the best in this field; their generosity cannot be overstated. Having a crossword published in the New York Times is something I’ve aimed for from the beginning, so debuting today is a dream come true.
The moral of my story? It’s never too late to discover a new passion and dive into learning. Good luck to all the newbie builders out there – keep learning, keep trying, and enjoy the journey!
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Want to join the New York Times’ gaming conversation, or maybe get some help solving a particularly tricky puzzle? Here are:
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Wordle Review
Connections Companion
Improve your crossword solving
Browse our guide “How to Solve the New York Times Crossword.” It contains an explanation of most of the types of clues you’ll see in the puzzles and a mini practice at the end of each section.
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