5 D. Many American cities may have named streets [Park place?], but you can detect the wrong direction of the evidence in his use of the little word “place.” The answer is GARAGE, i.e. the place where one parks one’s gardens.
13 D. this [Mark of literary distinction] This term is used covertly as a common name. It refers instead to the prolific author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Mark Twain. What a shame that he died over 100 years ago—and not Twain himself. Let’s meet.
55 D. I can’t keep up with the slang of Generation Alpha, and I fear the day when crossword puzzles will puzzle me. For now, I can simply continue to get ridiculed by teenagers for using FTW, which is to say [“Victory is mine!,” in text shorthand] – It’s short for “For the Win.” Texting is outdated shorthand FTW!
Creator’s Notes
I inherited my love of crossword puzzles from my mother, Ruthie, and have been a crossword puzzler my entire life. I’m retired and I do a variety of puzzles every morning to make sure I’m still sharp. In January 2023, I found myself wondering, “Who makes these puzzles?” That question led me on a journey into the world of crossword puzzle building, and what I found was a wonderful community of puzzle makers and online resources.
My first puzzles were pretty terrible, full of bad puns and entries that lacked “surface sense” (i.e., meaning that can be discerned on first reading). I had no idea about the intricacies of crossword construction: themes, consistency, grid design, fill-in, and hinting. I had to learn through research, trial and error, rejection, and lots of solutions, solving four or five puzzles a day from the Times Crossword archives. I got the typical rejections at first, but then editors started offering me specific criticism and advice, which led to publishing and relationships with some amazing mentors: Patty Farwell and Katie Hill at the Los Angeles Times; David Steinberg and Jared Goudsmit at Universal Crossword; and the wonderful Jeff Chen, who worked with me through multiple drafts to improve my ability to solve this puzzle. It’s incredible that I had the opportunity to work with the best in the business; their generosity cannot be overstated. Getting my mystery published in the New York Times is something I’ve been aiming for since the beginning, so my debut today is a dream come true.
The moral of my story? It’s never too late to discover a new passion and immerse yourself in learning. Good luck to all you newbie builders – keep learning, keep trying and enjoy the ride!
Join our discussions about other games
Want to be part of the conversation about New York Times Games, or maybe get some help solving a particularly tricky puzzle? Here you go:
Spelling Bee Forum
Wordle review
Communications Companion
Improve your crossword puzzle solution
Make your way through our guide, “How to Solve the New York Times Crossword.” It contains explanations of most types of clues you’ll see in puzzles and a mini-exercise at the end of each section.
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