Posts

puzzle #14: it's a rock! (themeless)

I'm back! Since my last puzzle I started my last semester of college, finished said semester, graduated , turned 22, and have been enjoying my time off over the past six or so weeks.  Recently, I've been writing a lot of puzzles that I've sent out to various places (be on the lookout for those!) that all have somewhat different cluing guidelines, so I've been switching gears a lot mentally and also thinking about what sort of style I prefer. This puzzle has a mix of styles and also some silly clues since I'm just having fun out here. Hope you enjoy! Music rec below as always. puz pdf   Constructed by Ryan Judge using PuzzleMe's cross word creator

puzzle #13: sick! (themeless)

Hey all, long time no see! Fall semester kicked my butt. Spring semester starts next Monday and I'm hoping it'll be a lot more tame. And it's my last semester, so I'm gonna be a college graduate in about 4 months (hahaha I love aging (but I also acknowledge I'm very much a Young Person™))! I'm also teaching a class about crosswords which is super cool.  I haven't shared any of my stuff in a while, and have only had a couple things published since my last post, so I figured I should get back on it. Thanks so much for checking my stuff out, and hope you enjoy this themeless puzzle! Song rec below as always! puz pdf Made by Ryan Judge using PuzzleMe's free cross word maker

puzzle #12: that's bull! (themeless)

I've returned! In the last couple months I've had an AVCX puzzle published, and had a great time at the Boswords summer tournament. I can't wait to see so many people at Lollapuzzoola in a week! Then school starts and things are going to get crazy. Here's a themeless puzzle! Clues in this one are kinda all over the place because I felt like it. Hope you enjoy! Music rec down below as always. puz pdf

puzzle #11: all i've ever known (themeless)

Hey all, good to be back. A few notes: I'm turning 21 in a few hours! Nice to be back in the NYT last Saturday! I had a blast solving the Westwords tournament online, where I was glad to come in 4th place behind the greats Will, Andy, and Erik. Excited to be in person for the Boswords tournament in four weeks! I'm back with another themeless (though you might find a little mini-theme in it—thanks to Quiara Vasquez for suggesting how to implement that).  Song rec down below—I just saw Lizzy last night, and it was an incredible show! puz pdf

puzzle #10: How 'bout we try this? (themeless)

Hi all! It's been a while. Great to see everyone in April at the ACPT! I've got another puzzle, themeless as per usual. Song rec down below as always. .puz pdf

puzzle #9: ever-returning spring (themeless)

Happy March! Spring is just around the corner, so please enjoy "ever-returning spring," my latest themeless puzzle! This one should be medium-difficult. Music rec below the puzzle as always. Side note: ACPT is coming up in just over a month and I'm so excited to go for the first time! I hope to meet a lot of solvers and constructors that I haven't yet met elsewhere. .puz pdf

i got a puzzle published for the first time!!!

Hi! Spoilers below for my puzzle (NYT Friday, 2/2/24)! . . . . . . . . . . I'm so excited to have been published in the New York Times today! This puzzle was genuinely the first themeless I ever wrote, excluding this semi-themeless puzzle which I don't really count. So it's definitely a bit surprising that it got published, but it's a pleasant surprise. I'll go into some more details to expand upon what I said in the Wordplay article. As I mentioned there, my main seed was at 33A, which I had in my very short list called "themeless seeds????" in my "crossword ideas" note on the Notes app. I honestly don't remember how it made its way in there, but it may have had to do with this bit from Lemony Snicket in A Series of Unfortunate Events (it also appears in the book but I've watched the series much more recently than I read the books) (also, my original clue for 33A referenced that line, but it's definitely a niche reference). Anyw...