Half-Baked Puzzles

 Hi friends,   Today's puzzle is a themed offering, and a lesson in striking while the iron is hot. It's one of my oldest crossword ideas, but I was never quite able to make a grid that I was happy with for it. Years later, I revisited it. I did find my grid-making skills had improved, but I dithered in making and cluing it. By the time I sent it around and got feedback from venues, I got told by not one but two different editors that they already had a very similar puzzle in their queue. Such is life! I still love this theme, and I'm happy I finally managed to make the puzzle a reality. I'm excited to see the different paths people took with a similar concept as well, so keep your eyes peeled for those other puzzles.  Thank you to Geoffrey Schorkopf for invaluable help in testing this puzzle!   You can find Shannon and I over at The Defector .      If OneDrive prompts you to log-in, try opening in a private window.   .puz PDF Solution  ...

 Hi friends, I'm back, and a bit earlier in the week than I usually publish. If you solve the puzzle, you might find one reason why, but what better to do on New Year's Day than solve some crosswords? I hope your 2025 is filled with good friends and good solves. Thank you to Norah and Steve for testing this one! No .puz file or PDF this week. You'll see why when you see the grid. Mmm, chocolate nut toffee crunch   Amuselabs direct link Created by Will Eisenberg with the online cross word builder from Amuse Labs

 Hi friends, It's been a minute! While I haven't blogged in a while, you can find my puzzles in other places, including a 2000's-themed book (where I have two collaborations with Shannon ) and in the Puzzmo book , where Shannon and I have a collab, and I edited a few of the others. I'm closing in on a full year of being part of the leadership team for Lil AVCX , and what a year it's been! Watching the success of all the editors and mentees involved has been a pure joy. I recently wrote a few words about what Lil AVCX means to me. If you'd like to support our work in 2025, AVCX is in the midst of a subscriber drive . Gift subscriptions make a great present, too! Every cryptic is a labor of love, and I hope this one makes you smile. Steve Mossberg was instrumental in pushing this puzzle where it needed a push and reminding me to trust my instincts, too.  You can find Shannon and me with a themeless this week at AVCX+. I've got puzzles on the Crossword Flow ...

 Hi friends, Got a themed collab with Alex Boisvert this week, coming at you in an oversized grid! Alex is the wizard behind Crossword Nexus and the AVCX solving interface .   It was so great to see so many good friends at Lollapuzzoola last weekend. Tickets are still available for the Midwest Crossword Tournament , both in person and online, so I highly recommend getting one! I'll see you there. Mmm, white chocolate cherry cookies .jpz .puz   PDF   Solution Created by Wil Eisenberg and Alex Boisvert using crossword creator by Amuse Labs

 Hi friends, 100 puzzles! Wow. That's pretty crazy. If you've solved even one along the way--THANK YOU. There are too many of you to thank but I'm so grateful to everyone who has solved a puzzle, made a puzzle with me, and even just talked about puzzles with me.   This week's offering is a themeless puzzle with Brian Thomas that's chock full of fun indie vibes. Go solve Brian's other puzzles too! I'm also very excited to be able to share an essay of mine that Daily Crossword Links has been kind enough to host, titled "No Scrubs" . It's a philosophy of solving crosswords that I hope will be beneficial to new solvers and competitive solvers alike. .puz PDF   Solution (If OneLook prompts a log-in, try opening in a private window) Mmm, gooey butter cake

 Hi friends, Back this week with a themed midi. I constructed this puzzle on Twitch  as a way to demo the construction software Ingrid . Spoilers for this puzzle in that video, obviously! Ingrid is fantastic, and continues to be my go-to software for construction--and it's free!  Ingrid also has quite a few features that have been added since I made that video, especially a tool to add and change word scores. If you have an interest in construction, go check it out. And thanks to those who hung out on the Twitch stream. Their ideas helped shape this puzzle, including the title, which I believe was suggested by Dan . Go solve Dan's great puzzles, and congrats to Dan on his incredible 3rd place in the Mountain division at Westwords.  Thanks to Norah for help in testing this one.  .puz PDF   Solution   Mmm, pepperoni pizza  

 Hey friends, Back with a really fun themeless this week, a collaboration with the one and only Rose Sloan! I had the pleasure of hanging out with Rose at Westwords this past weekend, along with a whole bunch of you. Congrats to Rose on an impressive 3rd place finish in the Beach division.  What an amazing tournament, and you should buy the puzzle pack if you weren't able to go. They're all bangers, but some incredible cluing by Amanda Rafkin and some devious theming by Adam Wagner were the highlights for me. Rose says: "I was very excited to make this very nerdy puzzle with Will, and I'm excited that you all get to solve it now!" If these OneDrive links prompt a log-in, try opening in a private window: .puz PDF Solution Mmm, challah