Half-Baked Puzzles

 Hi friends,  Been a second since I put a puzzle up here. This one's a themeless, and thanks to Norah for help in testing.  Had a blast at Westwords , including coming third overall! If I didn't see you there, hopefully I'll see you at Lolla . That's on a Saturday in August.   (if OneDrive prompts a log-in, try opening in a private window) .puz  PDF Solution Mmm, chocolate cake    

 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

 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

 Hi friends! It's been a little while since I've had a blog puzzle--hopefully I'll have the chance to post a bit more this summer. In the meantime, I'm busy as part of the leadership team for Lil AVC X, editing for Puzzmo, and can be found in Universal, USA Today, and Crossword Flow, among other outlets.  I've got this week's AVCX+ themeless with Shannon Rapp (we also had a recent AVCX Classic that we recommend if you like tougher themed puzzles!). And both of us have a whole lot more great puzzles coming this summer, so keep your eyes peeled. Thanks to Shannon for help in testing this puzzle. It's a themeless that shouldn't play too rough. (If Onedrive prompts a login, try opening in a private window) .puz PDF   Solution     Mmm, cream puffs    

 Hi friends, Back at it with a themeless for you today that I think you'll find an engaging challenge!  If you're a Browser subscriber, go check out the cryptic Shannon and I made over. If you're a Defector subscriber, we also made a really fun sports-heavy puzzle over that way. (If OneDrive prompts a login, try opening in a private window.) .puz PDF   Solution Mmm, salty rosemary nut tart

 Hi friends, Back with a themeless that I think you'll find to be a fun romp. Thanks to Norah for help in testing this one.  I'm posting this unusually on a Saturday because I'm in the midst of kind of a fun run of puzzles!  Thursday: Los Angeles Times with Norah Friday: Puzzmo (if you haven't checked it out yet, it's free to register and you should definitely give it a look) Saturday: This puzzle! Sunday: Browser cryptic with Norah Monday: MYSTERY OUTLET with Norah It's also a nice run for Norah (who has a puzzle over on the app Crossword Flow today), and for us collaboratively. Thanks to everyone who's helped test, streamed a puzzle of ours, or just said nice things. The crossword community rocks, and we're happy to be a part of it.  (If OneLook prompts a login, try opening in a private browser window) .puz  PDF Solution    Mmm, cranberry-pomegranate mousse pie  

 Hi gang, Back with a new themeless after a little hiatus. The puzzle work continues apace! I'm part of a lovely leadership team over at Lil AVC X, along with Rafa Musa, Olivia Mitra Framke, and Sally Hoelscher. We recently finished putting together the team of editors for 2024, which includes Norah Sharpe (under her government name)! This puzzle, like every collaboration with Norah , was a joy to make. Norah says, "The structure of this one was inspired by some of the gridwork that Brian Thomas has been up to lately (see this one and this one ). My favorite clues are 16A, 39A, and 51D. Thanks as ever to Will for having me over. There's only a few days left to send in your applications for the 2024 Lil AVC X roster! Details here . And speaking of Lil, please try our "Happy Hour" midi from earlier this week."   (If OneDrive prompts a log-in, try opening in a private window)   .puz   PDF   Solution Mmm, mini smores cups

 Hey friends, Back with a themeless 13x puzzle this week--a little bit smaller than a usual full-size grid. This one was constructed with the help of Twitch chat a while back, so thanks to everyone who helped at the time. Thanks to Norah Sharpe for help in testing this one. Speaking of Twitch, you can lately find Norah and I solving cryptics together on Twitch. It's a great way to learn how cryptics work, if you've never solved one before. It was great meeting so many of you at Lollapuzzoola! As a first foray into the world of major crossword tourneys, it couldn’t’ve been more fun. Mmm, key lime pie (If any of these links prompt a log in to OneDrive, try opening them in a private browser window.) PDF .puz Solution  

 Hi friends, Got a fun little themeless for you this week. Thanks to Norah and Alex for help in testing this one. Norah and I also have this week's AVCX Cryptic , so give that one a go! (If OneDrive links prompt a login, try opening in a private browser window.) .puz Solution   PDF Mmm, chicken shwarma pizza

Hey friends, Got a very fun themeless collab with Norah for you. We think you'll find it a breezy bit of fun. More puzzles from us when and where you least expect them. Norah says, "Making puzzles with Will is always a joy. I love everything we have coming soon both separately and together! This one is a fun themeless for which I wrote exactly one sports clue - can you find it?" A note on OneDrive links: If any of the links prompt you to log in, try opening them in a private window. You can also grab the .puz by using Crossword Scraper in Firefox or Chrome. .puz PDF   Solution   Mmm, Norah's birthday cake  

 Hi friends, Back with a themeless this week! Thanks to Norah for help in testing this one. I've hopefully got some fun stuff coming in July, both on the blog and elsewhere!     .puz   PDF Solution   Mmm, chocolate-chip banana bread

 Hi friends!  Back with a themeless that I think you'll find pleasantly challenging! Thanks to Norah for help in testing this one.  I had this week's AVCX Classic, which is titled "Doing Labor " and was edited by Ben Tausig -- give it a go!   .puz PDF   Solution    Mmm, puff pastry with orange mascarpone whipped cream, lemon curd, and berries  

 Hi friends! Back with a themeless this week! I hope you'll find it, well, relatable.  Many thanks to Norah for helping to test this one - you'll see several of our collaborations appearing this month. I also had a cryptic puzzle in The Browser earlier this month. Dan Feyer was kind enough to lower the paywall on that, so feel free to give it a try if you haven't done it yet. Having a published cryptic has been a big goal of mine for a while, and I'm really proud of the result. .puz PDF Solution   Mmm, blondies

 Hi friends, A little extra-wide themeless action coming at you this week. I'm indebted to the help I got from Steve and Norah in making this puzzle the best it could be. Enjoy!     .puz PDF Solution   Mmm, pizza with sausage and roast veggies  

 Hi friends, Hope you're doing well. If you didn't see it on Daily Crossword Links , I recently wrote an essay about crosswords entitled " On Trust ." I hope you'll give it a read if you're interested in constructing puzzles, or just in learning about the constructor's mindset.  In the essay, I talk a bit about what I think goes into making difficult puzzles that are still satisfying to solve. Though my 🧩  generally tend towards the easier side, this one's an attempt to make a puzzle that's a firm challenge throughout while still being fun and fair. I'd love to hear your thoughts on it! Many thanks to Norah and Steve for helping to test this one. .puz PDF   Solution   Mmm, flourless chocolate “wave” cake

 Hi friends, Themeless this week, playing around with a grid skeleton that allows for a lot of spanners. I think you'll enjoy this one! Many thanks to Quiara and Norah for helping to test this one.    .puz PDF   Solution Mmm, chocolate truffles

 Hey folks, Back after a bit of traveling with a themeless for ya this week. This one features a seed suggested by Norah Sharpe after I made another friendly sports bet and my Twins lost. Norah says: "Since Will's team like almost never plays mine, I reluctantly agreed for one time only to root for the Brewers. My sacrifice allows for this goofy and fun puzzle, so you're welcome." Thanks to Norah and also Steve Mossberg Hope you enjoy! .puz PDF   Solution   Mmm, chicken pesto pizza  

 Hey folks! Back this week with a themeless I think you'll really enjoy! This one came about as a result of a bet between Brian Thomas and myself. Brian's Mariners were playing my Twins, and we agreed that the loser of the series would make a puzzle using a seed entry suggested by the winner. Our teams ended up splitting the series 2-2, and here's my puzzle!  Thanks to Brian for the idea, which I hope catches on more, and for helping to test this one out--thanks also to Kate for her help with this one.     .puz   PDF   Solution Mmm, homemade pita and Greek-American gyros

 Hi folks, Very excited to bring you this collaboration with the inestimable Norah Sharpe. Norah says:  "I'm so happy to make my Half-Baked debut with our fourth puzzle together. When I first started gridding this I didn't know it would be a collab, but as soon as I had the left side filled I knew Will would make the right side just as fun. One reason I love making puzzles with Will is because I know he's going to surprise me with stuff like 21-Down and 53-Across - both entries that I didn't have on my lists but I am so glad to learn of them. I also trust that any time we collab, he's gonna write some banger clues. Of his, 20A, 2D, and 14D are among my favorites. And I'm pretty proud of 49A. Thanks for solving!" I don't have the eloquence to express as well why working with Norah is so great, but I think you can see it all over this grid! The collaborative process is always a joy with Norah and her enthusiasm, organization and energy really help po...

 Sorry for the delay in posting, but we're back this week with a themeless offering! Thanks as always to Steve for testing, he's got some very exciting stuff in the works over at Square Pursuit, so keep your eyes peeled!   .puz PDF Solution Mmm, Patterned Pumpkin Roll Cake