Another significant event I'd highlight is the retirement (at least from the NYT) of long-time constructors Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon who regularly contributed cryptics and, of course, an Acrostic every other week. XWord Info only tracks their Variety puzzles back to 1999, but their contributions precede that by years. Acrostic construction has been taken over by the brilliant team of David Balton and Jane Stewart, to great acclaim. I'm told David and Jane will be at the ACPT this year, and will give a talk. They are a fascinating couple. You'll want to meet them.
Amazing puzzle news roundup! I'm a NYT Games fan, and I'm also in the third year of helping to organize Word Play, a "competitive crossword puzzle gala" that benefits Voices of Hope for Aphasia, a Tampa Bay-based nonprofit. Two of the Tampa Bay Rays' crossword aficionados (mentioned in the ESPN story you linked to) attended last year. May I send you more info?
Can we get #ZOUTHQUAKE trending? (Do hashtags trend anymore?)
A great write-up as always, with a lot of references to great puzzles I missed this year. I strongly appreciate the shoutout to my stab at a Schrodinger (and think I should probably take a professional headshot sometime this year)...
Another significant event I'd highlight is the retirement (at least from the NYT) of long-time constructors Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon who regularly contributed cryptics and, of course, an Acrostic every other week. XWord Info only tracks their Variety puzzles back to 1999, but their contributions precede that by years. Acrostic construction has been taken over by the brilliant team of David Balton and Jane Stewart, to great acclaim. I'm told David and Jane will be at the ACPT this year, and will give a talk. They are a fascinating couple. You'll want to meet them.
I'll look forward to it! I did mention Cox and Rathvon retiring in the 2023 roundup, but I appreciate the note!
Amazing puzzle news roundup! I'm a NYT Games fan, and I'm also in the third year of helping to organize Word Play, a "competitive crossword puzzle gala" that benefits Voices of Hope for Aphasia, a Tampa Bay-based nonprofit. Two of the Tampa Bay Rays' crossword aficionados (mentioned in the ESPN story you linked to) attended last year. May I send you more info?
Sure! You can send it right to tcampbell1000@gmail.com.
Can we get #ZOUTHQUAKE trending? (Do hashtags trend anymore?)
A great write-up as always, with a lot of references to great puzzles I missed this year. I strongly appreciate the shoutout to my stab at a Schrodinger (and think I should probably take a professional headshot sometime this year)...