Tag Archives: solution

I’ve been talking recently about the different sorts of crosswords I’ve written over the years, both cryptic and non-cryptic. There’s one category that takes a large amount of experience and expertise to be able to construct, the personalised (or bespoke) … Continue reading →

Last week I saw a clue that used an anagram of STUTTERING WOE to make TONGUE-TWISTER. In cryptic terms, this is called an old chestnut, that is a clue, or an essential combination in a clue, that has been seen/used … Continue reading →

23-across in last week’s crossword is a little “out of character” for a Stickler puzzle. I put it in there on purpose to give me something to write about this week (sort of). The clue, A clock, one with a … Continue reading →

Last week I mentioned that the medically-themed weekly cryptic I did for a medical publication was the hardest regular cryptic I’ve had to write due to the specific nature of medical words. The hardest non-cryptic I’ve written on a regular … Continue reading →

In 2006 I was contacted by a weekly medical publication about doing a medically-themed cryptic. I’ve always had problems setting a price for crosswords of all kinds – it’s not totally about the time taken to set a crossword, it’s … Continue reading →

A few weeks ago I saw a themed cryptic (of sorts) that was quite unusual: it had the “theme” (a set of related items) hidden in the solution squares, yet the crossword itself had nothing to do with the theme. … Continue reading →

1-across, Convener’s primary problem at talk (8), reminded me of a clue for the same word back in 2005. No my memory isn’t that good, but the clue raised an issue with at least one solver at the time and … Continue reading →

A short time back I did a piece on what I knew of the NZ crossword industry. As a part of preparing the item, I contacted some of the people mentioned to double-check I had my facts straight. Two of … Continue reading →

A former member of the ACC, Gizmo, told me a story once of his attempt to be included on the roster of setters of a well-known newspaper group, or at least, to join the list of those waiting in the … Continue reading →

A while back I received an email from an old Stickler fan lamenting the loss of decent cryptics from the papers and complaining about the inevitable move away from the printed medium. He said he would love to do The … Continue reading →