The American Crossword Puzzle Tournament was this past weekend, and unfortunately I wasn’t able to attend. I did my best to keep up with the event through social media, enjoying everyone’s observations, jokes, highlights, victories, trials and tribulations. One message in particular stuck out to me, though. I can’t remember if it was posting the results after the sixth or the seventh puzzle,…

In today's blog post, we spread the word about a new interactive crossword comic book, Letters to Margaret, launching on Kickstarter today! And we've got an exclusive first look!

Some of the coolest puzzle experiences of the last decade have come from the team at Lone Shark Games. Not only have they spearheaded numerous puzzle packs connected to various charitable causes, but they also created Puzzlecraft, a one-stop shop for learning how to construct dozens of different puzzles! Their masterpiece, though, is The Maze of Games, a wonderful story-driven series of puzzles…

In today's blog post, we talk about ways constructors "break" the rules of puzzles to make challenging, unique puzzles!

There are a lot of things you learn as you solve more and more crosswords. You learn vocabulary, both words that are simply new to you AND words that are common to crosswords. You learn cluing tropes, like question marks indicating wordplay or quotation marks indicating informal speech or exclamations. You also start to learn some of the constructors’ tricks. Now, there are all sorts of ways that…

In today's blog post, we share our thoughts on the puzzles from the recent Indie 500 Crossword Tournament!

June 1 marked the fifth annual Indie 500 Crossword Tournament, hosted in Washington, D.C., by constructors Erik Agard, Neville Fogarty, Andy Kravis, Peter Broda, and Angela Olsen Halsted. The first tournament had a racing theme, the second had a prom theme, the third had a time theme, the fourth had a fashion theme, and this year was travel-themed!

While I couldn’t attend the tournament, I did…

In today's blog post, we're excited about the upcoming Indie 500 Crossword Tournament!

That’s right! Tomorrow, June 1st, will mark the fifth annual edition of the tournament! Although registration has been closed for weeks, you can participate from home for only $10! Click here for details!

Not only that, but they’ve whipped up a terrific meta-suite of puzzles to boot, and you can name your own price for it!

I expect great things from the immensely talented team of constructors…

In today's blog post, we spread the word about the upcoming Indie 500 crossword tournament!

Four years ago, a new crossword tournament joined the ranks of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament and Lollapuzzoola, immediately carving out its own niche in the puzzle world. The Indie 500 offered topnotch puzzles and a pie-fueled solving experience both live in Washington, D.C., and for solvers at home.

And it’s back! The fifth edition of The Indie 500 is happening on Saturday, June 1,…

In today's blog post, we delve into the puzzles from this year's Indie 500 crossword tournament!

June 2 marked the fourth annual Indie 500 Crossword Tournament, hosted in Washington, D.C., by constructors Erik Agard, Neville Fogarty, Andy Kravis, Peter Broda, and Angela Olsen Halsted. The first tournament had a racing theme, the second had a prom theme, the third had a time theme, and this year was fashion-themed!

While I couldn’t attend the tournament, I did download the tournament…

In today's blog post, we talk about the Indie 500 crossword tournament this weekend!

That’s right! Tomorrow, June 2nd, will mark the fourth annual edition of the tournament, and registration is still open for $30, plus you can participate from home for only $10! Click here for details!

Not only that, but once again they’ve whipped up a meta-suite of puzzles to boot, and you name your own price for it!

I expect great things from the immensely talented team of constructors and…