Month: April 2024

Sneaky Six #18: Agree orally to jointly take on a case

Photo by Erika Fletcher on Unsplash

It’s funny how a shift in perspective can change how we feel about our work, no? When I started writing these, I was just thinking of how much more manageable it would be to write one 6×6 mini a week than it would be to write a full grid each month, but it’s basically the same thing. But even doing the math, realizing that I’m essentially writing a clue a day, it still feels more approachable. I think this goes the same for solvers, too: if you solve four midi puzzles a day, you’re basically solving as many clues as a full-sized grid, and yet it moves faster. Maybe that’s because there seem to be fewer places to get stuck, even if this is (I think) one of my harder grids? Maybe it’s easier to walk away from (or look up) answers in something that you might not deem a “real” puzzle? I don’t know; there’s probably a psychological term for this effect, and maybe I’ll put it in a full-sized grid some day, but until then, I’m going to keep “zipping” along with these.

Thanks to juff and skaldskaparmal for their great advice in the testing phase; you can find the final version in PDF form below or over as a .puz and in-app solve at Crosshare.

sneaky-six-18Download
by Aaron Riccio

Sneaky Six #16: One of 72 usually found in Republican-covering feed?

Photo by Kilian Seiler on Unsplash

My biggest problem with constructing and blogging these puzzles, small as they may be, each week is that I always feel like I have to be cleverer than necessary. Some part of that may be lingering imposter syndrome, or some might just be due to the community, which by nature is pretty darn clever, and I don’t want to say or clue something stupid or unoriginal. Even these little introductions get me worried that I’m starting the whole puzzle thing off on the wrong foot.

The solution to that, as with solving or writing any puzzle, is to stop thinking, step back, and just DO the thing. Nobody ever constructed a grid by contemplating doing so, and as I’ve said before, what’s freeing about doing a small weekly puzzle is that I don’t get nearly as bogged down in the “What if this isn’t good enough?” weeds that would stop me from ever releasing anything. Here’s what I’m trying this week, I hope you like it, and if you don’t, that’s OK, I’m still learning and I’ll be back next week with another, y’know?

Anyway, the new grid’s up on Crosshare (where you can also download the .puz if you prefer a different interface), and you can also get the PDF below. Shoutout to test solvers skaldskaparmal and Sophie and of course all of you other solvers for encouraging me to keep at this.

5ca80ac8-afb4-497c-b755-e3ec878b1b72Download
by Aaron Riccio

Sneaky Six #15: Having partied hard, one heads out to exit

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Having chosen to try and put out a puzzle each week—and just a mild 6×6, mind you!—I want to take a moment nearly four months in to voice my awe of those who really do this on a regular basis, producing full-length weekly puzzles (like the duo over at Out of Left Field, the Everyman, or Jack Keynes) or bi-weekly variety puzzles (like Steve Mossberg). I honestly don’t know how they have the time, but it’s downright impressive and inspirational. This is especially so given that they’re not really slouches in their cluing: every now and again I’ll spot an entry that seems familiar or which feels a little more pedestrian than I’d like, but it’s not like they’re just settling for any old clue. With just seven clues to do a week, I can already feel the temptation as (self-imposed) deadlines approach to just settle for a surface and submit; I can only imagine what that’s like when writing significantly more. That said, writing cryptic clues is as much a muscle as anything else, and I will admit that the more I’ve done it (along with the occasional test solving), the easier it is for me to find phrases or indicators that excite me and, perhaps more importantly, to dismiss cluing angles that just aren’t going to work well. And so, the experiment continues! Hope you enjoy this grid, which you can download as a PDF below or find over at Crosshare as a .puz and online experience. No test-solvers this week, by the way, so apologies in advance if it’s rougher than intended.

sneaky-six-15Download
by Aaron Riccio