Blog du Wren

Cover Story of the Skagit Valley Herald

I've posted a number of times here on BdW about small town newspapers and the occasions I have appeared. I even have a series of posts called "Minor Media Mentions" where I capture for posterity the occasional photos or blurbs that make it to various print media outlets. This latest, however, doesn't feel like it quite fits the category "Minor". Recently, a about me and my crossword endeavors was featured on the front page of the Skagit Valley Herald.

The SVH runs the Universal crossword, which, up until this past year, was a somewhat of a throw away puzzle constructed and edited by a persona non grata. Then editorship was taken over by David Steinberg, a great editor I've worked at the Orange Country Register and the Puzzle Society. This allowed for some of my puzzles to appear in the paper, which I thought was neat, something a small town paper might be inclined to point out—"Today's crossword is by area man" or whatever. So I pitched the idea when I had a puzzle coming out. To make a long story short, this article is what came of the pitch, notably not in conjunction with one of my puzzles. In fact, it doesn't even mention having a puzzle in the SVH, which was the pitch in the first place.

I can't deny that it is nice to have a feature story about me on the front page of my town's newspaper (albeit with a less than flattering photo). It feels like a neat nod to this thing I do. It would have been great if things could have come together to have the feature run with a puzzle, but I guess you can't have it all. If you want to try some of my puzzles, I've started a bit of a resume, as it were. Here's to hoping it keeps growing.

Monday September 23 2019

File under: media, crossword

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My Second NYT Crossword

Last month, I had my second New York Times crossword puzzle published! It was a Tuesday with what I thought was a quite clever theme. I promptly and proudly added it to my crossword . And while the wall continues to get filled, getting an NYT is always a thrill!

The thrill of this NYT, however, was a bit tempered. On its publication day, I immediately checked out the reviews (#2). They were not good. I comforted myself with the fact that the puzzle wasn't geared for hardcore cruciverbalists, but instead, as Tuesdays should be, it was more for the beginner. The occasional review comment did step to my defense, but overall, the wind was a bit out of my sail. On the upside, some of the criticism was fair and I trust that it will help me make better puzzles in the future.

If you want a chance to make up your own decision, the puzzles runs in syndication today, so it can be found in papers across the country (and world!). Or, if you're happening upon this post days* later, here's a PDF copy*.

As kind of a neat coincidence, it just so happened that I had a puzzle in the USA Today that very same day! It makes my 6th or so USA Today puzzle, so the thrill is a little less, but neat all the same. Three cheers for being a published crossword constructor!

Tuesday May 22 2018

File under: crossword

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Five years of the ACPT

This year marks the 5th year I've attended the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. I've never been under the delusion that I had any chance of actually competing at the competition, but instead go to schmooze, network, and be surrounded by people for whom an enjoyable day is spent inside a ballroom doing crosswords silently: in other words, my people.

I figured five years is enough to start tracking my progress (after all, what fun is collecting data if not to be able to analyze it), but first, a report on this year. I finished 366th out of 675, putting me in the 47th percentile. I aced 4 out of 7 puzzles, with just one dumdum mistake on . Without that silly mistake, I would have jumped up to the top half, my very attainable goal. Puzzle 5 destroyed me this year, part of which I attribute to the fact it was written not with solvers in mind, but to outsmart Dr.Fill, the crossword solving computer program. I'm sore about it, but the puzzle was actually really good. I got to chat up some old friends and say hi to some of my editors and get some suggestions on where to submit new puzzles to. Overall, it was a good time, if not remarkably so.

When asked about how it went, I find myself responding, "Oh, about like always." And the data seems to support that theory. Here is a chart of my performance for the past 5 years. After a year or two getting comfortable with the format and pressure*, and with the fluke of acing Puzzle 5 in 2016,

I can usually count on ending up just barely below the middle. Granted it's not a brag-worthy place to be, but being that these are the best solvers in the world, and I'm just merely a guy with a hobby, I don't feel so bad.

And while I don't feel so bad about my ranking, it sure would be neat to do a little better. And that's what will drive me back again: I would like to get 6/7 perfect puzzles and finish in the top 40%, both of which seem doable. Who knows, maybe I'll even get a mini-trophy for doing well in my category (affectionately called the "At-least-they-tried"s)

With crosswords becoming a bigger and bigger part of my life (and livelihood), attending the tournament was kind of a no brainer. It is a little oasis of nerdiness in this otherwise cool world, and I for one love it.

Friday March 30 2018

File under: crossword

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My First USA Today Crossword

In today's USA Today newspaper, if you look on page 4D, you might find a familiar name...ME!! It's my first USA Today crossword and I'm very excited to have it published. The USA Today having one of the highest daily circulations in the country, it means that there are people in hotels, airports, and Starbucks all over the country that might be cursing my name and that makes me smile. Just kidding. I like to think either that they stop and appreciate the puzzle and maybe even glance at my name, or in the very least, think it no better or worse than the other puzzles they've done and that it sufficiently filled their time.

[Spoiler Alert] About this puzzle in particular, my theme idea started out somewhat different than what made it to the page. I proposed "DROP THE BALL", as in screwing something up but the editor liked "DROPPED BALL" better. While I think it is a less common phrase which makes the theme slightly less strong, I'm definitely not the one with years experience putting puzzles out to the world on such a huge scale, so I was definitely inclined to defer. In addition to the theme change, there were the wealth of cluing changes (that even make it hard for me to complete my own puzzle!) As I work more with an editor, I get more in tune with their style. Luckily, I think this USA Today relationship will be one where I get that chance! I've gone another puzzle in the pipes and submitting another one today!

As with all my puzzles so far, I've this for inclusion on my Wall of Puzzles* which keeps on growing! Does that mean someday I'll have to stop framing every puzzle? Or I could just buy a bigger house. We'll have to see when it gets to that point. Stay tuned!

While I always encourage you to go out and support the media that supports crossword creators, I know that isn't always possible. So here's a PDF copy of the puzzle (also available at puzzles.usatoday.com/crossword

Thursday September 21 2017

File under: crosswords

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ACPT 2017-Tournament and Talent Show

In what has become a lovely yearly habit for me, I recently attended the 2017 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament out in Stamford, CT. With it being my 4th year, I now know my way around the tournament and hotel, have met some great people that I always look forward to seeing year after year, and have some helpful data to see the progress my solving skills are making. But overall, I just have a lot of fun.

First, the progress: This year, I finished , putting me in the 54th percentile, my second best showing. Besides one stupid error (which cost me about 20 places in the rankings), I don't feel bad. The puzzles were decidedly harder this year. As usual, destroyed me with a super complicated double theme. , supposedly an easier one, left me somewhat flummoxed with names of elements I've never heard of. Puzzles , , and I aced and had just 1 square wrong on each of and . So, overall, I'm not displeased—room to improve but still a strong enough showing.

But the real fun of the tournament, for me at least, was the talent show. Since my first trip to the ACPT, I've been brewing this act combining my love of juggling and love of crosswords. This year, after poking at it here and there over the years, it all came together and I had a chance to present it. It was a hit, with people really appreciating the nerdiness as much as the talent. I'm excited to work out the kinks and get a few more run throughs to really solidify it. Then the hope is to add it to our upcoming summer shows. I'm sure the reception won't be nearly as great as it was with a room full of hardcore crossworders, but hopefully it will stand on its own. See for yourself!

Thanks to all who made the ACPT such a fun and successful event! Hope to see you all again next year!

Thursday March 30 2017

File under: crosswords, video, juggling

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My Crossword in the Orange County Register

Recently, I had one of my crosswords published in the Orange County Register family of papers down in Southern California, my 9th-ish puzzle publication to date. While the paper doesn't have the circulation of the NYT or WSJ therefore not quite the prestige (or payday) of having a puzzle published, I still feel proud and honored to have a puzzle featured.

We have all heard how tough the newspaper publishing industry is these days. Perhaps because of that, most papers run only syndicated puzzles from one of a very few syndicates, meaning the market for crossword constructors is rather small. The Orange County Register bucks this trend and publishes its own puzzle weekly. It is a great counterpoint to the highly competitive other venues from a constructor's point of view. Additionally, working with the editor, David Steinberg, was really great. All around, just a great thing they've got going there.

One of my favorite parts of getting a puzzle published is framing it up for my ever-growing crossword wall. Since puzzle creation isn't much of a money maker (making up only 3.3% of my yearly income last year (details here)), it is having these reminders of my accomplishment that helps keep me cranking at the rather tedious process of making puzzles. And while the wall is filling up, I've still got enough space to keep striving to get more puzzles published. I've got my hopes high for the upcoming year. As always, stay tuned here for any developments.

Oh, and if you want to do my latest puzzle and don't live in the OCR distribution area, download a copy here to print at home. It also features a neat bio and picture, a real neat personal touch!.

Saturday February 11 2017

File under: crosswords

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My Crossword Resume Grows

Just this week, Simon & Schuster Mega Crossword Puzzle Book #16 was released and contained 2 of my puzzles! It's my first puzzles published in book form and, while no NYT or WSJ, it's still exciting. The book contains puzzles by well known names in the industry*. If you've been meaning to re-up your crossword game, pick yourself up a copy (preferably from your local bookstore, but here's the amazon link just in case).

This represents my seventh published venue for a puzzle:

Every time I have a puzzle published, I get a little giddy. It represents so much to me: accomplishment of a goal, persistence, recognition that what I've made is worthy, and so much more. Each new venue is another notch on that accomplishment list, and it just makes me smile. I've got my sights set on the next puzzle and the next venue, so stay tuned. In the meantime, go do a crossword.

Thursday November 17 2016

File under: crosswords

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Wall Street Journal Crossword

Today I got another big notch in my crossword bedpost with my first Wall Street Journal puzzle. Coming shortly on the heels of my big NYT puzzle debut last week, it has a week of crossword accomplishments that has been so fun to sit back and enjoy.

A fun little story behind this Wall Street Journal puzzle: I have had my eyes set on getting a WSJ puzzle published ever since they started doing daily puzzles about a year ago*. While out at the Crossword Tournament this spring, I made a point to seek out Mike Shenk, the WSJ puzzle editor, and shake his hand in hopes it might get my name noticed when my puzzle crossed his desk. He explained that it wasn't him that did the culling, but he'd try to mention me to his assistant who did. Sure enough, 2 weeks later, I got the e-mail with my puzzle's acceptance. Whether or not my deliberate socializing helped my puzzle or if it was accepted on its merits alone, I'll never know. But it's a fun story nonetheless.

As always, I encourage you to support the people and publications that support crossword creators by going out and buying a copy of the puzzle. It's in today (June 7th, 2016) Wall Street Journal. But if you missed your chance, you can download a copy of the PDF here. Once you've done the puzzle (or if you get stuck), you can go read the review/solution at Diary of a Crossword Fiend. This one also got a gereally encouraging review, which started with the awesome line "Wren Schultz completes the hat trick today for getting a puzzle published in all three major dailies".

This crossword publication thing is pretty neat. Knowing that there are people out there doing (and hopefully enjoying) something that I've created and worked hard on really makes me feel great. And so much because of that, I hope to keep creating crosswords and getting them published. Stay tuned!

Wednesday June 8 2016

File under: crosswords

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My First New York Times Crossword Puzzle

Today is a big day in my world—like really big. Today is the day my first crossword gets published in the New York Times. This is like getting drafted by your favorite NBA team (but with way less money). Or winning the lottery (but with way less money). Or performing on stage at Carnegie Hall (but, again, with way less money). This is a dream come true, an accomplishment that I've diligently worked towards and finally achieved.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. All the mushy stuff aside, it's still pretty neat. It was over 3.5 years ago that I first submitted a puzzle to the NYT (post here). Since then, I've gotten puzzles in various other publications (L.A. Times, Chronicle of Higher Ed (twice!), Uptown Puzzle Club) and learned lots in the process (through the help of some really great editors). This puzzle was maybe my fourth NYT submission (and actually a reworking of a previously submitted theme) and an idea I've been stoked on for a long time. So 11 months after I printed it out and sent it in, here we are.

Crossword folks always want the juicy details of what crossword creation and getting published is like. And while they might not be at all juicy, here are a few details. NYT pays $300 for a daily crossword. (Others generally pay less.) This crossword probably took me 40+ hours to create (accounting for making the rejected first version and the totally reworked second version, cluing, printing, communicating, etc.). That works out to less than minimum wage. The editor has final say on the grid and clues. Will Shortz (the NYT puzzle editor) changed one square in the grid and about 80% of the clues. That's his job, to tweak clues to account for difficulty, audience, style, etc. And I get that. But some of the clues I liked better before (ex: mine: Great Scott! vs. his: Scott in 1857 news* or mine: Glass with glasses vs. his: Part of a financial portfolio (for short)*. It's kind of funny, not really understanding all the clues to your own puzzle. But that's the way the game works, and as I get more savvy, I'm sure my clues will be tweaked less and less.

Another really neat thing about this experience is all the attention my puzzle gets out in the blogosphere. I'm writing this the night before it comes out and I've already read 4 reviews, all of which were more good than bad (xwordinfo.com, NYTs Word Play blog, Diary of a Crossword Fiend, and Rex Parker). I was actually pretty nervous about these reviews as my last puzzle (in the Chronicle of Higher Ed) got somewhat panned in its review, but I was really pleased with how this one was received. (I think it helped that many of the reviewers are constructors themselves so can appreciate the difficulty of the theme.)

So now you want to do the puzzle, eh? What, you mean you weren't waiting for Starbucks to open so you could pick up your copy of the NYT? That's okay. You can download the PDF of the puzzle here (but I do encourage you to support those who make the puzzles possibly by buying a paper every now and again). The puzzle will also run in syndicated version in about 5 weeks, so you can catch a copy of it then too.

Wednesday June 1 2016

File under: crosswords

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Chronicle Crossword Number 2

Earlier this month, I had a crossword published in the Chronicle of Higher Education (my fifth published puzzle for anyone that's counting). While it was my second puzzle with CHE (the first being Pi Row Technics last Pi Day (covered here)), it was my first with them to actually get printed (since the previous one coincided with an online only publication).

The publication of this puzzle coincided perfectly with the crossword tournament. It was neat, when chatting with people, to mention "Did you see today's CHE puzzle? Yeah, I did that." (No one had, but that's okay.) It was also neat to shake hands with the editor (best. editor. evar.) and discuss the review* .

Since I am still relatively new at this crossword publishing thing, the novelty of having something I made be printed for millions—okay, hundreds—to solve hasn't worn off (and possibly never will). To this end, I wanted to track down a copy to frame for my wall and save for posterity. This task proved much more difficult than you might think. Visits and calls to university book stores, news and magazine stands, and university libraries all turned up empty. While it was a fun exercise in pre-internet sleuthing, it was a bit of a let down, not only because I wanted to see my handy work in print, but also knowing that there are so few copies out there for people to solve*. I ended up getting a university library (one of the few to carry it) to set aside a copy that they can give me instead of throwing away at the end of the month. Luckily, after all the running around, the magazine itself sent me a couple copies so I've at least got the wall hanging copy worked out.

With all this analysis, I can only imagine you're now ready to have a crack at the puzzle yourself. Download the PDF of "Code of Silence" here. Or if you want the .puz file, go to the Chronicle's Crossword Page. I hope you enjoy!

Tuesday April 12 2016

File under: crosswords

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