Ed Stein author page
8 puzzles by Ed Stein
with Constructor comments
See the 24 answer words debuted by Ed Stein.
6 Modern Era daily crosswords by Ed Stein
| D | A | W | N | S | T | A | N | A | L | O | F | T | ||
| A | G | R | O | A | R | I | A | R | A | Z | O | R | ||
| R | O | O | S | E | V | E | L | T | A | M | O | R | E | |
| I | N | T | E | R | I | M | O | R | G | A | N | D | Y | |
| N | Y | E | R | O | O | T | H | O | S | E | ||||
| H | A | R | R | I | S | O | N | H | O | P | ||||
| C | O | M | E | T | S | M | A | S | W | O | R | E | ||
| O | B | A | M | A | D | O | G | T | Y | L | E | R | ||
| P | I | C | S | J | O | T | E | R | N | E | S | T | ||
| E | T | A | B | U | C | H | A | N | A | N | ||||
| D | A | R | N | Y | E | L | L | P | R | E | ||||
| S | T | A | T | I | O | N | N | I | E | L | S | E | N | |
| H | A | M | I | D | C | L | E | V | E | L | A | N | D | |
| E | F | I | L | E | A | T | I | E | C | L | E | O | ||
| S | T | A | T | S | A | D | D | N | S | M | E | W |
ED: This is the fifth puzzle I and Paula Gamache have collaborated on successfully — and the second puzzle created for a special day of the year: this one, Presidents Day — and April Fools' Day. If you want to construct a puzzle with a "holiday" theme, better make sure it's never been done before.
Our concept was "presidential trivia" where we'd start each theme clue with "the only president that…" Paula checked years of Presidents Day puzzles. We had a shot.
Next task: gathering pairs of presidents according to numbers of letters in their last name. And then how many could be jammed symmetrically into a 15X puzzle grid. We were able to squeeze eight presidential names — or four pairs — into that one puzzle with the fill holding it all together.
The theme clues had to be biographical nuggets, unique and interesting, so that the solver didn't know them right away. Not like "the only president with a 9' x 4' bathtub in the White House." TAFT. (Too easy.) Or "the only president to lose his wife and his mother on the same day." T. ROOSEVELT (Too grim.) Each, we felt, should be an interesting little fact, that the solver might say, "Gee, I didn't know that."
Also, just because you have a viable theme for your puzzle, don't take the fill for granted. The fill answers have to be a good complement to the rest of the puzzle and not be boring or trite.
Our puzzle didn't get accepted the first submission. We ended up submitting more presidential clues (back to the history books) and a whole new fill before it was accepted.
Unless you're dead, never say die.
| A | R | A | C | H | N | E | H | A | R | H | A | R | A | G | E | G | A | P | ||
| R | E | S | I | D | E | S | E | T | H | A | N | E | R | O | X | A | N | A | ||
| B | A | T | T | L | E | T | H | E | B | U | L | G | E | S | O | C | I | A | L | |
| O | T | O | E | D | E | A | A | M | O | E | B | A | G | E | N | T | S | |||
| L | A | N | D | P | L | E | N | T | Y | L | O | C | A | L | E | |||||
| L | E | M | A | T | B | O | O | K | T | H | E | D | E | A | D | |||||
| U | T | E | R | O | E | G | A | N | S | I | E | A | D | O | ||||||
| C | A | S | T | T | H | O | U | S | A | N | D | S | O | M | I | C | R | O | N | |
| L | U | K | E | A | U | N | T | S | E | A | R | N | N | O | T | R | E | |||
| A | S | I | O | N | C | D | E | C | R | U | I | F | T | H | E | N | ||||
| M | I | L | K | H | U | M | A | N | K | I | N | D | N | E | S | S | ||||
| A | D | O | B | E | S | L | O | A | D | F | A | I | R | H | E | F | ||||
| B | I | D | E | T | B | Y | O | B | B | R | O | N | C | S | O | Y | A | |||
| F | O | O | T | A | G | E | D | O | C | T | O | R | L | E | T | T | E | R | S | |
| A | N | G | A | F | B | N | O | U | N | U | P | S | E | T | ||||||
| B | E | S | T | F | R | I | E | N | D | S | C | L | E | A | R | |||||
| A | S | S | T | D | A | P | O | U | N | D | F | L | E | S | H | |||||
| S | H | O | R | T | S | P | R | I | T | E | S | M | A | A | S | T | O | |||
| H | O | R | T | O | N | O | R | D | E | R | T | H | E | G | A | R | T | E | R | |
| E | S | C | A | P | E | S | O | I | R | E | E | S | I | N | G | E | R | S | ||
| S | P | A | R | S | E | T | W | O | A | C | T | H | O | N | O | R | E | E |
| B | I | T | E | E | S | T | H | S | P | R | A | T | ||
| A | M | E | X | S | O | L | O | P | R | E | G | O | ||
| L | A | M | P | P | F | C | S | E | E | L | E | R | ||
| E | X | P | L | O | I | T | P | R | E | S | E | N | T | |
| O | M | E | G | A | O | D | E | T | T | E | ||||
| R | E | W | I | N | D | D | E | L | O | N | ||||
| A | M | A | T | I | I | D | Y | L | T | R | A | P | ||
| H | M | S | A | D | D | R | E | S | S | E | N | L | ||
| M | A | H | I | R | E | E | D | A | C | U | T | E | ||
| N | C | A | A | S | E | L | O | P | E | D | ||||
| V | I | A | C | O | M | S | A | X | O | N | ||||
| I | N | C | E | N | S | E | C | O | N | S | O | L | E | |
| G | L | A | N | D | D | O | I | T | O | V | E | R | ||
| G | E | S | S | O | A | U | D | I | L | A | S | T | ||
| O | T | T | E | R | M | I | S | C | E | L | S | E |
| B | I | O | L | B | O | S | C | H | M | A | C | E | ||
| R | A | R | E | O | R | T | H | O | A | L | A | S | ||
| E | M | A | G | B | R | E | E | D | S | H | I | L | L | |
| A | N | N | U | L | S | W | A | S | H | O | ||||
| D | O | G | M | A | S | A | P | A | G | A | T | E | ||
| S | T | E | E | R | T | R | O | U | A | L | M | A | ||
| E | D | I | T | T | E | N | D | E | R | |||||
| E | C | U | A | D | O | R | M | A | R | Y | A | N | N | |
| G | A | S | L | O | G | A | S | H | E | |||||
| A | R | I | L | S | E | V | E | S | H | E | E | P | ||
| L | E | A | S | T | M | O | C | T | I | L | D | E | ||
| I | O | N | I | C | R | U | D | E | S | T | ||||
| N | E | W | Z | E | A | L | A | N | D | E | V | E | S | |
| F | R | E | E | S | I | D | E | A | H | E | L | I | ||
| L | A | B | S | H | O | O | T | S | I | N | S | T |
| H | B | O | M | B | G | U | A | R | D | T | H | E | ||
| M | O | T | E | L | E | N | L | A | I | R | A | T | ||
| M | A | C | A | U | S | P | A | N | G | L | I | S | H | |
| D | E | S | T | E | R | E | N | T | A | |||||
| S | O | W | S | T | A | G | F | L | A | T | I | O | N | |
| C | H | O | R | T | L | E | R | I | M | |||||
| A | G | R | E | E | S | E | Z | S | H | O | O | |||
| P | O | R | T | M | A | N | T | E | A | U | W | O | R | D |
| E | D | Y | S | B | O | Y | N | A | N | A | S | |||
| F | I | T | T | A | N | G | E | L | O | |||||
| G | U | E | S | S | T | I | M | A | T | E | S | S | N | |
| U | N | L | I | T | E | R | M | A | S | |||||
| C | A | M | C | O | R | D | E | R | T | H | A | W | S | |
| C | P | O | P | A | U | S | E | L | I | G | E | R | ||
| I | T | S | S | P | E | E | D | Y | P | R | E | S |
| V | A | L | S | E | M | A | T | S | S | A | D | O | ||
| A | R | I | E | L | O | L | A | V | I | C | E | T | ||
| D | O | N | Q | U | I | X | O | T | E | M | I | L | O | |
| E | S | E | S | O | I | T | N | O | O | D | L | E | ||
| R | E | D | W | I | N | E | A | G | U | N | ||||
| A | V | A | S | T | A | R | L | E | T | |||||
| G | A | B | L | E | S | A | U | L | E | R | I | N | ||
| E | T | A | T | P | A | T | R | I | G | I | G | I | ||
| M | O | L | E | E | V | E | N | P | R | E | E | N | ||
| P | I | R | A | T | E | S | C | U | E | |||||
| M | R | E | D | C | U | R | E | A | L | L | ||||
| R | A | P | I | E | R | J | A | R | S | R | I | O | ||
| E | M | I | T | P | A | U | L | B | U | N | Y | A | N | |
| F | O | N | T | A | R | A | L | I | R | A | N | I | ||
| T | R | E | Y | N | I | N | A | T | A | N | G | S |
1 Variety puzzle by Ed Stein
| B | R | O | A | D | A | T | R | I | U | M | ||||||
| C | O | N | C | U | R | F | R | E | S | N | O | |||||
| C | U | T | T | L | E | B | A | M | B | O | O | Z | L | E | ||
| S | T | O | O | L | I | E | S | C | A | N | N | A | Y | S | ||
| S | E | R | E | N | A | H | I | S | S | N | I | T | ||||
| S | A | M | I | S | E | N | S | T | E | N | O | |||||
| O | S | H | A | B | O | R | G | |||||||||
| A | P | S | E | A | N | N | O | U | S | U | R | E | R | |||
| G | O | A | D | S | N | O | O | K | E | R | C | E | L | T | ||
| A | L | L | W | E | T | F | O | Y | T | K | Y | L | E | |||
| M | I | T | A | M | L | L | E | |||||||||
| S | P | I | N | E | M | A | Y | A | L | I | N | |||||
| W | I | N | D | L | O | T | I | S | A | A | C | S | ||||
| A | L | E | R | A | D | I | P | D | O | U | B | L | E | O | ||
| B | L | O | O | D | T | E | S | T | U | S | N | A | V | Y | ||
| O | R | E | L | S | E | T | E | E | V | E | E | |||||
| D | E | X | T | E | R | A | R | E | N | S |
1 pre-Shortz crossword by Ed Stein
| P | I | L | A | F | F | I | R | M | A | R | A | P | ||
| E | D | I | L | E | A | R | I | A | S | I | R | E | ||
| N | E | S | S | E | L | R | O | D | E | S | C | E | E | |
| N | A | P | O | L | E | O | N | W | I | T | H | E | R | |
| R | E | N | E | R | E | S | E | A | L | |||||
| R | E | W | A | R | D | F | A | S | T | E | R | |||
| O | M | E | N | S | T | E | N | T | S | D | D | E | ||
| M | I | L | S | C | R | A | G | S | A | R | E | A | ||
| A | L | L | C | A | U | S | E | S | T | O | A | S | ||
| I | M | A | R | E | T | P | A | T | E | N | T | |||
| S | N | A | R | E | D | L | A | N | A | |||||
| E | N | G | I | N | E | P | O | S | T | C | A | R | D | |
| D | I | T | A | N | N | I | E | O | A | K | L | E | Y | |
| I | D | O | G | E | A | T | S | F | E | I | G | N | ||
| T | E | N | E | D | N | A | S | E | R | A | S | E |