Herre Schouwerwou author page
8 puzzles by Herre Schouwerwou
with Constructor comments
| A | T | M | O | S | T | A | S | T | R | O | S | |||
| R | E | A | C | T | O | R | S | C | H | N | O | O | K | |
| M | A | N | D | E | L | A | G | R | A | N | O | L | A | |
| A | L | L | W | E | L | L | N | O | W | F | I | T | ||
| N | A | I | L | S | L | E | I | L | A | T | T | E | ||
| I | D | E | A | I | Y | A | W | T | B | O | E | R | ||
| Y | R | C | G | N | U | O | R | P | S | |||||
| K | E | A | O | R | E | |||||||||
| P | O | W | E | R | B | R | E | A | K | |||||
| S | I | M | I | O | U | N | D | A | Z | U | N | I | ||
| A | N | I | T | A | T | Y | E | B | E | G | I | N | ||
| L | E | T | B | R | A | C | E | R | O | U | S | C | ||
| A | N | T | I | F | O | G | N | A | T | A | S | H | A | |
| D | U | E | D | A | T | E | I | N | C | I | T | E | S | |
| S | T | R | O | B | E | T | H | R | A | S | H |
I was happy when I got the green light from Joel on behalf of Will for this one. I had been playing with the reverse answer idea and was inspired by my drive into town. The crossword gods were cooperating when my revealer turned out to be 16 letters. Perfect for the center area with room for a decorative planter!
Finding answers that fit the intersections was not so easy. I wanted theme entries that were either car/traffic related or could be clued that way. Fortunately I found a few that fit and clued them two ways — auto-related and standard. Will and his team chose the standard route.
Hopefully you did not encounter any gridlock while solving, and the roundabout made for a smooth crossword journey.
| L | O | N | R | A | G | A | G | A | S | S | I | |||
| I | H | O | P | E | N | O | T | M | O | L | T | E | N | |
| M | C | G | R | E | G | O | R | I | L | L | A | S | K | |
| B | O | O | E | D | E | S | T | D | C | A | P | |||
| M | A | P | S | A | V | O | Y | F | E | M | A | |||
| P | E | R | S | I | M | M | O | N | K | E | Y | E | D | |
| H | O | E | N | A | I | R | B | R | R | |||||
| I | N | A | D | A | Z | E | B | R | A | N | A | G | H | |
| O | N | E | C | O | I | F | S | A | M | |||||
| S | T | E | L | E | P | H | A | N | T | A | S | M | S | |
| P | O | N | E | P | O | U | T | Y | J | A | M | |||
| L | O | T | L | A | I | R | R | O | Y | A | L | |||
| A | N | I | M | A | L | C | R | A | C | K | E | R | S | |
| S | I | T | A | R | S | H | A | M | M | E | R | A | T | |
| H | E | Y | D | A | Y | P | O | P | S | Y | S |
DISCLAIMER: No animals were harmed in the making of this puzzle.
I don't recall the exact inspiration for this puzzle, but I was probably hungry and noticed an animal split between two entries in another crossword. To limit the theme choices, I decided to use only animals in the current Barnum's box (according to Wikipedia) which were five letters or longer.
The other decision was where to place the revealer. I'm not a fan of center placement, and that would mean changing the grid to 14 or 16 squares wide or just having ANIMAL CRACKER which wasn't great. You can't eat just one! So I went with the "cracked" revealer that fortunately echoed the theme.
Will liked the concept but asked to remove some iffy fill and to replace HIPPO which was the only shortened entry. Of two revised submissions, the one that had the longest split entries was chosen over the one that had VEGANS crossing ANIMAL. Kudos to Will and Joel for the double "parked" clues for 49- and 50-Across.
Hope this satisfies your crossword snacking pleasure!
| J | O | S | H | A | B | A | S | E | E | G | A | D | ||
| I | R | M | A | D | E | M | U | R | R | A | G | A | ||
| H | E | A | R | T | S | H | A | P | E | I | M | I | N | |
| A | O | R | T | A | A | R | E | S | C | E | N | T | ||
| D | S | T | C | O | V | E | R | C | H | A | R | G | E | |
| A | L | I | N | E | M | O | I | |||||||
| L | O | L | I | T | A | D | O | W | N | H | O | M | E | |
| A | V | E | C | H | A | M | A | G | O | G | ||||
| B | A | C | K | A | W | A | Y | S | U | N | D | O | G | |
| C | E | L | B | I | N | G | E | |||||||
| A | F | T | E | R | E | F | F | E | C | T | N | A | S | |
| G | O | A | P | E | G | O | D | I | S | N | O | T | ||
| E | L | S | E | D | O | U | B | L | E | T | A | K | E | |
| N | I | K | E | E | N | N | U | I | A | S | A | P | ||
| T | O | S | S | W | E | D | G | E | R | H | Y | S |
The story began with a warm "Welcome" from Will.
My first accepted crossword now yours to fill!
After 30 months in the queue this grid is now here
To celebrate words and provide holiday cheer.
This festive poem is for the solver in you.
Happy Holidays to all even those without a clue!
The seasonal TASKS finished. ADS a thing of the past.
Santa's AGENT, SUPERMOM received guests at last.
She in her A-LINE. DANTE in his NIKEs.
There was ERICA and RYHS, JOSH, LOLITA, 2 Mikeys.
They did a DOUBLE TAKE. The buffet was so large.
Good SCENTs and sweet treats and no COVER CHARGE!
Green HAM AVEC OVA, her best DOWN-HOME dish.
TOSSed salads with OREOS, and even STARfish.
There were WEE plastic EPEES in WEDGEs of cheese.
EGGnog and MOO DEW, an assortment of teas.
We couldn't BACK AWAY. We noshed on and on.
Even then the ACRE of food was only HALF-GONE*.
"See we FOUND another way to clue that *word.
AGING folks ARE to be respected," mom politely DEMURred.
The BINGE was over. The AFTER EFFECT was felt.
ASAP as he could, SMART ALEC loosened his belt.
MOI, I read OGDEN NASH. Our LAB at my feet.
The children AGOG from too much to eat.
"EGAD! Holy COW!" Do BEHAVE ERE I GO APE!"
I gave them a smile and made a HEART SHAPE.
Then ENNUI set in as I stifled a yawn.
Neither RAGA music nor NAS rap helped me HANG on.
So up the STEPS I went, not a BEDBUG in sight,
To LIE ON A cot and sleep through the night.
When a gorgeous SUNDOG appeared on New Year's DAY
Everyone knew that 2017 would be A-OKAY!
| S | T | E | E | P | S | P | A | A | R | P | A | P | ||
| P | E | A | R | L | E | A | N | N | E | O | U | I | ||
| E | X | T | R | A | V | I | R | G | I | N | P | T | A | |
| E | T | S | Y | E | N | T | L | A | M | M | O | |||
| D | E | A | F | R | I | V | E | R | M | O | U | T | H | |
| O | R | T | O | N | V | E | R | S | U | S | ||||
| R | A | D | I | A | T | E | A | I | N | T | ||||
| D | I | A | P | E | R | S | E | R | V | I | C | E | ||
| H | I | N | T | T | A | K | E | S | I | N | ||||
| I | O | D | I | Z | E | P | E | A | C | H | ||||
| D | R | Y | M | A | R | T | I | N | I | S | T | L | O | |
| A | C | E | D | R | E | A | D | E | R | A | W | |||
| A | M | A | O | L | I | V | E | R | T | W | I | S | T | |
| J | A | R | R | A | K | E | I | T | I | S | S | O | ||
| A | S | S | A | V | E | R | S | A | N | K | A | S |
When life gives you lemons you make ... a cocktail. After rejecting 2 different drink-themed crosswords, this one was finally accepted.
Initially, the first puzzle featured MIXED DRINKS (WATER hidden in DESERT WARFARE, e.g.) but it did not pass the bar. The second one was similar to today's puzzle but Will and Joel felt there was inconsistency with the entry OLIVER TWIST. When I explained why it was different they agreed to take another sip. They suggested changing the order of the entries as well as having the revealer come before the garnish. We knocked back a few different recipes before arriving at this one (and even then they added a few flavorings of their own). I tried to strain out most of the gluey bits so I hope the few that are left don't ruin the taste of this crossword cocktail.
A toast to Will and Joel for their invaluable input. Cheers!
| H | O | P | T | A | M | A | L | E | R | O | A | R | ||
| A | N | I | S | P | I | N | A | L | E | D | G | E | ||
| H | U | N | P | A | R | T | Y | F | A | V | O | R | S | |
| A | S | K | S | T | E | E | S | B | E | R | E | T | ||
| F | I | D | O | C | U | R | S | E | S | |||||
| P | I | L | L | O | W | F | I | G | H | T | S | |||
| S | N | O | O | T | A | F | R | O | E | P | O | S | ||
| I | C | Y | H | E | R | O | I | C | S | E | W | E | ||
| S | A | D | A | M | O | L | E | O | C | T | E | T | ||
| P | O | U | N | D | F | O | O | L | I | S | H | |||
| R | E | A | R | M | S | U | N | I | T | |||||
| A | R | S | O | N | A | U | N | T | P | F | F | T | ||
| P | O | P | P | I | N | F | R | E | S | H | O | A | R | |
| I | D | E | O | B | A | D | G | E | R | U | Z | I | ||
| D | E | N | S | C | R | U | S | T | S | R | E | P |
This crossword comes almost one full year after my debut yet it was accepted just two weeks after. One clue from that puzzle ("Perfect night for a pillow fight") provided the seed for this one. I scribbled it down in my crossword ideas book and came up with a couple of dozen more P__F__ entries. By having a large selection to pick from, it made building and filling the grid easier — for the most part.
I realize that FARON might not be Monday fill but he was a big country music star in his day and is a nod to my dad who enjoyed country music. I can remember hearing Faron Young's songs on some "Decades of Country Music" collection that my dad had on 8-track. My music taste leans more to PINK FLOYD so I just had to include them to balance things out.
Here is what Joel had to say: "This sort of theme type can often be underwhelming, but your version of it works for a couple reasons. First, you have six theme examples, some of them interlocking, which is very impressive. Even better, though, you've chosen lively and fresh theme answers. The fill was very clean and easy, which was another reason we said yes."
Hope you agree with Will and Joel. Happy New Year!
| K | O | B | E | U | P | T | O | S | L | O | T | S | ||
| O | R | E | N | R | E | A | P | T | A | R | O | T | ||
| N | E | E | D | A | L | I | F | T | E | V | O | K | E | |
| G | O | F | A | R | F | I | R | E | N | Y | A | |||
| C | L | E | A | N | Y | O | U | R | R | O | O | M | ||
| T | R | A | L | A | L | A | N | E | O | N | ||||
| S | A | K | S | A | V | E | D | E | I | G | N | |||
| A | G | E | F | S | E | R | I | E | S | R | O | O | ||
| R | A | S | T | A | A | N | Y | R | E | N | T | |||
| O | V | E | R | R | E | V | E | N | G | E | ||||
| S | O | W | H | E | R | E | W | E | R | E | W | E | ||
| A | R | I | E | E | L | I | T | O | R | C | H | |||
| T | A | P | A | S | I | T | S | F | O | R | Y | O | U | |
| O | T | E | R | I | S | T | I | R | D | A | M | N | ||
| N | E | S | T | S | H | Y | P | O | S | N | A | G |
This crossword theme evolved from truck brands to typical pickup lines to what you see today. The puzzle was initially rejected because of theme inconsistency. Will liked the re-imagining of the pickup lines but not the entry COME HERE OFTEN, an actual pickup line that was originally at 52-Across. Seeing a glimpse of interest in the emailed rejection, I asked if he would accept a revision. Fortunately he said yes and I sent 2 new versions. Will chose the one that he preferred (I know — what other one would he choose?) and suggested a few minor changes to the grid. I clued it up and the puzzle was finally accepted on September 17th.
It was nice to see this reject become a yes!
| C | O | D | E | R | E | D | A | T | T | A | C | H | E | |
| O | R | I | G | A | M | I | G | E | I | S | H | A | S | |
| P | I | G | G | I | E | S | H | A | N | K | E | R | S | |
| P | O | E | H | L | E | R | B | A | R | E | R | D | A | |
| E | L | S | E | R | O | E | S | S | O | W | ||||
| R | E | T | A | R | B | L | T | S | W | E | E | P | ||
| D | O | W | E | L | O | F | L | A | T | E | ||||
| A | A | H | C | A | D | E | N | C | E | R | A | W | ||
| F | R | E | A | K | Y | H | O | K | U | M | ||||
| T | E | R | M | S | E | E | N | D | U | E | T | S | ||
| R | C | A | L | I | M | P | F | L | A | T | ||||
| T | S | K | T | H | O | R | E | A | U | F | A | I | R | |
| O | N | E | S | T | O | P | T | O | P | L | I | N | E | |
| W | A | R | T | I | M | E | A | L | D | E | N | T | E | |
| S | P | R | U | C | E | S | L | O | O | S | E | S | T |
Just a week after my debut crossword I got an email from Joel accepting this one without any changes. Will and Joel liked the theme and the "big, chunky corners" and said that it would be tentatively scheduled for a Thursday. That surprised me because I always viewed Thursday puzzles as having some sort of trickery as part of the theme. In the same email, another submission that I thought was Thursday material was rejected as being "a bit too crazy."
Will addressed my comments to him in his notes for the 2/5/2015 crossword, "In truth, though, at least to me, Thursday is just supposed to be harder than Wednesday and easier than Friday. That is all."
About half of the clues were toughened up to be Thursday-worthy. My submitted clue for POEHLER BARE was "Sensationalist headline for Amy's autobiography 'Yes Please'?". I was going for a more subtle approach to the word "bare" with it being more about her revealing details of her life. Will went the more direct route. Good thing that I didn't use "Kerr bare" — "Revealing cooking show featuring the Galloping Gourmet?"!
Of the clues that were changed, my favorite was "Paper work not usually done at the office". My favorite clue that survived the cut was "Skips the rite stuff?" (for ELOPES).
Hope you found this "air" apparent crossword to my debut to be the right stuff for your Thursday puzzling!
| C | U | L | T | S | E | A | S | T | T | S | A | R | ||
| A | T | E | A | M | U | G | L | Y | O | L | G | A | ||
| N | I | M | B | I | C | H | O | P | M | E | E | T | ||
| I | C | O | U | L | D | H | A | V | E | B | E | D | S | |
| T | A | N | E | E | R | E | S | T | O | P | ||||
| L | O | V | E | D | N | E | W | Y | O | R | K | |||
| U | N | P | I | N | A | L | T | O | V | E | E | |||
| H | A | I | L | M | A | R | Y | S | P | E | N | D | ||
| U | S | E | D | O | R | Y | S | O | R | T | S | |||
| H | A | D | I | N | O | T | L | O | V | E | D | |||
| P | L | A | N | T | K | I | A | C | A | M | ||||
| B | A | I | L | B | A | L | T | I | - | M | O | R | E | |
| R | E | P | S | O | T | O | H | D | I | N | G | Y | ||
| A | R | E | A | O | U | S | E | O | N | C | U | E | ||
| G | O | R | Y | T | M | E | N | O | T | H | E | R |
I am thrilled to make my NY Times crossword debut today. I live on beautiful Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada.
Crosswords have been a part of my life for a long time now but only recently have I taken a more serious approach to puzzle construction. There are three women who I want to thank: my mom for buying crossword books and letting me fill in a few, Jenni for introducing me to "Wordplay" and suffering through my early constructions, and Nancy Salomon for mentoring my first few submissions.
Today's theme came about while I was cluing my first accepted crossword (that first "Crossword — Yes!" email put a grin on my face for days). I wasn't too sure if Will would accept a quote puzzle but I loved the quote and its required punctuation (with an emphasis on 'pun'). And as luck would have it, it split perfectly into 4 long symmetrical entries.
Fortunately, Will liked it too but asked me to revise the fill since it had quite a few undesirable entries. I like that he works with constructors to improve the fill if he likes the theme. My original crossword had the author's name split over 2 entries and it was suggested to remove the name to allow for cleaner fill. After a few email exchanges, Will gave his grid approval and okay to clue. The final result is so much better than my original grid.
This has been quite the learning experience and I am grateful to Will and Joel (and Paula and Anna) for their feedback on accepted and rejected puzzles. This may be my first puzzle in print but it won't be my last.
And you can quote me on that!