![]() ![]() ![]() For a puzzle that in the 1970s held “belly button” to be too indelicate an entry for the eyes of solvers and gave little quarter to culture beyond opera and fine art, the Times crossword has come a very long way in a very short time, with some of its biggest strides to date falling within the past decade. Shortz notes with pride that cultural juggernaut and music star LIZZO will soon be making her debut as an entry in the Times crossword-with a double-Z name like that, who could resist? But Lizzo is but the tip of the cruciverbal iceberg. “I like the crosswords to be timeless,” he says, “so if a name is suddenly talked about but doesn’t have staying power, I won’t use it.” Shortz, like a lexicographer, makes the ultimate call on whether an entry is significant enough to include in a puzzle that people will still be solving in reprinted or archived form years after its initial run. (Ezersky also contributed a puzzle for the December issue of Smithsonian – solve it yourself here.) Their input helps the Times crossword fulfill its objective of reflecting in a fun way what people are talking about and how they are doing so. Given the demand for crosswords that can, in Amlen’s words, “talk to” younger audiences, as well as the prodigious volume of submissions to the Times (over 125 a week nowadays), it comes as little surprise that the 2010s saw Shortz enlist two assistants-Joel Fagliano, 26, and Sam Ezersky, 24-to help him with his selections and editing. Many of these constructors have gone on to submit their work to the Times or other leading crossword publishers, and Amlen is passionate about continuing to grow diversity in mainstream puzzles in the years to come. Amlen has been heartened in recent years by the rise of indie crossword communities all over the country focused on those historically underrepresented in puzzledom- the LGBTQ+ community, female constructors, and people of color. Indeed, this crossword fever extends well beyond the Times. The catalysts for this are many: the ease of access to puzzles online software that makes puzzle construction more fun and less daunting an increase in social networking and collaboration among both setters and solvers (as on XWord Info) and Deb Amlen’s Wordplay column, which she writes with an eye toward “helping those intimidated by the New York Times crossword get over their fear of the puzzle.” What’s come of this trend is a positive feedback loop of young constructors attracting young solvers who in turn become young constructors. “In the ’90s,” he says, “my sense is that the average age of constructors was in the early 50s. Will Shortz, the longtime puzzle editor for the Times, has observed a similar trend among their authors. “Historically, the audience skewed older,” says the Times’ crossword columnist Deb Amlen, “but I’ve met a lot of young people now who go to tournaments and really enjoy it.” The website XWord Info (originally the brainchild of puzzle blogger Jim Horne, now overseen by crossword constructor Jeff Chen) hosts a massive database of all Times puzzles dating back to 1942.īy many estimates, more people than ever are solving crosswords, and the puzzles are attracting new, younger segments of the population. The advantage crosswords have over dictionaries is that they can change much more rapidly-and the changes are far easier to detect, provided you know where to look. Solvers of the New York Times crossword-the mainstay of American puzzledom-have, over the past decade, borne witness to this evolution, whether they realize it or not. It is therefore essential that these platforms evolve, lest they become hopelessly out of touch with the real world. ![]() Rather than sacred scrolls, crosswords and dictionaries are mirrors held up to language that reflect how people are talking and writing at a given moment in history. Both crossword puzzle clues and Merriam-Webster definitions are crafted to reflect current usage, not to prescribe future usage. Crossword puzzles, like dictionaries, often feel like linguistic authorities, solemn gatekeepers with particular-and unimpeachably correct-guidance to offer on which words to use and how to use them.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |