Step Right Up!

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Puzzle Notes

Greetings Crossword Nation Friends,

"Whoever wants to reach a distant goal must take small steps" ~Saul Bellow

Though I'd been interested in puzzles since childhood, I started solving crosswords late in the game -- when I was in my 30s. Until then, I'd never really solved a New York Times puzzle -- but I was intrigued by the genre and set off to try my hand at the crossword game. Since Monday was the easiest day, I jumped into the shallow end of the cruciverbal pool -- solving, crashing, reviewing mistakes, keeping a notebook of words that were new to me (ELBA, ASTA, AARE) and hoarding grid clippings of my favorite puzzle writers. Little by little, step by step -- I learned the cruciverbal jargon, wordplay angles and sly midirections. CAR could sneakily be clued in question form -- [One for the road?] KEN could be Barbie's friend, a documentarian's first name, or a synonym for "understanding." I didn't time myself, but I did keep track of mistakes -- a discipline carried over from years of musical training. I learned the importance of looking at words from many angles. My progress was slow and steady. Whether I bombed or solved flawlessly, there was always the hope of doing better "tomorrow," when a new puzzle dropped. That's the beauty of daily newspaper puzzles -- tomorrow is another day! Now, on to our diversion . . . 

In today's puzzle, we're asking solvers to step up their game! Welcome to Week 690 of Crossword Nation. We cordially invite you to solve "Step Right Up!" -- our latest crossword. Happy solving and may you have a glorious week!

Thank you for subscribing to our little shop of puzzles. If you enjoy this crossword, please give it a good rating on Amy Reynaldo's site. Your positive ratings help us stay strong and independent! 

Cruciverbally yours and with respect,

Liz

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Solvers of The New Yorker puzzles: Please check out my most-recent crossword, described as "challenging" 

Mini Crossword Aficionados: For a quick solve, please try the Daily Mini Crossword in the L. A. Times. It's free! Simply bookmark and visit daily for a new puzzle.

Recovering Lost Puzzles: If, for some reason, our weekly puzzle email doesn't appear in your mailbox on Monday evenings, no worries -- you can always "re-send" the puzzle to yourself.

But first ....

  1. Please check the Spam folder. Sometimes the Crossword Nation emails are redirected to Spam folders. This can happen after a software or system update. If it's not in the Spam folder, then try Step 2.
  2. Visit the Subscriber Portal and Re-send the Puzzle To Your Mailbox. You can always send the latest puzzle (or any puzzle from our archive) to yourself. Visit here:

https://xwnation.puzzleanywhere.com/enable-account/

Choose the "Resend Puzzle" link at the bottom right of the page. From there, you can choose which puzzle to send to your mailbox! 

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If you enjoy our 'indie' Crossword Nation puzzles, please give them a positive rating on Amy Reynaldo's blog, Diary of a Crossword Fiend. Your ratings help keep our little puzzle shop independent and strong!

Ade Koiki blogs our puzzle every Tuesday. Simply page through Amy's blog to find the Tuesday blog posts. http://crosswordfiend.com/

Happy solving and be well!

Liz Gorski