Of course, Variety puzzles don’t need “saving.” Cryptics, Diagramlesses, and Acrostics have a long history and a rabid fan base. I mean I “collect” them, which even the New York Times doesn’t do anymore. And I don’t just collect them, I make them available on XWord Info, although I ask for money if you want access to them. Or better yet, buy the Sunday magazine, which has even more puzzles than I can provide.
If you love crosswords but haven’t explored the weird and wonderful world of Variety puzzles, I encourage you to give them a shot. They’re still word puzzles — no math involved — but they exercise different parts of your solving brain and provide different kinds of satisfaction when the pieces fall into place.
Community
Now that Wordplay has dropped its weekly Variety posts, there’s an absence of an on-line community which, in these modern times, feels important. I mentioned in an earlier post that there were rumors of a new Acrostics blog being prepared, and that now seems like it’s going to happen soon. More when it goes live. But Acrostics covers every second week, still leaving half the Variety puzzles without a home for enthusiasts to enthuse. Or complain.
My challenge for you
If you love Variety puzzles, or are interesting in finding out if you love them, why not start your own blogging career and cover the non-Acrostic puzzles? It’s low-cost (most blogs are free to create) and low commitment (one post every two weeks!) You could be on your way to saving Variety Puzzles yourself. Think about it.