Happy Labor Day! The theme of Puzzle 5 is an item from pop culture, and I’m being vague for a good reason.
This is a minor spoiler, but this puzzle features my first “& lit.” clue. Most cryptic crossword puzzle clues have two parts – the definition, and the clue in the form of wordplay. In an & lit. clue, the wordplay also supplies the definition.
I was inspired by an amazing puzzle by Will Nediger, written for Joon Pahk’s Outside the Box variety puzzle subscription. Will’s cryptic crossword puzzle consists of nothing but & lit. clues. Joon’s puzzles require a subscription, and they are easily worth it. Go here for more details. Despite solving cryptics for a couple of years, I never really “got” & lit. until I solved Will’s puzzle.
Use Your Mind (PDF)
Use Your Mind (Across Lite)