Nautilus Puzzles

Been making some puzzles just for the blog, so have a pretty "loose" themeless. This one should play on the easier side, but honestly, the cluing is all over the place. (EDIT: Forgot to mention, this one was of course inspired by the rise of a banger 15 on Crosscord!) I hope to see some of you this weekend at Lollapuzzoola; my first time going in-person, and I'm excited and nervous to see what on earth happens. PDF PUZ

I'll see you all later today at Boswords ! In preparation, have a themeless with some extra Boston-related content. Enjoy, go Sox, wicked pissah etc. PDF PUZ

Got a puzzle in the New York Times! Play it here ; if you don't have an NYT subscription, you can probably figure out other ways to find it. This feels like a good opportunity to go a little more in-depth on my construction and publishing experience; some notes below! On constructing:  This puzzle started with the oversized groups of black squares in the corners, because I liked the look of those big pools of ink. How the crossword looks before you solve it is part of the experience! (I think it's like the plating of a dish at a restaurant, in an awkward metaphor I've tried to force before.) With this many black squares, I could afford a pretty low wordcount, and I'm pleasantly surprised at the quality of fill I was able to get. (ENIGMATOLOGY, most famous as the invented major of a young Will Shortz, was a happy accident, not an attempt to curry favor!) I started filling from the top down; I'm a big fan of conversational fill, and SOIGATHERED is one of those phrases

 Classic themed puzzle today! Pulling one from my vault: this one is on the easier side. Enjoy! PDF PUZ

 May Midi for you! This was a tricky little themeset that was quite difficult to make a grid for; all things considered, really happy with how this turned out. PDF PUZ

This is one of a few themes that came to me during ACPT, one of the most fun, bonkers, intense, and enjoyable weekends I've had in a while. I was the guy standing around trying to act like I knew people! I'm not good at introducing myself, especially when I immediately lose my nametag! See you all next year, when I'll have different hair. This year, my goal was top half: I got 111th, which feels like a sign that next time I'll be gunning for top 100. (EDIT: LMAO I've been telling people I got 111th, but somehow got confused: I finished 149th! Maybe I'll shoot for 111 next year and work from there) Thanks to Frisco for sharing a playlist full of music that fit this theme. This one should play on the easier side. Enjoy! PDF PUZ