lemonade disco
a crossword suite
lemonade disco publishes prompt-inspired puzzle suites six times a year. keep an eye out here for updates on the latest prompt, submission window, and release of puzzle suites.
you can find submission guidelines here
current prompt
past puzzle suites
#012 - tasting menu
howdy everyone! as always we’re pleased to welcome you back to another edition of lemonade disco. this tasty suite is a full five-course meal: five puzzles from five talented crossword chefs! grab a plate and dig into this all-you-can-eat buffet of delicious puzzle creations!
tasting menu puzzles
garrett herzfeld
Garrett Herzfeld, a Post Production Manager in Charlotte, NC, has had one puzzle each in The Wall Street Journal, LA Times, and Universal. When not constructing crosswords, he enjoys playing drums in bands (@petrovclt and @mindvac on Instagram), reading and collecting comic books, and spending time with his girlfriend and their dog Willa.
gimme some sugar
kaitlin hsu
I’m grateful for the people, words, and food that have nourished me over the years and the chance to share them with you, dear solver. At this moment, I’m also thinking of the Palestinians who have forgone Eid celebrations, who are still being starved by Israel, who are facing famine and genocide. Please consider matching my donation of $25 to this fundraiser by the Gaza Poets Society, which aims to provide food, life-saving supplies, and eventual evacuation for two young children.
side salad
click here to donate to the place referenced in the clue for 64-across
mike torch
When not constructing and solving, Mike is a Napa, CA based management consultant. When not working he enjoys: pickleball, hiking, scuba diving, underwater photography and most importantly to this month’s theme, food and cooking.
what’s cooking?
shannon rapp
Shannon is a co-director of the Midwest Crossword Tournament and an editor here at Lemonade Disco and over at Lil AVC X. Some of her recent puzzles include this themeless with Amie Walker at The Modern, this USA Today with Will Eisenberg, and her and Will's contribution to These Puzzles Fund Abortion 4. She believes in the power of crosswords to bring people together.
dinner and a movie
dylan schiff
Dylan Schiff is excited to share this treat with you as his sophomore effort with Lemonade Disco! He continues to work as a science educator and still spends his free time bowling, constructing puzzles, and editing Sporcle quizzes. Bon appetit!
value menu
#011 - now that’s what i call music!
hey folks! welcome back to lemonade disco. we’ve got a brand new suite to share with you all! seven puzzles, seven constructors: one music-packed edition of lemonade disco! we promise this pack is ALL HITS NO SKIPS, so sit back and enjoy - now that’s what i call music!
now that’s what i call music! puzzles
michael lieberman
michael lieberman is a lawyer and puzzlemaker who can often be found at the national zoo in Washington, D.C. with his animal-obsessed child.
turn it up!
jenna lafleur
jenna lafleur is a crossword speedsolver and occasional constructor from washington, dc. she enjoys listening to podcasts, sending her friends funny animal pictures, watching all of taskmaster for the nth time, and supporting her local music scene.
im the themeless you were chosen to deserve
joe rodini
when joe is not constructing puzzles, he is very often found belting it out at karaoke. in fact, he once placed in a karaoke impersonator competition, performing "once in a lifetime" as david byrne. he sings in the greater eugene, OR area alongside his partner and, if at home, his two cats.
prime numbers
maia mccormick
maia is a brooklyn-based crossword constructor, software engineer, choir director, folk dancer, sourdough enthusiast, and wearer of many hats. this is her first published puzzle! you can subscribe to updates, and find more puzzles of varying levels of polish here
classic(al) movies
dylan schiff
dylan schiff is very excited to share this puzzle with you as his lemonade disco debut! he works as a science educator and spends his free time bowling, constructing puzzles, and editing sporcle quizzes. happy solving!
heavy metal
dob olino
dob is a certified ethical hacker by day and certified anxious person by night. he loves coffee, his cat, and crosswords, and hopes to add another thing to that list someday *praying emoji*. he co-hosts a twitch stream with his good friend momes, which you should check out if you enjoy watching two people solve crosswords in a semi-fine fashion. he's appreciative of the lemonade disco team for accepting this puzzle full of some of his favorite *redacted* and hopes you enjoy the solve! *photo of Dob posing with a big fan*
shuffle play
will eisenberg
will (@TlMBERWOLVES) is a french horn player and music teacher in the twin cities. he is the current 3rd horn of orchestra iowa, and the reigning champion of the boswords themeless league choppy division. will is part of the leadership team for Lil AVC X in 2024. more of his puzzles can be found on the blog Half-Baked Puzzles.
if the puzzle looks funny, click here to solve it in a separate window
#010 - film festival
hi everyone! as always, a warm welcome back to lemonade disco, we’re happy to see you again. we’re thrilled to bring you this suite, packed with eight puzzles by nine constructors! we’ve rolled out the red carpet so please, make your way inside, but not without stopping for the paparazzi to get some glamour shots first.
now please turn all of your electronic devices to silent - the movie’s about to start!
film festival puzzles
marisa james
marisa james lives in portland, oregon, with her husband, daughter, and too many cats and dogs. her real job is drafting statutes as a lawyer for the oregon legislature, but she would gladly solve and construct crosswords all day if she could!
quiet on the set!
by: marisa james, edited by: shannon rapp
eric hougland
eric hougland is a retired attorney who drafted legislation for the texas legislature until 2018. he lives in austin with his husband, les case. they’re happy that his puzzle will finally have an audience.
dual roles
by: eric hougland, edited by: taylor johnson
brad lebeau
brad lebeau (he/him) is an avid puzzle solver who works in film and TV post-production and is based in los angeles. when he saw the theme for this suite, he knew he needed to submit a puzzle. he has recently entered the somewhat daunting world of cryptic crosswords, so he'd like to give a huge thanks to steve and the test solvers for getting this puzzle into shape. in his free time, you can most likely find him at the movie theater, at a concert, or at home avoiding his responsibilities by binge-watching the british quiz show only connect.
movie trailers
by: brad lebeau, edited by: steve mossberg
bob weisz
I love movies and I love crosswords! I think this might be my first themed grid? I find them super hard to make, but thanks to Dan, this was a delight! In other news, I publish a new cryptic mini every week at ye olde bloge: Tales From The Cryptic. Enjoy!
dan schwartz
dan schwartz is a person. his puzzles are found here. it was fun to collaborate with bob on this one! He basically did all of the work.
notable omissions
by: bob weisz & dan schwartz, edited by: shannon rapp
mike graczyk
mike graczyk is a math tutor from the chicagoland area. when he's not solving or constructing crosswords, he enjoys cats, coffee, his beloved cubbies, reading, logic problems, smooth jazz, spending time with friends and family, speaking about his hobbies in the third person, cats, and repeating himself. check out his blog with meta puzzles here!
let’s see a movie!
by: mike graczyk, edited by: taylor johnson
brian draa
hello, i'm brian. i'm a cryptic nut from pittsburgh, pennsylvania who has been constructing since february of last year. it was a great honor to get to work with steve, someone all of us american constructors look up to. this puzzle had been in process for a long time. i had originally intended to put it out for pride month this year (HA!). it's my first variety. i really have a deeper appreciation for steve's output now. i won't even tell you how many times i had to completely rebuild the grid from scratch before something coherent came together. if you like this puzzle why not check out my website, crosswordradio.com. thanks again to taylor, shannon, and steve!
drag show
by: brian draa, edited by: steve mossberg
kaye barton
kaye barton is a crossword streamer and constructor from wichita, kansas. she loves movies and filmmaking and couldn’t pass up submitting to this theme.
“this theme idea came from a dumb joke related to one of my favorite movies. i could have done something artful and poignant to really celebrate the craft of filmmaking, but you got this instead. It can’t all be cinema, right? #Scorsese”
plot twists
by: kaye barton, edited by: shannon rapp
taylor johnson
taylor (he/him) is a self-proclaimed crossword constructor from minneapolis, mn. he’s written crosswords for the los angeles times, universal, the new york times, usa-today, and crosswords club, among other venues. he also contributed to this ‘90s-inspired crossword book. he writes 50% of the puzzles for Squared Away, and is currently the crossword writer for DISPATCH.
some like it hot
by: taylor johnson
#009 - a day at the zoo
greetings everyone! welcome back to lemonade disco! we have a delightful suite of puzzles to share with you that we think will tickle you as much as watching belly-sliding penguins or ball-balancing sea lions. lather on the sun screen load up on giraffe food - it’s time to go to the zoo!
a day at the zoo puzzles
michèle govier
hello, I am from Ottawa, Ontario, and first took a stab at constructing crosswords two years ago after solving for many years. This puzzle has been kicking around in various iterations - obviously waiting until the moment the latest lemonade disco call-out went out with a theme that fit this puzzle perfectly. Thanks to Taylor and the team for the suggestions to kick it up a notch.
wild meetings
by: michèle govier, edited by: shannon rapp
bart gold
Bart Gold is a writer and maker. As a screenwriter Bart has written for Universal Pictures, Lionsgate and Dreamworks TV. Bart has been glimpsed on Conan, had the pleasure of playing a Star Trek geek in Brent Spiner’s web series Fresh Hell, and documents various build/maker projects on his own YouTube series Crazy Making Behavior. As a crossword constructor, Bart's work has been seen in the LA Times, Universal Syndicated Crossword, Spyscape, Crucinova and the Redstone Games app. www.bartgold.com
from the aviary
by: bart gold, edited by: taylor johnson
kaye barton
Kaye Barton is a crossword streamer and constructor from Wichita, Kansas. Kaye says: “This is my third lemonade disco puzzle, and first published cryptic! This puzzle’s meta was half-‘cool idea’ and half-‘blessed by the universe’, and came together a bit magically. It was a beast* to grid and clue and I’m so excited to finally see it in the wild*. Infinitely grateful to Steve for his trademark generosity in getting this puzzle to where it needed to be. I hope you love it!”
*puns absolutely intended
el parque zoológico minerva
by: kaye barton, edited by: steve mossberg
brian callahan
Brian Callahan (he/him) is thrilled to be making his lemonade disco debut! He’s a crossword constructor from Chicago who enjoys travel, spicy food, running, and spending time at the park with his terrier mix, Penny.
“The inspiration for this puzzle was 36-Across. I was fortunate that three of the five themed answers all had the same length, so I had a ton of possible grids to work with. This one allowed for some of the more fun bonus answers. Shout-out to Shannon Rapp for putting on the finishing touches!”
In addition to this puzzle, Brian’s puzzles have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, and New York Times (with *hopefully* more outlets to come!). Be sure to check out his mini- and midi-sized creations at oliogrids.com and crosshare.org.
it’s all happening at the zoo
by: brian callahan, edited by: shannon rapp
dena witkes
Dena Witkes may be the only constructrix immortalized in song. While 1980s TV Guides served as the gateway drug to a lifetime crossword addiction, she only recently delved into constructing. She is truly amazed at the altruism amidst the cruciverbalist community. When not puzzling, Dena can be found chasing rainbows
camouflage
by: dena witkes, edited by: taylor johnson
tim giannetti
Tim Giannetti (he/him) is a Spanish & French teacher from Central New York. When he's not teaching, coaching a robotics team, or playing volleyball, he enjoys coming up with silly portmanteaux to build crossword grids around over at crosshare.org. This is his first published puzzle, and would like to thank Taylor and everyone at lemonade disco for the opportunity and support.
the lion’s share
by: tim giannetti, edited by: taylor johnson
*preview puzzle*
michael lieberman
michael lieberman is a lawyer and puzzlemaker who can often be found at the national zoo in Washington, D.C. with his animal-obsessed child. the idea for this puzzle originated as part of a theme brainstorm with lemonade disco’s own taylor johnson. They ended up going in a different direction, but decided to dust this one off for this puzzle suite—especially after they realized they could put pictures in the grid!
oh my!
by: michael lieberman, edited by: Taylor johnson
#008 - party time
Welcome back to lemonade disco! We’re delighted to bring you EIGHT puzzles by NINE talented constructors. This suite marks lemonade disco’s one year anniversary - a momentous occasion, and all the more reason to celebrate! We wouldn't be here today without the support of creative and talented constructors, dedicated and thoughtful test-solvers, and really, the entire crossword community as a whole.
from all of us here at lemonade disco - thank you. you make this possible. we love the puzzles we’ve been able to share with you, and hope to bring you many, many more!
party time puzzles
Emma Lawson
Emma Lawson (she/her) is a crossword constructor and librarian based in Vancouver, BC. She has published crosswords in Universal, Spyscape, the LA Times, and the Inkubator, and regularly contributes puzzles to Toronto's new alt magazine The Grind. In 2022, she did National Crossword Writing Month (not a thing) and posted midis daily on her blog for a month. She loves grooming her rabbits and knitting socks.
Raise a Glass!
by Emma Lawson, edited by Shannon Rapp
Matt Forest
I happened to be ruminating on the phrase, "rise to the occasion," just before this prompt was announced for lemonade disco, and it seemed fitting for a Party Time theme. I extended the grid to fit 4 long theme answers plus the reveal, and I'm pleased that I was able to accommodate a fun pair of non-themed 10s. Hope you enjoy the solve!
Rise to the Occasion
by Matt Forest, edited by Taylor Johnson
Chris Evans
I'm thrilled to be a part of this puzzle pack, and I really hope you enjoy the cryptic I've put together. It's got something a bit more than my usual offerings...
Being a Brit, it can be hard to keep things fair for solvers on both sides of the pond, but I'd like to thank the superb work done by Steve and the testers in making this one fun and interesting no matter where you're solving from!
If you enjoyed this and would like to solve more of Chris' work, some of his work can be found here, with the guise Umpire.
Gift Exchange
by Chris Evans, edited by Steve Mossberg
Sean Ziebarth
Sean Ziebarth teaches high school English and journalism in Fountain Valley, California. He hosts a weekly freeform radio show Friday nights on Radio.3hive.com.
Natalie Tran
Natalie Tran is a student at the University of California, San Diego majoring in Molecular and Cell Biology. As an avid crossword solver, you can find her competing with her friends on the NYT Daily Mini Leaderboard, raving to her English teacher about the new crossword that just dropped, or doing crosswords just about anywhere, whether she’s on a long flight or at the beach. Aside from the crossword addiction, you can find her binging science-related TED Talks, reviewing new foods for her foodstagram, playing some tunes on the piano, or simply reading.
Sean: Natalie and I had collaborated on several crosswords for the school paper where she served as the editor-in-chief last year. We wanted to put a puzzle out into the wider crossword world before she split for college and when Taylor announced the "Party Time" suite we jumped at the chance. I shared an idea I had been batting around, but then Natalie said, "When I hear party time, I think [the circled word in 17-Across]." We had a sweet time brainstorming the other themers and making sure we could build a solid grid with them. Enter Taylor and Shannon who had the brilliant ideas of making the other themers fall down the grid and yanking the symmetry to add to the chaos. It took a complete rebuild, but it was well worth it, as we hope you'll agree. Beating around ideas with other constructors is the best kind of party!!
A Smashing Good Time
by Natalie Tran and Sean Ziebarth, edited by Shannon Rapp
Kaye Barton
Kaye Barton is a crossword streamer and constructor from Wichita, Kansas, who has four cats and a fake mustache. This is her second puzzle in lemonade disco and the first with a solo byline. The theme was resurrected from the "ideas that aren't working yet" pile and given new life with the help of the lemonade disco editorial eye! She's glad to finally see it in the wild and says, "Put on your party hats and enjoy the solve!"
Celebrity Costume Party
by Kaye Barton, edited by Taylor Johnson
George Ho
George is a data scientist and enjoyer of puzzles, based in New York. If you imagine a penguin on a treadmill, you have a pretty good picture of him.
Themed cryptics don’t get as much attention as I think they deserve, so I was inspired to shove as much theme as I could into this puzzle! I’m pleased with how it turned out and grateful for Steve’s editorial guidance. I hope you enjoy!
Hot Spots
by George Ho, edited by Steve Mossberg
Jimmy Peniston
Jimmy (they/any) is an ecologist and educator who currently spends most of their constructing time making midi puzzles for Lil AVC X and most of their non-constructing time preparing for a move from Florida to Alaska. Don't worry though it's from northern Florida to southern Alaska, so it's not that extreme of a change… right? Please say right?
Do You Want to Dance?
by Jimmy Peniston, edited by Shannon Rapp
Dan Schwartz
Dan Schwartz (he/him) is a new-ish constructor who has been in the LA Times, Universal, and mostly his own blog xwordswithbabka. He hopes you find this puzzle enjoyable, like a delicious cake made from scratch. He, his spouse, and their two ginger cats recently moved to New York; keep them in your thoughts.
Birthday Cake Remix
by Dan Schwartz, edited by Taylor Johnson
Shannon Rapp
Shannon (she/her) is a crossword constructor, enthusiast, and aspiring speed solver from st. louis, mo. she brings her wealth of experience in collaborating, mentoring, and test solving to her work editing puzzles for lemonade disco. you can find more of her work at various venues of note as well as her blog.
On the Town
written and edited by Shannon Rapp
#007 - game night
And we’re back! Welcome everyone to the seventh round of lemonade disco! We are delighted to share with you EIGHT puzzles written by NINE talented constructors. Pull up a chair, get out the timer, roll the dice, pour a big glass of LEMONADE and let the games begin!
game night puzzles
Ada Nicolle
Ada Nicolle (she/her) is a crossword constructor based in Toronto, Ontario. She publishes themeless puzzles on her Patreon Luckystreak Xwords, and contributes puzzles to Xtra, Believer Magazine, USA Today, and Crossword Club. When she's not making crosswords, she can be found performing stand-up comedy or hanging out with a friendly orange cat named Pumpkin.
Extension Pack
by Ada Nicolle, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Pixlate
Pixlate is a crossword setter hailing from Sydney, Australia. When she's making puzzles, she tries (and fails) to post them weekly on her blog. When she's not making puzzles, she enjoys taking a nap for once.
Casework
by: Pixlate, edited by: Steve Mossberg
Mike Graczyk
Mike Graczyk is a math tutor from the Chicagoland area. When he's not solving or constructing crosswords, he enjoys cats, coffee, his beloved Cubbies, reading, logic problems, smooth jazz, spending time with friends and family, speaking about his hobbies in the third person, cats, and repeating himself. Check out his blog with meta puzzles here!
Do the Shuffle!
by: Mike Graczyk, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Elise Corbin
Elise Corbin runs the crossword blog Cruciverbology, where she drops a new science-themed puzzle every few weeks. Elise has been published in The Inkubator, Fireball, Crucinova, the New York Times, and more, as well as creating FiveThirtyEight’s only crossword to date. You might know Elise as the creator of Election Tampering, published on the web during the 2020 election season. When not puzzling, Elise enjoys cycling, baking, and spending time outside. Follow her on Twitter @cruciverbology
A quick note - we think Elise’s puzzle is best solved on paper, so we’ve provided a PDF for you to download and print. For the best experience solver’s should pair up and solve separately. In order to “finish” the puzzle, both solvers should compare their respective answers for 15-Across. An explanation of the outcomes is posted below the puzzle here, so don’t scroll too fast!
Take a Chance On Me
by: Elise Corbin, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Outcomes explained:
SPLIT/SPLIT - both solvers win!
SPLIT/STEAL - stealer wins, splitter loses >:(
STEAL/STEAL - no one wins :(
Dob Olino
Dob (he/him) is a Certified Ethical Hacker by day and Certified Lazybones by night. He loves coffee, his cat, and crosswords, maybe in that order. He feels so lucky to have worked with the incomparable Kaye on this puzzle and hopes you enjoy solving it as much as he enjoyed constructing it! Check out his Twitch channel he hosts with his friend Momes here.
Kaye Barton
Kaye Barton defies categorization (i.e. has ADHD and can't settle on any one thing). Right now she's attempting to learn enough Japanese to be useful on a trip there next fall, but tomorrow she might also take up whittling (using the kit she impulse-bought last year and hasn't opened yet). One thing she does do consistently is stream crosswords and other puzzle games as kaybartplays on Twitch. She grew up doing puzzles in the newspaper with her mom and grandma, both of whom would find all this crossword stuff really cool This is her first byline (!) in an outlet that isn't her puzzle blog (or a collaborator's puzzle blog) and she's excited to share it with her good buddy, Dob! She deeply appreciates the crossword community for their endless advice, support, and collabs, and her husband Landon and their four cats for the snuggles (and for keeping the secret that the mustache is fake).
Mislabeled Game Pieces
by: Kaye Barton & Dob Olino, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Rebecca Bridge
Rebecca is a poet, writer, professor, mother, and freelancer living in Chicago with her two kids, husband, and dog, Mops. She has been doing cryptics (and sometimes throwing puzzle books against the wall in frustration) for years, but this is her first published puzzle. She will have another one coming soon at AVCX Cryptic.
A Totally PC Puzzle
by: Rebecca Bridge, edited by: Steve Mossberg
Jill Singer
Jill Singer is a filmmaker in the Boston area. She works to create media for museums with the design and production company RLMG. Like so many others, she took up crossword construction during the pandemic and has had some beginner’s luck with a handful of accepted puzzles at the New York Times, LA Times, Wall Street Journal, and Universal. Jill would like to dedicate this puzzle to her father, who taught her to love the game that’s featured here.
Tennis, Anyone?
by: Jill Singer, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Lynn Watson
Lynn Watson is a retired Publications Manager living in the Bay Area, California. She has been solving crossword puzzles for years, but only recently ventured into the fun and challenging world of puzzle construction. Now she is hooked and finds puzzle construction even more addictive than solving them. In addition to this puzzle she has created puzzles for LA Times and Spyscape. Lynn's other interests include photography, jamming on her ukulele and attending pub trivia nights with friends and family.
The Game’s Afoot!
by: Lynn Watson, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Kelsey Dixon
Kelsey Dixon is a crossword constructor from Chicago. She likes season 3 episode 7 of “The Sopranos”, whistling the harmonica solo from ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ (Album Version), and Big Red gum. She posts puzzles with some regularity at her blog.
Don’t Hate the Player, Hate the Game
by: Kelsey Dixon, edited by: Taylor Johnson
#006 - secret, secret
Welcome everyone to lemonade disco #006 - “secret, secret”. I’m stoked to report that this is the largest suite to date - EIGHT puzzles by NINE constructors! That’s a lot of sweet sweet lemonade to enjoy, so please, kick back and let us refill your cup. Happy solving!
As always a special shout out to our testers, as this would not be possible without their expertise and time. Big ups to: Wendy, Aaron, Kaye, Matt, Shannon, Greta, and Emma. Thank you so much!
secret, secret puzzles
Dallas Fletcher
In no particular order, Dallas Fletcher likes making: crosswords, poems, elaborate baked goods, memories with his dog Boba, anything with cheese, fun of nazis, and straight people uncomfortable.
What Are Your Digits?
by: Dallas Fletcher, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Lynn Watson
Lynn Watson is a retired Publications Manager living in the Bay Area, California. She has been solving crossword puzzles for years, but only recently ventured into the fun and challenging world of puzzle construction. Now she is hooked and finds puzzle construction even more addictive than solving them. In addition to this puzzle, her debut at Lemonade Disco, she has created puzzles for LA Times and Spyscape. Lynn's other interests include photography, jamming on her ukulele and attending pub trivia nights with friends and family.
Let’s Keep it on the…
by: Lynn Watson, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Evan Shapiro
Evan Shapiro is a sophomore in high school in Seattle, Washington. He’s the copy editor of his school’s newspaper, the Cleveland Journal, and its yearbook, Aquila. In his spare time, he reads, writes, runs, plays the flute, plays board games, and, of course, constructs crosswords. You might see him as Szeth_Pancakes on the 17th Shard forums or editing various wikis. He believes that if we’d just be kinder and more compassionate, the world would be a better place. He lives with three moms, two dogs, one cat, and one older sister, but not all in one house. You can find more puzzles by him here
Only YOU Can Prevent, uh, um, line please
by Evan Shapiro, edited by Taylor Johnson
Shannon Rapp
Shannon Rapp is a research administrator at Washington University Medical School in St. Louis, as well as a mom to two cats and one middle-schooler. This is her second appearance in Lemonade Disco. She started making crosswords in 2020 and has written puzzles for AVCX+, Lil AVC X, Crucinova, The Los Angeles Times, The Inkubator, Universal, Grids for Kids, and her blog. She also writes for Daily Crossword Links and Diary of a Crossword Fiend.
Will Eisenberg
-Will Eisenberg (he/him)
-Twitter: @TLMBERWOLVES (note: not "Timberwolves")
Will is a French horn player and music teacher in the Twin Cities. He is the current 3rd horn of Orchestra Iowa and a founding member of the Minnesota Horn Quartet. More of his puzzles can be found on the blog Half-Baked Puzzles.
Shannon and Will are frequent collaborators who also contributed a puzzle to These Puzzl3s Fund Abortion, which is now available for presale. Preorder puzzles will be sent March 28.
Curb Appeal
by Shannon Rapp & Will Eisenberg, edited by Steve Mossberg
Jess Shulman
Jess Shulman is a freelance editor and writer who started constructing crosswords in 2020. She's had a handful of puzzles published, including in the New York Times, Universal, the LA Times, the Inkubator, Crosswords Club, and the amazing Grids for Kids charity pack, and she has a few more coming up, including a couple of cryptics (her newest passion). She says, "I'm thrilled to be part of lemonade disco. A huge thank you to Taylor for helping me break through my theme-writer's block!" She lives in Toronto with her husband and two teenage kids.
Open Secrets
by Jess Shulman, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Kevin Weiler
Kevin grew up just outside New York City, and has enjoyed doing crosswords with his dad since high school. Now happily married living in North Carolina spending his days at home taking care of his daughter, he decided to give constructing puzzles a shot.
Shhh!
by Kevin Weiler, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Mike Graczyk
Mike Graczyk is a math tutor from the Chicagoland area. When he's not solving or constructing crosswords, he enjoys cats, coffee, his beloved Cubbies, reading, logic problems, smooth jazz, spending time with friends and family, speaking about his hobbies in the third person, cats, and repeating himself.
Just Tell Me!
by: Mike Graczyk, edited by: Taylor Johnson
This round’s preview puzzle is brought to us by Matt Forest. You might recognize him from his weekly blogging for Diary of a Crossword Fiend, or from Grids for Kids, a charity puzzle pack he organized and released earlier this year, OR you may recognize him from EVERY OTHER LEMONADE DISCO SUITE. Cheers!
Matt Forest
It's no secret that Matt is a fan of lemonade disco, having appeared in every installment so far. This month he is thrilled to present the preview puzzle for the suite! In addition to writing crossword puzzles, he enjoys spending time outside with his wife and kids. Check out his puzzle blog and hit him up on Twitter (@MF_wordz) if you want to collab!
Keep Quiet! (preview puzzle)
by: Matt Forest, edited by: Taylor Johnson
#005 - road trip!
After a month-long hiatus, lemonade disco is most pleased to bring you this delightful suite of puzzles inspired by the prompt: “road trip!” We have a talented slate of constructors to share with you all. As always thank you so so much to our test solvers for their continued efforts to fact-check and help polish these puzzles - hope you enjoy. Happy solving!
road trip puzzles
Alexis Viera
Alexis is a private investigator who is definitely not just two kids in a trench coat. Her favorite hobbies are (in no particular order) staring her cat in the eyes, hyping up her husband's most groan-worthy puns, and constructing cryptics. This is her second published puzzle, following an AVCX debut last year, and she hopes you enjoy it!
License Plate Game
by: Alexis Viera, edited by: Steve Mossberg
Yara Shaheen-Abuelreish
Yara has been solving crosswords for years and is just recently venturing into the world of construction. Incredibly recently actually; this is her first ever published crossword. She's looking forward to collaborating with more cool people and cruciverbalist-ing some more with incredibly specific pop culture clues that connect with other chronically online hotties.
Richard D. Allen
Richard D. Allen lives in North Carolina. His crossword site is here, his music site is here, and his Twitter handle is @ambivalentricky. He would like to shout out his co-constructor for concocting this puzzle's awesome theme. Constructors of any skill level interested in collaborating are encouraged to contact him via his website.
Xroads (Decisions, Decisions!)
by: Yara Shaheen Abuelreish & Richard D. Allen, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Matt Forest
In addition to his love for lemonade, Matt enjoys a good road trip. While in college he made two trips with friends to attend bowl games of his alma mater, Boise State University, one to Phoenix and the other to Las Vegas (don't ask which one he remembers more clearly). He also decided to pick up and move halfway across the country with his wife and dog a year after they tied the knot, and he's been living in Minnesota ever since! In crossword news, he recently launched a fundraising project called "Grids for Kids" which encourages people to donate to youth charities in exchange for a star-studded puzzle pack.
Open Streets
by: Matt Forest, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Sean Ziebarth
Sean Ziebarth teaches high school English and journalism in Fountain Valley, California. When he's not teaching he's printing up crosswords for him and his wife to work (they prefer solving on pencil and paper), trying to get his three children hooked on crosswords, and acting like he's 15 years old—skateboarding with his buddies and trying to break his personal record in Robotron. Sean hosts a weekly freeform radio show Friday nights on Radio.3hive.com
Road Ready
by: Sean Ziebarth, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Rafa Musa
Rafa has been in the crossword scene for almost two years now. When he's not filling grids or writing clues, he spends 100% of his time doting on his cat Georgia. A gifted multitasker, he also often dotes on his cat Georgia *while* filling grids or writing clues. You can find him on twitter here, or his puzzle blog here.
Road Trip Theme-ish (preview puzzle)
by: Rafa Musa, edited by: Taylor Johnson
#004 - oh oh, it’s magic!
Matt Gritzmacher
Matt discovered the indie crossword scene in 2016, and has a particular passion for test-solving puzzles. This is his second puzzle following an AVCX collab with Brooke Husic earlier this year.
Shannon Rapp
Shannon started making crosswords in 2020 and began writing puzzles for her blog in early 2021. Since then, she has written puzzles for AVCX+, Lil AVC X, Crucinova, LA Times, Inkubator, and Universal, with more to come. You can probably find her at the next tournament, talking up indie puzzles to anyone who will listen and desperately trying not to come in last place.
You may know Matt Gritzmacher and Shannon Rapp from their work at Daily Crossword Links. They say: "We've been working together and talking crosswords for well over a year, so the next step was obviously collaborating on a puzzle! We're so pleased that our first one gets to appear in Lemonade Disco. We both love the indie spirit of this project and are so appreciative of Taylor's commitment to including constructors of all levels of experience. We owe a huge thank you to Alex Boisvert for helping make this one work."
The Art of Misdirection
By: Matt Gritzmacher & Shannon Rapp, edited by: Taylor Johnson
Matt Forest
Matt Forest is a crossword constructor currently living in Minnesota with his wife and 3 young kids. He loves to write indie puzzles (so much so that he started his own blog, (check out his site!) and has also been published in the LA Times and Universal. If he had to pick a dark art to practice it would probably be voodoo, because making dolls might be fun, but then again he's probably not petty enough to stick pins into his enemies. Maybe like "good juju voodoo" where he uses the dolls to bring good karma to his friends? That would be cool.
Aaron Ullman
Aaron is a forensic chemist from the Philadelphia suburbs who dabbles in crossword constructing in between changing diapers and doling out Veggie Straws. One or two of his puzzles have even popped up in The New York Times and Wall Street Journal. He loves a good book, a crackly vinyl record, all things Cleveland sports, and knows firsthand about gerbil breeding.
Paolo Pasco
Paolo Pasco is a data scientist from San Diego, and a crossword constructor still from San Diego. Check out his puzzles at The Atlantic, The New Yorker, The Browser, and sometimes The New York Times. He's halfway through a Columbo watch, and he's gotta say, he's hooked.
#003 - rising signs
Matt Forest
Matt Forest is a crossword writer in Minnesota who loves to dance, as evidenced by his multiple appearances in lemonade disco. He likes to make indie puzzles (check out his site!) and occasionally submit puzzles to "legit" publications. Keep an eye out for his mainstream debut (it's coming!), and find him on Twitter until it implodes.
Jimmy Peniston
Jimmy Peniston is an ecologist and evolutionary biologist based out of Gainesville, Florida. They are currently studying how marine invertebrates disperse. After years of casually solving crosswords, they decided to try making one last year and quickly got hooked on constructing. You can find more of their puzzles here.
Glenn Cook
By day, Glenn Cook puts words to use as a content marketing specialist for a major North American construction company. By night, he uses them to solve and construct crossword puzzles. He has donated whole blood and plasma more than 200 times, and he's an avid fan of cooking, "Drunk History" and Arsenal FC. He lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, with his awesome wife.
Chandi Deitmer
Chandi Deitmer is a puzzler based out of Cambridge, MA. She is excited to have the preview puzzle for this round of lemonade disco, in her words: “Because it’s a super fun project and because, Taylor is a crossword bff, collaborator extraordinaire, ideal idea bouncer-offer, and generally good dude. Thanks for solving, pals!”
#002 - double feature
Kevin Weiler
Kevin grew up just outside New York City, and has enjoyed doing crosswords with his dad since high school. Now happily married living in North Carolina spending his days at home taking care of his daughter, he decided to give constructing puzzles a shot.
Ashleigh Silveira
Ashleigh is a former teacher and is currently a stay-at-home mom with two young children. She’s spent the last five years living abroad and moving with her husband’s job. They’ve been living in Dubai, UAE for the last two years and are preparing to repatriate back to the United States in the next few weeks. When Ashleigh isn’t chasing around her kids or crosswording (solving and constructing), she tries to squeeze in tennis, various fitness efforts, and reading.
Jimmy Peniston
Jimmy Peniston is an ecologist and evolutionary biologist based out of Gainesville, Florida. They are currently studying how marine invertebrates disperse. After years of casually solving crosswords, they decided to try making one last year and quickly got hooked on constructing. You can find more of their puzzles here.
Taylor Johnson
Taylor is the creator and editor behind lemonade disco. You can read more about him by clicking the “about” tab up top
“Is There an Echo in Here? (In Here… In Here…)” (preview puzzle)
written and edited by Taylor Johnson
#001 - cocktail mixer
Hi everyone, welcome to lemonade disco! We have five talented constructors for this round. Solve, enjoy, share, and celebrate the wonderful world of crosswords.
I want to take a minute to give a BIG THANKS to our test solvers, Norah, Chris, Kaye, Wendy, and Aaron. This wouldn’t be possible without you, thank you!
*GUEST EDITOR ALERT*
Steve Mossberg
Steve Mossberg (he/him) is the puzzle maker behind Square Chase and Square Pursuit, and a regular contributor to The Browser Cryptic. You can solve his non-cryptics where many of the best crosswords are found. He’s passionate about working with up-and-coming setters, and thrilled to be editing cryptic crosswords for lemonade disco.
cocktail mixer puzzles
Seth Bisen-Hersh
Seth Bisen-Hersh is a NYC based award-winning composer/lyricist/performer. Additionally, he's had multiple crossword puzzles published in the LA Times and Universal Crossword, with more to come. 2 Bachelors, MIT, Masters, NYU.
Emma Getman
Emma Getman is new to making crosswords but not to having opinions about them. She is from Upstate New York and is an urbanist by training, but getting lost in Central Park by choice.
Matt Forest
Matt Forest is a crossword enthusiast currently residing in Minnesota, with roots reaching back to the mountains of Idaho. He likes to explore the outdoors with his wife and kids, and occasionally kick back on the patio with an Old Fashioned. You can find him on Twitter @MF_wordz or check out his puzzle blog here.
Glenn Cook
By day, Glenn Cook puts words to use as a content marketing specialist for a major North American construction company. By night, he uses them to solve and construct crossword puzzles. He has donated whole blood and plasma more than 200 times, and he's an avid fan of cooking, "Drunk History" and Arsenal FC. He lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, with his awesome wife.
George Ho
George Ho is a data scientist based in New York, working to accelerate cancer research. In the puzzling world, he goes by Loplop, and his cryptic crosswords can be found at here
“Ohhhh, Zesty!” (preview puzzle)
written and edited by Taylor Johnson