Tuesday, December 31, 2013

2013 Wrap Up Word Search



Figure out the word list from the clues below, then find the words in the grid.
The remaining letters will spell out a famous quote and speaker from 2013.





·         M. Night Shyamalan/Smith Family bomb
·         Anthony Wiener’s alter ego
·         Manti Te’O was a victim of it
·         Google thumb-sized gizmo that actually works the way it’s supposed to
·         Dance craze of 2013
·         Superhero bomb
·         Yahoo! CEO
·         Twerking singer of “We Can’t Stop”
·         Baby born to Kim and Kanye
·         Magic crime thriller
·         Will Farrell character
·         Rebecca Black’s sequel
·         SyFy 2013 movie
·         Online black market that was shut down in 2013
·         Message service
·         Texas State Senator who filibustered an anti-abortion bill
·         Edward Snowden, famously



Sunday, December 29, 2013

Things to Look Forward to in 2014

There's so much to look forward to in 2014, this week's puzzle is extra large. Happy New Year!

https://sites.google.com/site/stearswords224/home/free-crosswords/things-to-look-forward-to-in-2014/2014%20Puzzle.pdf?attredirects=0&d=1

  • Click here to see the answer grid. *Check back on Friday, January 3 to see the answer grid.

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Check out my Tumblr makeover!

Thanks to StearsDaughter, my Tumblr blog looks amazing!

http://stearswords.tumblr.com/

Friday, December 20, 2013

StearsWords Volume 3: The 100th Anniversary Collection

The modern crossword puzzle turns 100 years old on December 21, 2013, and StearsWords has the perfect way to celebrate: with a collection of 100 themed crossword puzzles for only $1.00.

The collection features 85 daily-size (15x15) and 15 Sunday-size (21x21) previously unpublished crossword puzzles.

It's my gift to the crossword community. But don't buy more than one; StearsWords puzzles are not copyrighted, so share them with your friends!





https://sites.google.com/site/stearswords224/home/buy-stearswords-crossword-puzzle-books


Did you know that members of Team StearsWords are eligible to receive this collection for free? Join the team now! Send me an email, and get free weekly crossword puzzles and more.

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Christmas Crossword Card

The Christmas spirit is still strong within me. This week, an actual Christmas card with a crossword puzzle. There's a message in the puzzle, which makes it perfect for printing and sending to your favorite puzzle fan(s). As usual, it's copyright-free, so share it as much as you want. It prints double-sided on one page; fold it in half to make it a card. Scroll to the end of the page to see the holiday message.

https://sites.google.com/site/stearswords224/home/free-crosswords/christmas-crossword-card/Christmas%20Card.pdf?attredirects=0&d=1

SPOILER ALERT!!






*The message inside the card reads: I WANTED TO SEND/SOMETHING EPIC/BUT THE MAILMAN/COULDN'T LIFT ME

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Easiest Contest Ever almost over!

The Easiest Contest Ever ends tonight at midnight. Tomorrow morning, I'll announce the five lucky winners, who will each receive a signed copy of "StearsWords: Volume 1." Winners will be chosen randomly from whoever sends me an email.

It really is that easy. Send an email to robinstears@gmail.com, tell me why you like crosswords, or what you like about crosswords, or why you want a free crossword puzzle book.

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

The "Whatever Crosses My Mind" Part

Since I started StearsWords over a year ago, I've been hearing quite a bit of advice from just about everyone.

"You should put ads on your site."

No, I shouldn't. I hate ads. Everyone hates ads. I will never put ads on my site.

"You should put more pictures on your site."

No, I shouldn't. Pictures take more time to load than text. My site is deliberately very plain, without fancy-schmancy formatting and time-wasting .gifs. You want sizzle? Go to a Disney website. You want steak? My site has well-done crossword puzzles, and that's all.

"You should blog every day."

No, I shouldn't. I don't have that much to say, and I believe, if you don't have anything to say, you shouldn't say it.

"You should charge more for your puzzles."

No, I shouldn't. The ones I put on my site, and the ones in my digital collections, don't take me very long to make. I spend much more time on the ones I send to newspapers and magazines. I don't agonize over every word and clue in my StearsWords puzzles the way I do when I'm really getting paid. They're great puzzles, entertaining and fun, but I'm the first to admit, they're not my best work. They're more like my better work. The exceptions are, of course, the Trivia Challenge crosswords. Those take days sometimes, but they're a labor of love, and so I consider it time well-wasted.

"You should copyright your puzzles."

No, I shouldn't. Why bother? If someone wants to print out or share a digital file with their friends, who cares? More fun for everyone, I say. I certainly can't stop anyone, and I don't want to make a bunch of lawyers rich, so what's the point? They're perfectly good puzzles, but not a one of them is suitable for publication elsewhere, so I don't have to worry about anyone claiming to have constructed one of them and trying to sell it. Nobody would buy them. Copyright is a waste of time.

"You should get a real website."

No, I shouldn't. "Real" websites cost money, and Google Sites is free. Why should I pay for something I can get for free?

"You should advertise more."

No, I shouldn't. I hate ads. Everyone hates ads.

Thank you for all your wonderful advice. I'm sure it would work for someone else, but it doesn't work for me.


Sunday, December 8, 2013

Christmas Card

Merry Crosswords! I love to tell jokes about Christmas, so does that make me a Christmas card? This week's puzzle features some truly horrible holiday puns. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

https://sites.google.com/site/stearswords224/home/free-crosswords/christmas-card/Christmas%20Card%20Puzzle.pdf?attredirects=0&d=1

  • Click here to see the answer grid. *Check back on Friday, December 13 for the answer grid.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Turkey Leftovers

This week's puzzle has a Thanksgiving theme: What to do with leftover turkey. It's the reason I cooked a 15-pound turkey for only two people. Coming up: Turkey Hash, Turkey Salad and gallons of Turkey Soup. This week's puzzle features some of the things you can make with leftover turkey. As a bonus, the .pdf version has links to the Food Network's recipes so you can use those leftovers to make something delicious.

https://sites.google.com/site/stearswords224/home/free-crosswords/turkey-leftovers/Leftovers%20Puzzle.pdf?attredirects=0&d=1

  • Click here to see the answer grid.  *Check back on Friday, December 6 for the answer grid.