To my crossword critics,

Hello. It’s me. Anna Neumann. The name on the back of the recent Clarion print edition, taking credit for a crossword I did, in fact, make from scratch. Unfortunately, I also made some mistakes.

To the devoted crossword lovers out there: I see you. I feel your pain. I’m sorry. 

The most haunting of these errors were the clues that had no corresponding number. Just a sad little hint, left to wander the grid alone. 

In a world where AI and chatbots are taking over, I think we should all be proud that the Clarion still handcrafts its crosswords the old-fashioned way: by human creativity. Although, in full transparency, I did try to use AI after hour six — though it didn’t go well. Even the robots made up words, which in my humble opinion is worse.

Crosswords are hard. I tried. I dropped the ball. But after this shameful spiral, I can guarantee you cross-word lovers that the next one will knock your socks off. 

We appreciate our dedicated readers’ concern. On the bright side, think of it as an extra challenge for your brain — an unintentional bonus puzzle. After all, crosswords are hard even when the clues match the numbers.

My mistakes will haunt me for the rest of my college career. So much so that I even considered blacking out my name on all 800 print copies on campus. But alas, accountability matters and I’m owning up to my mistakes.

I hope that the next five crosswords live up to the highest standard that the Clarion continues to uphold.  

Look for my redemption hitting campus in two weeks on Halloween. 

With humility,

Anna Neumann

Executive Editor, DU Clarion