Emma Oxford (she/her, alias damefox or damefoxwords in some corners of the crossword Internet) created Ariadne’s Crossword Library as a monthly outlet for contest crosswords created by women and woman-aligned constructors. Emma has been a crossword constructor since 2019 and has had puzzles appear in the Wall Street Journal, Universal, the LA Times, Fireball Crosswords, and other outlets. Emma also edited and test-solved puzzles for Pandora’s Blocks Weekly Contest Crossword, which provided the inspiration for ACL’s name.
A huge THANK YOU to test solvers Meg D. and Laura M., without whom these puzzles would be of noticeably lower quality. If the puzzles you solve are seamless and error-free, it is because of their help and feedback. Any errors and stumbling blocks you encounter are entirely Emma’s fault.
Featured Constructors
Hannah Binney (she/her) is a crossword constructor living in Cambridge, MA. She is excited for this opportunity to combine her love of crosswords and literature. Hannah began constructing in 2020, and she has had puzzles appear in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Universal, AVCX, and Puzzmo. ACL’s June 2025 puzzle, “Step and Repeat,” was her first foray into contest crossword construction. When not constructing crosswords, Hannah is a physicist working on measuring the mass of an extremely light particle called the neutrino. She has an orange cat named Julius.
Carina da Rosa (she/her) is a crossword constructor, writer, and editor who hails from Canada—but doesn’t really do any snow-specific activities. Instead, you’ll find her knitting, stumbling through a new language, and dabbling on the accordion. She’s a Lil AVCX alum (having been part of the 2025 roster) and has been published in venues such as Puzzmo, USA Today, Universal, The Wall Street Journal, and Boswords. She also lives for baked goods.
Heather Gearan (she/her) earned a PhD in Clinical Psychology and has used her research training to build a career as a data scientist. She has recently discovered the joy of crossword constructing and is extremely proud to see her first meta effort published by ACL in November 2025. When she is not working or obsessing about wordplay, Heather reads voraciously. At regular intervals she also sets out on long road trips with her husband to explore the country and escape the New England winters.
Shannon Rapp has been constructing crosswords since 2021 and her work appears everywhere you enjoy solving crosswords. She coordinates the crosswords for Science News and is a co-director of the Midwest Crossword Tournament. Despite having published well over 200 puzzles at the time, her March 2026 effort for ACL is still an early entry in her work with contest and meta puzzles. In addition to writing and solving crosswords, she loves traveling, knitting, and reading. She’s a mom to one teenager and one rowdy cat.
Madison Shultz (she/her) lives in Redmond, WA, and spends a lot of time outside skiing, climbing, hiking, and rockhounding but has found crossword construction an excellent creative outlet and excuse to stay inside more with her two cats.
Ex libris Ariadne
Ariadne's Crossword Library 