EV1668
The Answer by Ifor
Setter’s Blog
Title: The Times They Are a-Changin’
The letter T is changed in clues containing just one occurrence, giving BOB DYLAN; all bar one letter T in the grid is changed (The Times They Are a-Changin’) to show BLOWIN’ IN THE WIND.
The times they are a’changin’ – but to what? Given Dylan’s vast output it ought not to be difficult to find a second title without a T, so as to avoid the need for “bar one” in the preamble. But that very fact could lead to a lengthy and annoying search for solvers, so I settled on another iconic title for the substitutions, this having the advantage that it’s referenced in ODQ, as the preamble would have said had it not been for space constraints. What’s more, its length made it possible for the remaining across clues to number eight and so allow me to reference Dylan therein. Writing these was a challenge, not so much in finding suitable misprints but more in avoiding T elsewhere in the clue (as well as ensuring it appeared more than once in the others). But for me overcoming these self-imposed constraints is what makes setting so satisfying.
Once completed the puzzle went through the usual testing (with grateful thanks) and editorial discussion before being finalised for publication. I hope the editor won’t mind my mentioning one of his comments: “Pedants would point out that… so I’m pointing it out”. As something of a pedant myself I had to gracefully concede his point. Pedantry (or a laudable demand for rigorous accuracy, as I prefer to call it) notwithstanding, I hope the puzzle provided an enjoyable challenge.
++++++++
A full review of this puzzle can be seen over on fifteensquared.