Famous Crossword Editors

Will Shortz

Born in August 1952, Will Shortz is an American crossword and puzzle creator as well as the crossword editor for the New York Times. He has held that role since 1993 but his love for puzzles started in the eighth grade as he wrote a paper titled “Puzzles as a Profession”. In the years after that, Shortz’s obsession and love for puzzles and crosswords grew as by the age of 16, he was actively contributing to crossword puzzles for Dell publications.

Shortz continued doing that and eventually graduated from university with a degree in enigmatology, the study of puzzles. He not only designed his own curriculum through Indiana University's Individualized Major Program but is also one of the only individuals with that degree. After he graduated, he earned a law degree and began a career in puzzles, with roles at Penny Press Magazine and Games magazine before he moved to the New York Times.

He is also the founder of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament and has been its director since its creation in 1978. Not only that, he was also the puzzle master on NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday since 1987 and is now a renowned crossword creator across the world.

David Steinberg

Born in 1996, David Steinberg is a crossword constructor and the editor of the Universal Crossword, a role that he has held since December 2018. The 28-year-old’s love for constructing crosswords began at a very young age, with him the then second-youngest published constructor in the New York Times at the age of 14. A year later, he became the youngest published constructor in the LA Times and then the youngest crossword editor for a major newspaper at the age of 16.

Since his first published crossword for the NYT, David Steinberg has published over 500 puzzles, thriving across every publication he has published for. So much so, that he was the most prolific constructor for the NYT in 2013, with 15 published crosswords that year. He eventually became the editor for The Puzzle Society Crossword at the age of 21, which is a daily nationally syndicated feature published by Andrews McMeel Universal.

In the years since, Steinberg has been promoted several times with him currently the Editorial Manager of Puzzles and Games at Andrews McMeel Universal. He also continues to edit the Universal Crossword while overseeing a team of puzzle editors and constructing puzzles.

Joel Fagliano

Born in 1992, Joel Fagliano is an American puzzle creator and the current writer of the New York Times Mini Crossword. The 31-year-old grew up in Philadelphia and enjoyed completing puzzles as a child, with the New York Times at the top of his list. That eventually led to him constructing his own crosswords by the time he was in his sophomore year of high school, and he started submitting puzzles to the Times in 2007.

It took two years before his first puzzle was accepted when he was 17, and by the time he had finished high school, Fagliano had six puzzles in total accepted and published by the New York Times and the LA Times. He eventually graduated from Pomona College in 2014 and after interning with the NYT under Will Shortz while still studying, he began working for the NYT crosswords editor after he graduated.

As of 2024, he has published over 500 puzzles for various publications including the NYT, and is currently the editor/writer for the NYT Mini crossword. Not only that, he also took over as interim editor for the NYT Crossword when Shortz was on medical leave in March 2024.

Paolo Pasco

Born in 1996, Paolo Pasco has been constructing crosswords since his teens and had his first crossword published in the New York Times at the age of 14. In the years after that, his puzzles have been published by the Atlantic, LA Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today amongst others. He also joined Harvard, joining the Atlantic as their assistant crossword editor while still at college.

Pasco eventually graduated from the prestigious college and is still the assistant crossword editor for the publication while constructing for other publications as well. Not only that, he has been the crossword constructor and editor for the AV Crossword Club for over 5 years and won the 2024 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament.

Brendan Emmett Quigley

Born in 1974, Brendan Emmett Quigley is an American crossword constructor and has been described as a “crossword wunderkind” in the past. The 50-year-old is considered to be one of the most renowned crossword creators in the world with his work published across the world. That includes the New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and a few other publications.

He is also the sixth most published constructor for the New York Times since Will Shortz took over as the editor for their crossword. Quigley has also constructed puzzles for the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, Boston Crossword Puzzle Tournament, and Lollapuzzoola.