IMPORTANT NOTE: As of January 2015 MGWCC is a subscribers-only crossword. The cost is $26 per year, and you can subscribe (or get a free trial month first) here:

http://www.mgwcc.com/

LAST WEEK’S RESULTS:

Solvers were tasked with finding a famous literary work last week. Not 100% clear what if anything was theme, but the 11-letter central across is by far the longest entry in the grid, so that’s probably a good starting point: SCARE QUOTES was the evocative answer there to the clue [Diminishing punctuation]. This suggests looking at the clues with quotes in them:

1-A [Character who should’ve said “I made up my mind”] = HAMLET
27-A [“To take,” for one] = VERB
29-A [“The Life of ___” (2016 Kanye West album)] = PABLO
46-A [“The old man”] = PAPA
53-A [“And thus…”] = ERGO
7-D [“Rid Myself of ___” (2016 Swain song)] = YOU
36-D [Alba of “The Eye”] = JESSICA
50-D [___ & the Gang (band with the hit 1986 album “Forever”)] = KOOL

String those together and you’ve got “I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye forever.” Suspciously coherent for a random set of words, and a quick Google (or, if you truly know your Poe, a few moments’ thought) shows you that that’s a key line from contest answer THE TELL-TALE HEART.

Not my favorite of his stories, but the paragraph that follows our meta line is outstanding, both creepy and funny:

Now this is the point. You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But you should have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded –with what caution –with what foresight –with what dissimulation I went to work! I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before I killed him. And every night, about midnight, I turned the latch of his door and opened it –oh so gently! And then, when I had made an opening sufficient for my head, I put in a dark lantern, all closed, closed, that no light shone out, and then I thrust in my head. Oh, you would have laughed to see how cunningly I thrust it in! I moved it slowly –very, very slowly, so that I might not disturb the old man’s sleep. It took me an hour to place my whole head within the opening so far that I could see him as he lay upon his bed. Ha! would a madman have been so wise as this, And then, when my head was well in the room, I undid the lantern cautiously-oh, so cautiously –cautiously (for the hinges creaked) –I undid it just so much that a single thin ray fell upon the vulture eye. And this I did for seven long nights –every night just at midnight –but I found the eye always closed; and so it was impossible to do the work; for it was not the old man who vexed me, but his Evil Eye. And every morning, when the day broke, I went boldly into the chamber, and spoke courageously to him, calling him by name in a hearty tone, and inquiring how he has passed the night. So you see he would have been a very profound old man, indeed, to suspect that every night, just at twelve, I looked in upon him while he slept.

Evan says:

Is it possible to say how first the idea of this meta entered your brain? Neat puz on Friday the 13th!

DelphiRune liked it:

Quoth the puzzler “pretty nice puzzle!”

And Small Wave Dave warns:

Not recommended as a bedtime story for Tilghman!

Certainly not! I’ll use “The Gold-Bug” for that since it’s 40 pages long.

This week’s winner, whose name was chosen at random from among the 290 correct entries received, is Peter Washington of Chico, Calif. In addition to a MGWCC pen, pencil, and notepad set, Peter will also receive a copy of of Patrick Blindauer’s new Broadway Puzzlefest.

SEPTEMBER WINNERS:

Blame it on the baby: for two weeks in a row I forgot to announce monthly prizewinners for September. As mega-penance, let’s do 15 winners instead of the usual 10.

Congratulations to the following September MGWCC winners, whose names were chosen at random from among the 128 people who sent in the correct contest answer to each of last month’s five challenges (SHONDA RHIMES, MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE, LENGTHWISE, EMMANUEL MACRON, DOC). Each will receive a MGWCC pen, pencil, and notepad set:

Congratulations to our fifteen winners, and to everyone who went 5-for-5 in September.

THIS WEEK’S INSTRUCTIONS:

What letter should go in the upper-leftmost square (i.e. the square with the 1 in it) in this grid?

Solve well, and be not led astray by words intended to deceive.