Viresh Ratnakar

Post-run beer pic

8.75mpl. Back #running my t-shaped route to the tree for #beer. Cheers!

New #cryptic #crossword by me: So Long, Marianne. https://tlmb.net/blog/so-long-marianne/

argh, coupla drunk spellings above :-)

Agreed.

:-) But:

The "figurative" interpretation for "drunk" as "with letter in turmoil, but hey, each letter must be used exactly as many times as in the original" is the cruciverbalistic licence at play. A similar (bit not the same) licence is at play for "primarily" etc., imo.

All the firstly/lastly/extremely/oddly/..ly indicators are, well, wordplay-y. The interpretation of "X,Y,Z, oddly" as "X,Y,Z, looking at the odd positions" is a plausible (if punny) interpretation.

Same for most anagrinds, imo.

I think "odd X,Y,Z" is more OK for XZ than "first X,Y,Z" is for X. Because "odd" can be more reasonably conflated with "odd parts of" than "first" can be with "first part of", as I've not seen the latter usage much, whereas I've seen the former often.

I think first/last/primary are alike in this.

In the cryptic reading, I think a fodder word "XYZ" can be the word "XYZ" itself (for synonyms), or the sequence of letters "X, Y, Z."

"First XYZ" does not yield X in either interpretation, imo (as it means the "first among XYZs"). "Firstly ..." and "... at first" do work and yield X.

Off-Grid podcast logo. Icons for "all the subjects" spilling out of the brain of a person in conversation.

If you enjoy what we do at #OffGridPod, you can now buy us a coffee to say "cheers!" if you like. #podcast https://buymeacoffee.com/thevoidtlmb

front of medal featuring beautiful artwork of a person holding a sword, with a halo and flames around them. Also a card saying "It is an Honor to acknowledge Fractal Karma [by] Arula Ratnakar as a finalist for the 2025 Ignyte Award for Outstanding Novella"

Other side of the medal and the card, featuring the painting version of what was carved on the medal. It is beautiful art by Nilah Magruder!

My finalist medal from the Ignyte Awards arrived today for my scifi novella "Fractal Karma" which was a finalist in 2025

Made me tear up, it's beautiful

If you want to read my story, it's available here. 2050's Boston and a hivemind based on Brunnian links: clarkesworldmagazine.com/ratnakar_10_...

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Sat hike around Lexington reservoir

7.1 mpl. Wrapping up a weekend that involved a sleepover with 11 from IITB CS class of 1990, a 4.5m hike, and now solo #running and #beer. Cheers!

Page from graphic novel "Corridor"

Corridor by Sarnath Banerjee is *so* *much* *fun*! I had misplaced my copy and finally bought a new one. Re-reading!

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Pic of Marvin the egret

My planet

12.2 mpl. Pre-storm rain #running, with a Marvin sighting. Relishing a Helles #beer now, cheers!

My dad’s friend in France sent him this picture, this is the just-released French translation of my 2021 @clarkesworldmagazine.com hard science fiction novella Submergence in a Paris bookstore!!!

This is wild! Like actually so wild.

Day after new published #crossword = making an older one freely accessible.

"Both Sides Are Same"

Sample #crypticclue:

19a. Tipping crown to one side, emperor makes love (4)

gussalufz.com/thc/2025/gus...

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8.2 mpl. #Running on #Superbowl Sunday, with Spring beginning to sprout everywhere. #Beer cheers with an interesting background!

The link works only for subscribers generally (but please let me know if you'd like a copy). Comments and feedback are welcome, as always!

Screenshot of crossword grid with some clues visible.

"Flying Weapon, Eh?"

3d. Brought out Tesla, perhaps in order to cover sexual inadequacy (6)

16d. Calmness pill voided stomach complaint (9)

Two #crypticclues from my The Hindu #Cryptic #crossword #14,712, published in Monday's paper.

#Gussalufz

www.thehindu.com/crosswords/h...

Reminds me that I cannot find my copy of this excellent book and must order a new copy!

The French translation of my novella Submergence (longlisted for Hugo Award, finalist for Utopia Award) is now available!

first published in 2021 by @clarkesworldmagazine.com

Cover art by Anouck Faure

Translation by Jean-Daniel Brèque (who did translations for Stephen King & Margaret Atwood!)

Exolve #crossword solver tweaks for phones: (1) On-screen keyboard to save space and (usually) keep the full grid visible. (2) Some tweaks to reduce scrolling when the grid is at the top. See details at: github.com/viresh-ratna...

Comments/bug-reports are welcome!

Wow, I just found out my drawing "Destruction of Troy" is nominated for an artwork award by BSFA.

But @bsfa.bsky.social I hope you know, I finished that drawing in I think 2016, 10 years ago! Are you sure it's eligible?

Anyway, if it is eligible (but I doubt it is?), this is the artwork, thanks!

Post-run medal pic

Post-run beer pic

13.1 mpl. #Running the San Francisco Half Marathon (winter/Sutter edition) with neighbors and son's elementary teacher! #Beer and brunch at Wildseed Palo Alto. Cheers!

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7.1 mpl. Jet-lagged #running, couldn't wait to get to the #beer! Cheers!

FDT, DDT.

"Man Acting as King": oil/acrylic painting by Rabin Mondal, 1982.

Found this incredibly timely and "resembly" painting in a small art exhibit in the hotel that I was staying in, in Mumbai, a couple of days back.

"Man Acting as King": oil/acrylic painting by Rabin Mondal, 1982.

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13.1 mpl. Mumbai Half Marathon #5. Humid and slow, but so much fun! Kingfisher #beer, cheers!

In a Browser crossword:
Who has been living forever in 12E? (2,3)

In a Hindu crossword:
Resist quietly breaking wind (5)

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Protest in Mountain View.

8.0mpl. #Running, not on a Sunday again (flying out for Bombay0.5 run tomorrow). F. I.! #Beer cheers!

I wrote this bit on cryptic grammar some time back, ptal (am happy to discuss):

viresh-ratnakar.github.io/writings/202...

Post-run beer pic

10.0 mpl. #Rain #running in the Bay Area is insane fun! Monday #beer for a change (was busy yesterday). Cheers!