David Steinberg named editor of Universal Crossword
Andrews McMeel Syndication (AMS) is pleased to announce David Steinberg as editor of Universal Crossword, effective immediately.
A formidable puzzle enthusiast, Steinberg published his first crossword puzzle in The New York Times when he was just 14 years old, making him the second-youngest constructor to be published under Will Shortz’s editorship. At the age of 15, he became the crossword editor of the Orange County Register’s 24 affiliated newspapers and the youngest known crossword editor for a major newspaper.
Steinberg is excited to join AMS and bring a fresh perspective to the original hit puzzle, which sets the standard for daily crosswords.
“I’m so grateful that I get to pursue my passion for crosswords full time!” he said. “I’m especially honored to be editing the Universal Crossword, one of Andrews McMeel Syndication’s flagship puzzles.”
To date, nearly 500 of Steinberg’s puzzles have been published in The New York Times and other publications (including the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and BuzzFeed). Most recently, he served as editor of The Puzzle Society Crossword.
Steinberg is also the author of two books of crosswords: Chromatics (Puzzazz, 2012) and Juicy Crosswords (Sterling/Puzzlewright Press, 2016). He is the founder and director of the Pre-Shortzian Puzzle Project, a collaborative effort to build a digitized, searchable database of New York Times crossword puzzles dating back to 1942.
In addition, Steinberg is a frequent attendee of crossword puzzle conventions and tournaments, where he has also served as a judge. He hails from California’s Monterey Peninsula and is currently a senior at Stanford University. When not busy with a puzzle or school, he can be found reading his favorite comic strips.