Ev 1197 : Works

[hankir]

Tough going.
Solved half of it.

No idea about the author or works.

One strange thing. The missing letters from Down clues 1 to 8 are all consonants. They do not make any sense.
I may be doing something wrong. But no idea what because my entries seem correct and match across answers.

[roslyn251254]

The missing letters have to be "read from the grid in normal reading order"
not from the order in the clues?

[hankir]

Thanks roslyn.
I am still tentative about some missing letters.
Still struggling in lower left quarter.

[Monkmonk]

As far as I can tell the puzzle appears to be about two different authors with the same surname. Both their first names are in the grid too. Very strange.

[hankir]

The puzzle guidelines call for a creator. Also the works must be of only one author.
I see one first name in one of the rows.

I am still stuck.
Any hint on 24D and 40A gladly accepted.

[Monkmonk]

I wrote very strange because I can see two distinct but relevant authors.

24d - think of a World War II battle starting with A
40a - think of a slang word for your heart starting with T

[hankir]

Thanks, Monkmonk.
I got 24 D once I thought of the dictator.
Now have 40A with your help.
Still a few to go.

[hankir]

To Monkmonk:
I see your point.
I do not see the first name of the second author you mention.
But the three works I identify, only one belongs to the author who has a special occasion this month.
The other is by the second author. The third is by a creator with the same first name but last name beginning with B.
I highlighted missing letters in the grid but I do not see any words forming.
The center square is blank indicating it is to be used for more than one work.

[Monkmonk]

Hankir

i have resolved my problems; there was a very good trap for (Oxy)morons like me.

[hankir]

I will have to come up with a stronger word for myself then, Monkmonk.

I have only 43A remaining and if it is a Scottish word, it will be difficult for me to solve.

Is greens in 43A referring to earth?

[Monkmonk]

If you want to find out the English for a Scottish word you could use this link:
http://www.scots-online.org/dictionary/scots_english.asp

[crosswhit99]

hankir, the letters of the works(3,5 and 2,7) and occasion (5,9) are interspersed :-)

[maurice]

This is going to be difficult to formulate without revealing too much, but I'll try:
Is the first 5-letter word for the thematic occasion an adjective or a noun?
Am I right in thinking the 2,7 work is a very early one, and the 3,5 one pretty late?
The real problem of course is how they are interspersed --- apparently quite randomly. Even so, a few of my 31 letters must be wrong, I think. it would help a lot if someone could answer those two little qq first!

[maurice]

.............and btw are the other 2 creators with the same surname whose first names crop up here together with at least 2 of their work titles all just an amusing diversion? Beginning to feel I'm missng s'thing here, or seeing too much............

[hankir]

Thanks crosswhit99.
I have the works but not the occasion. Though his bio shows that )ct. 2015 is an important milestone.
I also have the same problem as maurice. I think I have some incorrect missing letters.
I am assuming that the two other works are just there for fun.
Three straight lines: First name, Last Name and the work that requires C in the center square.

The three colours for the works 2,7 and 3,5 plus the occasion.

I have still not found 43A in any Scottish references. What is the fifth letter of 43A? I am assuming that the first letter creates the first name of HM.

(It is interesting that theanswerbank flags the spelling of colour with an U.
Color gets a pass.)

[maurice]

5th letter is "n"; first, as you say, finishes off the decoy H.

[hankir]

Thanks maurice for the 'n".

I am concluding that the first word for the occasion is a noun. For the adjective you would need same letter in 3rd and 4th positions. That letter is used in the work 3,5. So the first letter of the occasion could come from 2D.
The last letter of the occasion could come from 43A.

[maurice]

That's all correct, hankir: you'll get there now! (think of the 2-word phrase we use in such a situation --- although instead of XY I would have said the Y of his X, if you see what I mean)!

[hankir]

Thanks maurice.
Y (9) of his (5) makes more sense.
I now have to revisit my missing letters.

[maurice]

Good luck, hankir! Am off to Spin cross the Pyrenees from here for a short break now. I found this one of the most complicated but also one of the most pleasing puzzles I've ever done. Incredible, how much Oxymoron has crammed into it, including all those false trails! Have fun!

[maurice]

( I meant Spain of course!!!)