11a unaffiliated to any party (10) a---i-i--- 12a inability to pen a novel (7,5) ---t---/b---- 15a rhetorical language (7) -----r- 16a obvious and lacking in subtlety (7) -l----- 5d the female sex (9) -o------- 13d of your own volition (10) ----o-a-l-