Puzzle Fantastica #2 On Its Way

We have recovered from a long phase of [insert prior reference here] PF#1 debriefing, having [insert pithy topical subject here] commissioned the Baker-Hamilton PF Study Group to offer alternatives for proceeding. We've long planned the second installment of a multi-series puzzle sequence, expecting to begin round #2 in mid-Fall. But the publishing world, as it is, has been jammed up, and [inserting another reference here to prior posts] the problem we've had with scheduling is partly our fault, but mostly Ultraman's fault - you remember our former intern Paul. [Good, good. Claim responsibility on one hand while deferring it on the other. Clever.]

That's right, we said former [hushed awe; quiet shock]. Ultraman is no more; he didn't work out; to the curb he hath been kicked; and the second Puzzle Fantastica was the greatest casualty of that poor hiring decision. Turns out Ultraman made some morally tenuous choices with his fellow interns, and had some, shall we say, un-postable indiscretions. This was all the more disturbing to us since Paul was our only intern. All we have a legal right to say at this point is this: what he did in that closet, on that day, is not something you all want to be witness to. Let's leave it there. [No, don't leave it there really. Let it linger. Tease this part out. Like, so what *did* he do? Now everyone wants to know, yet we can't discuss it. Oh the humanity. No, we must not discuss it. Never, never. Precisely because of its inhumanity, funnily enough. God, I love using funny in adverbial form.]

Cutting to the chase: Puzzle Fantastica #2 will be here soon. Over the holiday break. With verve and moxie [look those words up]. The nature of experiment is that you don't know what you've got until you've got it. [Better put another reference to a recent post here, keep this thing fresh] We recently nominated Richard Powers to the World's Fair Advisory Board, and in so doing quoted this from his first book:

"When we don't know what we are after, we risk passing it over in the dark."

Many of the reviews of (and conjectures about) PF#1 had something to do with that notion. Some folks wondered what a "puzzle" was, how it was or was not related to an experiment, what a "clue" was, and what evidence counted as evidence. We, in fact [insert note of humility here, draw on empathy from the reader], had not planned all the contingencies that readers felt compelled to assume. We had wondered, more sincerely, what the audience would create, what they would imagine and build, given the set of images presented. True, we had a solution; we were legitimate in that. And true [bold that word, I'm thinking, show 'em how honest we are], we sought some wandering in the wilderness before puzzle solvers came back into the lab. So that, in the end, PF#1 was in fact the introduction to The World's Fair, more so than our initial introductory conversation.

Now, as for PF#2.

It will begin soon.

It will again be visual. But it will be more.

New clues will help the cause. A solution will be reached. The passive voice will be used. But not exclusively. [Too cutesy? Maybe, yes. Consider revising.]

Stay tuned. And post your pre-answers here.