| 100% | THELETTER | 9 | W Somerset Maugham short story in 1926 collection The Casuarina Tree adapted for the stage in 1927 |
| 33% | ASHENDEN | 8 | 1928 collection of stories by W Somerset Maugham subtitled The British Agent |
| 33% | FORTUNESMILES | 13 | Adam Johnson short story collection that won the National Book Award for Fiction in 2015 (2 wds.) |
| 30% | FUNERAL | 7 | & 14A Posthumous Joe Orton 1968 ITV play adapted for the stage in 1970 |
| 28% | THECONSTANT | 11 | 1926 stage play by W Somerset Maugham whose central character is Constance Middleton |
| 26% | HORNUNG | 7 | E W —, author of 1899 short story collection The Amateur Cracksman |
| 26% | KAA | 3 | Python in 1894 Rudyard Kipling short story collection The Jungle Book |
| 26% | JACOBS | 6 | W W —, English author of 1902 short story collection The Lady of the Barge |
| 26% | BAGHEERA | 8 | Black panther in 1894 Rudyard Kipling short story collection The Jungle Book |
| 26% | BALOO | 5 | Brown bear in 1894 Rudyard Kipling short story collection The Jungle Book |
| 25% | TEMPLEFOLK | 10 | Aaliyah Bilal short-story collection about Black Muslims in America that's a finalist for the 2023 National Book Award for Fiction (2 wds.) |
| 25% | ASL | 3 | Speech system in which 6 and W are the same, for short |
| 25% | STEPHENKING | 11 | "Carrie" author who won a 1996 O. Henry Award for his short story "The Man in the Black Suit": 2 wds. |
| 24% | RAIN | 4 | 1932 film drama starring Joan Crawford as Sadie Thompson based on a short story by W Somerset Maugham |
| 24% | MAGICIAN | 8 | The —, 1908 novel by W Somerset Maugham |
| 24% | CHEM | 4 | One of the subjects that astronaut Story Musgrave has a degree in, for short |
| 24% | EYE | 3 | Short story collection by Frank Herbert ('85) which includes "The Road to Dune", a guidebook for pilgrims to the planet Arrakis |
| 24% | ANTH | 4 | Short story collection, for short |
| 24% | MENWITHOUTWOMEN | 15 | 1927 Hemingway short story collection |
| 23% | TOBUILDAFIRE | 12 | Jack London short story set in harsh winter conditions, and what the ends of 20-, 28-, and 47-Across can be used for |
| 23% | ALTHO | 5 | In spite of the fact that, for short |
| 23% | ACE | 3 | The A in LGBTQIA+, for short |
| 23% | ACE | 3 | The A in LGBTQIA, for short |
| 23% | ACE | 3 | The A in LGBTQIA , for short |
| 23% | GAL | 3 | The g in mpg, for short |