Constructing Crosswords: Process

Overview | 0. Prepare | 1. Theme |
2. Grid | 3. Fill | 4. Clues | 5. Publish

Overview of Process

• "A crossword puzzle is a battle between the... puzzle maker and editor on one side
  and the solver on the other. But unlike most battles, both sides here
  have the same goal -- for the solver to win." ~Will Shortz
• "When I tell people at parties that I write crossword puzzles for a living
  the first question they ask is 'Which do you write first, the clues or the grid?'...
  Answer: neither. The first thing you do is come up with your puzzle’s theme. ~Matt Gaffney
• "I'm often asked: 'Which comes first, the words or the clues?'...
  The words in the grid come first." ~Trip Payne
• Videos: How a Crossword Puzzle Gets Made 3:32; Mike Vuolo; Slate; 11/12/2014
• "I would like to construct my own puzzles but don’t quite know where to begin or proceed.
  The crossword constructing community is one of the most welcoming communities I’ve ever
  encountered. It seems as if there’s nothing an experienced constructor loves more than
  to help out people who are interested in making their own puzzles; most of the grid makers
  I know started out with help from an experienced mentor. I highly recommend connecting
  with other constructors online or in person. Facebook and Discord both have active
  communities of constructors.
  
  And consider attending a crossword puzzle tournament. The American Crossword Puzzle
  Tournament in Stamford, Conn., is the biggest, but you can find ones in New York City,
  Boston, the Midwest and the Bay Area. Many of these tournaments have online components,
  allowing you to connect with other puzzle people from the comfort of your home.
  
  If you want to get started on your own, just about any experienced constructor will tell you to
  read Patrick Berry’s Crossword Constructor’s Handbook, which you can download for $10 online.
  The manual carefully lays out the steps of constructing a crossword: developing a theme,
  making the grid skeleton, filling the grid and writing clues. It's the most in-depth resource
  you will find. I highly recommend the NYT series on constructing, with suggestions of software,
  word lists and other tools for constructing." ~Christina Iverson; NYT Easy Mode newsletter; 2/2/2024

0. Prepare

• Choose: audience? puzzle type? grid size? difficulty?
• Gather apps, tools, dictionaries, understand general rules
• Review Crossword Publication Specs comprehensive table from Matthew Stock
  e.g., NYT; LAT, Universal, WSJ, et al.;
• Cruciverb: specs, comparison (older)
• Choose a target publication -- or follow common guidelines, and decide later.

• 
  

  Some publishers may request an initial theme proposal rather than a complete crossword,
  -- and reply with their (dis)interest more quickly before you expend construction effort.

• New publishers may seek crosswords, sometimes announced on Cruciverb.com, e.g.,
  "This announcement is to help Matthew Dube at Merriam-Webster. He wrote me that M-W and Britannica are
  planning a new six-day-a-week online crossword series, consisting of five 15x15 dailies and one 21x21 Sunday.
  They're looking for two or three regular contributors.
  
  The focus of the puzzle will be interesting English vocabulary. And since the puzzle will have an international audience,
  it shouldn't have a lot of names -- especially ones that aren't internationally known.
  
  The pay, I'm told, will be modest, but in keeping with a number of other markets. If you're potentially interested
  in an ongoing gig like this, please send your name and list of credits, along with any comments, to Matt..."
  ~Will Shortz; 12/4/2020; [on constructor email list: cruciverb-l@mail.cruciverb.com]
• Allow enough time, e.g.,
• "How long a puzzle takes to create depends on a lot of things —... the size, difficulty level,
  whether there are any particular constraints, and so on. I've had puzzles take me mere hours to create;
  I've had others take weeks. I can usually complete a simple puzzle in a matter of hours,
  whereas a medium or hard puzzle could take a day or two." ~Trip Payne
• Matt Gaffney describes a complete themed puzzle constructed in less than 6 hours! 9/10/2014
• The Super Mega (50 x 50) puzzle, the largest one Jeff Chen has constructed, was weeks of effort.
  'It nearly killed me,' he said, laughing
  Meet Jeff Chen, the Seattle man who’s published more than 125 crosswords in The New York Times; ST; 1/6/2022
• So, How Long Does It Take to Make a Crossword Puzzle Anyway? DB; 2/22/2021
• "Generating the theme is always the hardest part of this job... -- that can take me a couple of days.
  Then filling the grid can take 12 hours for a simple grid, or much longer if there are a lot of constraints.
  I'm very particular about what goes into the grid. Sometimes I will spend a couple of hours working
  on just one corner until I’m satisfied with it." ~ Evan Birnholz
• "How long does it take to build one crossword puzzle?
  The short answer is, it really depends on the puzzle and the constructor.
  
  The first step of constructing a themed puzzle is to come up with the theme
  and a workable theme set, which is a set of longer entries that all have
  something in common. For many constructors, this is what takes the longest.
  While a theme can fall together quickly, I’ve spent weeks and sometimes over
  a year trying to come up with the perfect theme set. I often start thinking
  about a puzzle because of a single pun, and then I search for similar examples.
  
  Because theme entries in crossword puzzles must be symmetrical in the grid,
  constructors can't just think of a few theme entries and call it a day.
  We have to create partner entries of matching lengths -- and then make sure
  those entries have letters that fit in a 15x15 grid (or 21x21 for a Sunday puzzle).
  
  After the theme set, it’s on to the grid. While modern crossword software
  can generate a filled grid in seconds, it takes time to create a one that
  feels human. Many constructors enjoy tinkering with the words and trying
  to craft the best possible 'fill,; otherwise known as the words or phrases
  that fill a crossword. Some people spend weeks playing with a grid,
  while others spend just a few hours. The same is true with writing clues;
  one constructor might power through every clue in one sitting, while another
  might spend weeks writing one clue at a time, when inspiration strikes.
  
  The whole process might take eight hours or eight years; we recently accepted
  a puzzle from someone who said he has been revising it since 2015!"
  ~Christina Iverson, Easy Mode newsletter; 12/29/2023
• How to Make a Crossword Puzzle, Part 5: The Crossword Editors's Job; Resources:
  word lists, software, online resources; NYT; 8/17/2018
• Crossword Constructor Resource Guide
  Construction Software; Online Dictionaries;
  Word Lists; Places to Meet Other Constructors;
  Publications With Open Submission Guidelines;
  Other Useful Tools and Websites; Crossword Blogs and Columns;
  Inspiration; Puzzle Tournaments; NYT; 11/8/2021
• Crossword Constructor's Handbook (Berry) Chapter 6: Odds and Ends: Useful Resources
• The Art of Crossword Construction (Johnston): Resources for Making Puzzles
• Amuse Labs: Resources
• Constructing Crosswords: Tools

1. Theme

• Brainstorm possible interesting, "lively" theme entries
  (word or phrase answers); list desired words for themeless/free-form
• Match paired-length theme entries
• Draft theme clues to ensure consistency.
• NYT: How to Make a Crossword Puzzle, Part 1: Developing the Theme;
  How do puzzle makers get started? two NYT constructors,
  Ben Tausig and Finn Vigeland, demystify the process of developing a theme set; 4/11/2018
• Crossword Constructor's Handbook (Berry)
  Chapter 1: Developing a Theme for Your Puzzle
• The Art of Crossword Construction (Johnston): Themes in Crosswords
• How Crossword Puzzles Are Really Made Matt Gaffney; MF; 9/10/2014
• Constructing Crosswords: Themes

2. Grid

• Enter long theme entries
• Add blocks (black squares) to create easier to fill areas, while maintaining grid symmetry/connectivity
• For free-form, use site/app to generate grid from word list
• NYT: How to Make a Crossword Puzzle, Part 2: Designing the Grid; Building the framework for a puzzle
  puzzle makers David Steinberg and Natan Last design a crossword grid around our theme set; 5/11/2018
• Crossword Constructor's Handbook (Berry) Chapter 2: Designing the Grid
• The Art of Crossword Construction (Johnston): Grid Pattern Conventions: Grid features
• Constructing Crosswords: Grid

3. Fill

• Fill-in other entries; avoid 'crosswordese'
• Find words in dictionaries or match patterns on word web sites.
• Adjust theme placement and/or grid as needed
• NYT: How to Make a Crossword Puzzle, Part 3: Filling the Rest of the Grid;
  How to make your entries sparkle Kevin Der and Paolo Pasco pull back the curtain
  on the work that goes into filling a crossword with fun and interesting entries; 6/13/2018
• Crossword Constructor's Handbook (Berry)
  Chapter 3: Choosing Good Grid Entries (And Avoiding Bad Ones); Chapter 4: Filling the Grid
• The Art of Crossword Construction (Johnston): Filling the Grid
• Constructing Crosswords: Fill

4. Clues

• Generate & refine clues for clarity, difficulty, ambiguity.
• Review, revise, repeat
• NYT: How to Make a Crossword Puzzle, Part 4: Writing the Clues;
  Conjuring up easy clues and clues that will twist people’s brains
  Robyn Weintraub and Brad Wilber clue us in;
  the submitted puzzle (before editing): clues; web, .pdf, .puz; 7/11/2018
• Crossword Constructor's Handbook (Berry) Chapter 5: Writing the Clues
• The Art of Crossword Construction (Johnston): Writing Clues
• Constructing Crosswords: Clues

5. Publish

• Submit to a publisher in appropriate format.
• Wait -- weeks/months for rejection/acceptance.
• If accepted, enjoy modest payment, fame, adulation of solvers, ...
• If rejected, submit to a different publication and/or self-publish
  using puzzle formats: .pdf, .puz, web (JavaScript)
• NYT: How to Make a Crossword Puzzle, Part 5: The Crossword Editors's Job; Resources
  New York Times crossword editors (Will Shortz and Joel Fagliano) reveal their process
  for evaluating and editing a puzzle submission; 8/17/2018
• Crossword Constructor's Handbook (Berry) Chapter 6:
  Odds and Ends: Submitting Your Puzzle for Publication
• The Art of Crossword Construction (Johnston): Preparing for Publication, Submitting
• Constructing Crosswords: Publish