![]() To answer your question, I use CrossFire - although I got my start with pencil, graph paper and online dictionaries. LAST: O.K., O.K., I’ll take three orders of the software, and a Shamwow to boot. Natan, what are your thoughts on manual construction? And which software do you use? Looks very cool, although I’ll confess I haven’t played around with it much. The biggest downside to Crossword Compiler is its price - if you want the full Professional Bundle, it will set you back $169.Ī third, brand-new option is Keiran King’s free, web-based crossword construction program, Phil. For example, Crossword Compiler has much more user-friendly environments for searching and editing word lists. It doesn’t have as many bells and whistles as the Windows-only Crossword Compiler, though. If you’re on a Mac like me, I highly recommend CrossFire, which has a nice grid-filling environment and, at $50, it won’t break your budget. STEINBERG: There are a few ways to make a crossword puzzle, including the good, old-fashioned graph-paper-and-pencil method, but there are several excellent software programs that make designing and filling grids easier. STEINBERG: If only! Choosing the Right Tool NATAN LAST: Wait, practice? I thought we just plug our lovely theme answers into a piece of software and, voilà, a beautiful crossword emerges. Let’s watch them work it out.ĭAVID STEINBERG: I’d say grid design is the hardest part of the construction process to get the hang of, but we believe in all the aspiring constructors out there! All it takes is a few guiding principles and lots of practice. The goal is to place the theme entries and black squares in such a way as to get the best chance of filling the puzzle with sparkling, lively nontheme entries. Just as in theme development, there is a lot of trial and error. Vigeland left off to demonstrate the next step in making a crossword puzzle: setting the theme entries in a blank crossword grid and placing the black squares. ![]() ![]() Their fellow constructors, David Steinberg and Natan Last, pick up where Mr. DEB AMLEN: In Part 1 of “How to Make a Crossword Puzzle,” the puzzle makers Ben Tausig and Finn Vigeland developed a theme for a crossword puzzle by bouncing ideas back and forth until a cohesive set that follows the rules of constructing came together. ![]()
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