# Are crossword puzzles easy to construct?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-crossword-puzzles-easy-to-construct/19417>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [May 13, 2000, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-crossword-puzzles-easy-to-construct/19417 "2000-05-13T07:38:51Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![langour](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19b73/32.png) [@langour](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/langour)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2000, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-crossword-puzzles-easy-to-construct/19417/1 "2000-05-13T07:38:51Z")

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Are crossword puzzles easy to construct?

I have several books on the subject, such as

\*The compleat cruciverbalist : how to solve, compose and sell crossword puzzles / Stan Kurzban and Mel Rosen \*

Yet, I find the process incredibly circular.

I am intrigued byt the thought of producing one on a theme of my own choosing. Nothing fancy, like the NYT Saturday or Sunday puzzles, but merely like their Monday ones.

Has anyone experience starting one? Did it ever resolve itself?

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**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2000, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-crossword-puzzles-easy-to-construct/19417/2 "2000-05-13T13:11:36Z")

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They must be fairly easy, since so many are generated for newspapers _daily_.

The TV Guide crossword must be especially easy to make. They recycle clues like crazy. ("‘Cheers’ beverage" 3 letters: ALE. “\_\_\_ Can Cook”: YAN.)

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**Author:** ![Fonz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Fonz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fonz)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2000, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-crossword-puzzles-easy-to-construct/19417/3 "2000-05-13T16:05:59Z")

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How many letters?

I think they take a looong time.

I hear Lifers at the pen make them to kill a lot of time.  
Wonder what words \*they \*use.

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**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2000, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-crossword-puzzles-easy-to-construct/19417/4 "2000-05-13T16:17:33Z")

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Sure are easy. There are tons of software programs that do it for you when you just give them the words. might be some at [download.com](http://download.com) you can use [shareware]

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**Author:** ![My\_Sister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e68b1a/32.png) [@My\_Sister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/My_Sister)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2000, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-crossword-puzzles-easy-to-construct/19417/5 "2000-05-13T20:33:12Z")

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I once made my own Jumble.

It looks easy, but I found out later you have to use only words that don’t form other words when scrambled.

If you do, the puzzle gets two or more possible sets of final letters.