Getting Started on Crossword Puzzles

On December of 1913, a man called Arthur Wynne gave birth to one of the most beloved past times of people today—the crossword puzzle. It was very different from way back then because aside from being called "Word-Cross" it also had a different format—a diamond shaped puzzle without internal black squares in it.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

The newspaper is the most common avenue where one could see a crossword puzzle. Almost all broad sheets and dailies carry crossword puzzles because these are one of the main reasons why people buy them. But many hobbyists of crossword puzzles cannot wait for the next issue of the newspaper that is why they resort to books that contain compilation of different crossword puzzles.

Today, there are so many books that are published that would suit the person's level of expertise. There are those who are for beginners that contain easier words to fill out. There are also those who are for advanced hobbyists that would contain difficult words and combinations.

In most bookstores today, crossword puzzles are also categorized depending on the age. Many crossword puzzle books are available now for kids such as "Wordbook Game for Kids" that contains easy word puzzles and with big and attractive illustrations. For adults who want to start slow, they can buy the "The Outrageous Crossword Puzzle" which is more laid back and easier to solve. For those who learns fast, there's the " The New York Times Monday Through Friday Easy to Tough Crossword Puzzles". And, for those who are planning to get hooked into it, it is best to purchase the "The New York Times Crossword Omnibus: 1,001 Puzzles from the NYT" which is considered as the biggest book of crossword puzzles that was ever produced or published.

STARTER TIPS

Aside from being an entertaining hobby, the most important benefit the one can get from solving crossword puzzles regularly is that they exercise their minds. Experts say that those who solve crossword puzzles have lesser risks for dementia and other age-related neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease. People who also solve crossword puzzles regularly are known to have lighter moods compared to those who don’t since they have an outlet for their emotions and other frustrations in life.

If you would want these benefits, now is the time to get started with crossword puzzles! Here some tips that can help you get by:

1. Learn how to solve it. If this is the first time that you will be solving a crossword puzzle, what you can do is grab a pen and start looking for the clues. By doing this, you will know which are the ones you can answer first. Once you have a word depending on the clue, you can look for more words until you finish the entire puzzle.

2. Read, read, and read! Since solving crossword puzzles is all about words, it is best if you update your vocabulary with new words as often as possible. This can be done by reading reference materials such as dictionaries, almanacs, and even novels. If you read these stuff regularly, you will be able to learn as many ambiguous words and phrases. If you are familiar with as many that words or phrases s possible, it will be easier for you to solve crossword puzzles.

Crossword Puzzle History

The first crossword puzzle graced the pages of the Sunday New York World on December 21, 1913. The first crossword puzzle was created by Arthur Wynne. After the first issue, it never looked back. It became a weekly feature until it became a craze.

Word puzzles can be traced until the Roman period. Actually, remains of a word squares can be found in the Roman ruins of Pompeii. A word square is composed of words which can be read horizontally and vertically. The words are the same in both directions. But there would be instances where the horizontal word is different. This is referred to as the double word square.

A famous word square was discovered in the Herculaneum ruins in Pompeii. The word square was called Sator Square which is in Latin. It can be predated in the Christian era.

The longest word squares done were composed of nine letters and uses unusual word and proper names. Nobody was able to construct a ten letter word square, whether it is a computer or a person. Word squares were considered to be the forerunners of crossword puzzles.

When crossword puzzle was first published in the New York World, it was initially called “word-cross puzzle”. It is very different from the current puzzles, since there were no black squares. The New York World was the only newspaper back then which started publishing crossword puzzles. It was created by a journalist working for the World. Wynne was inspired by a childhood game in England.

In 1924, a small publishing firm released a collection of the puzzles published in the World. It was published in book form. The book was launched by Simon and Schuster. It sold 36,000 copies after the first printing. They published two more volumes of the book and this signalled the start of the craze over crossword puzzle. Other newspapers eventually picked up the trend and started publishing their own crossword puzzles.

Within the next decade, crossword puzzle became very popular. It seems like every kind of business is using crossword puzzle, it was even given free with items of clothing sold. Its popularity eventually reached and conquered Europe.

The first crossword puzzle appeared in Britain in Pearson’s Magazine in February 1922. It first appeared in Times in February 1930. British crossword puzzle was considered to be more difficult since it is a cryptic puzzle. To solve a cryptic puzzle, answering the clues is not the only thing to do. You would also need to figure out the clue itself.

The crossword puzzles were initially created by hand until a software company was able to develop a program for computers that would be able to create a crossword puzzle. This program was first created by Variety Games Inc. in 1997, the software was called Crossword Weaver and was patented.

Today crosswords are among the most popular word games in history. There are people who make answering crossword puzzles a daily habit while there are some people who are totally obsessed with it. In the United States alone, there were about 40 million people who solve crosswords daily.

Now, there the New York World is no longer around. The initial format of the crossword puzzle transformed to its current form. But Simon & Schuster still publishes book of crossword puzzles. Until now, the crossword puzzle’s popularity still continues.