How I Got Hooked on Making Crossword Puzzles

In the spring of 2024, I got it into my head to try making crossword puzzles.

I bounced around a few different sites, but pretty quickly I landed on crosshare.org. What I loved is that it’s open-source and community-driven.
You can just dive in, create, and share — no fees, no pressure — and people play your puzzles and leave comments.

Why Crosshare Stood Out

Making puzzles on Crosshare is simple — and kind of addictive.

You start with a blank grid, and the site recommends words you might want to slot in. But as soon as you start entering your own words, the site dynamically reshuffles suggestions around what you’re building. Every time you add a letter, the whole grid ripples and adjusts to fit.

It’s a little like magic.
And a lot like playing Tetris, but with words.

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Each new letter you place ripples through the grid. It’s addictive in the best way.
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Starting Small: 4x4 Grids, No Black Squares

I began with 4x4 crossword puzzles — no black squares, just tight little grids where every word was exactly four letters long.

They were quick to build, quick to solve, and honestly just a lot of fun.

Pretty soon I realized I’d published 12 in a row.
At that point, I thought, might as well keep the streak alive.

Fast forward to New Year’s Eve 2024, and I had a 204-day streak of daily 4x4 crosswords.

Leveling Up for 2025

When 2025 rolled in, I had a choice:
• Stick with my comfy 4x4s?
• Or kick it up a notch?

I chose the challenge.
I moved on to 5x5 puzzles — and started including black squares.
It opened up the grids and opened up more word possibilities.

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A Few Rules I Always Follow

As I kept making puzzles, I came up with a few personal rules:
• Use simple words I’d actually say.
If it feels weird coming out of my mouth, it doesn’t belong in the grid.
• Start grids with words that spark good feelings.
Puppy, kitty, peach — anything that makes people smile right off the bat.
• Names are fair game.
Some crossword makers shy away from names. I lean into them — singers, actors, celebrities — anyone that keeps the vibe alive.
(Yes, some are vintage. But plenty are from today too — like someone you’d see in White Lotus.)

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“Starting grids with a happy word like ‘puppy’ makes the whole puzzle feel lighter.”

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The Daily Grind (And How I Keep It Fun)

Even though I publish a puzzle every day, that doesn’t mean I make one every single day.

The nice thing is, you can bank puzzles ahead of time.

Some days — like yesterday — I get into a zen mode and knock out three or four puzzles in a row.
It’s pretty satisfying, like stacking up little victories.

Right now, I’m about eight days ahead, which means if I need a break, I can take one — guilt-free.

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The Secret Weapon: An Editor

Behind every puzzle is a secret weapon: my wife, Emily.

Emily edits every single crossword before it goes live.
She’s my beta tester, my editor, my quality control department, and a crossword wizard.

Sometimes I even sit and watch Emily solve.
(Not that she ever gets stuck. She’s way too good.)

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Final Thoughts

What started as a random experiment turned into a daily habit I look forward to. My streak is now over 320 days and I’m closing in on a full year of publishing daily crosswords. It’s a little creative ritual — and the best part is, there’s always a new grid to fill.

I have some ideas on future posts about creating crosswords, including posts on crafting fun clues, learning from community feedback, making print zines and more. I also plan to publish crosswords in this blog.

You can play all my Mini Crosswords and leave comments on my Crosshare blog here:
https://crosshare.org/erk