Australian Crosswords

Just before Christmas an Australian broadcaster added a cryptic crossword to their website with answers that related to the news in 2013. The clues were so-so, as you’d expect from an amateur compiler, but what really struck me was the awful grid that accompanied the puzzle. I have always maintained that learning how to do something by working backwards is not ideal as it’s easy to miss fundamental concepts. However, some things, like the importance and role of a grid in the overall solving process, seem blatantly obvious to me. The puzzle is called CROSS WORD. Two answers crossing on one letter isn’t enough: the solver would need to solve each in isolation as one contributing letter offers virtually no help. Ever tried cold-solving? Really hard. The accepted standard is that at least half of an answer should be contributed by intersecting answers.

Having said this, I know that many solvers are unaware that crossword grids are usually designed with symmetry even though they may have solved 1000s of crosswords. This is because they operate on the finished product and haven’t been involved in the design, reinforcing the need for an amateur setter to learn the basics and not rely solely on their experience as a solver.

Every now and then I search the Net for crossword paraphernalia just to see what’s available: t-shirts, caps, mugs, ties etc. I’m struck by the poor grid designs used on these products – surely years of solving or a small amount of research should produce a better result? I do know one thing – I would never buy a product that displays such obvious crossword ignorance.

Occasionally people delight in challenging my cryptic philosophy by making naive claims that there’s no need for rules in cryptic crosswords. Usually they are trying to justify either their own lack of cluing ability or that of their favourite setter. Quite simply, a setter can’t set a puzzle for a solver without there being some kind of common understanding – the rules – that both abide by. This common understanding may be tight or loose, but it’s there. And there are everyday rules that might not seem like rules too: the grid associated with the clues is where the answers go; the numbers before the clues relate to the numbers in the grid; the numbers after the clues represent the lengths of the answers; down answers are entered vertically etc etc. Rules? Yes! Cryptics have similiar rules – each answer must have a relationship to a clue; components within a clue must have a relationship with the answer; the same part of speech must match between a definition in a clue and the answer; the solver is entitled to proper instruction when manipulating letters and words etc. There’s also the structure that ensures a solver can have a fair crack at finding the answer. Of course rules can be restrictive, and make it difficult for the unskilled to be productive, but they also provide a framework that allows newcomers to take a consistent solving approach. Personally I like to be governed by rules in all aspects of cryptic crossword writing so that I’m constantly challenged in the way that I use words and construct clues.