Beginners Luck

My grandfather loved doing crosswords. One time when I was visiting him, he encouraged me to try to create a puzzle for him to do. I was probably about 12 years old. Back then, there were no computers (TV had just been invented, I think).

So, I got some graph paper and proceeded to create a huge crossword that was of course, centered around sports. It took me a few months to create it (it was super-large). I'm not sure how good it was, but my grandfather sure enjoyed it.

That was the start of an on again / off again hobby that I still do to this day. I will have future blogs describing some neat experiences I have had related to crossword puzzles. Right now, I am creating a puzzle for a guy in the recording industry whose clients include Bon Jovi, Kenny Rogers, Reba McIntyre and The Beach Boys. I somehow became one of the most popular 'intenet-based' crossword constructors in the US. Some months, my puzzles had over 250,000 downloads.

A few years ago, I came across a website dedicated to the people who create the puzzles that appear in newspapers and other publications. I read up on the process that desribed how to submit puzzles to newspapers and decided to give it a try.

I had a few that I thought were pretty good, so one evening, I submitted one to Tribune Media Services.

The next morning, I received an email stating that my puzzle was accepted and would be published in newspapers all around the US (it appeared locally in the St. Pete Times).

I thought, wow, I can make some money doing this. I had quite a few that I could submit. So, I started to submit more puzzles only to learn that it is a real competitive market (most puzzles are not accepted). I have had other puzzles published and will soon begin submitting more.

I learned later, how unusual my accomplishment was. Almost noone ever gets published on their first try and the 'editor' who replied the next day has the worst reputation for getting back to people.

All in all, it was a case of beginners luck.

But, it was an accomplishment that my grandfather would have been proud of. Without him, I doubt I would have ever developed this talent.

I do have a website featuring my puzzles: http://www.davescrosswords.com/