How to Make a Crossword in InDesign

By Mark Slingo

Crosswords appear in many newspapers and magazines.
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Adobe InDesign is a software graphics package that allows publishers to prepare projects for printing. Crosswords are a puzzle that requires you to assemble a collection of words crossing each other with the same letters, deriving your answers from provided clues. Form a grid in Adobe InDesign to make a crossword, and then black out the nonactive parts of the design.

Step 1

Design a crossword on a sheet of grid paper. Note how many columns and rows the final design has.

Step 2

Click on the "File" menu and navigate to "New," then "Document." Set up the document page with a margin setting of ".25 inches." Hit "Tab" and click on "OK."

Step 3

Click on the "Layout" menu and choose "Create Guides." Input the number of rows and columns that the grid for your crossword contains, including the blacked out areas. Click on "OK" to create the grid.

Step 4

Format each individual cell in the grid. For the blacked-out boxes, give the box a black fill. Type a number into the beginning of each crossword section to designate that part of the puzzle.

Step 5

Click on the "Text" tool in the toolbar. Click under the grid on the workspace. Type in your crossword clues in the text box.

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