Word Searches For Dummies »

Denise Sutherland is a syndicated Australian puzzle author. Her crosswords, word searches, and other puzzles appear in a wide range of Australian and international publications, and she has written five themed puzzle books. Sutherland runs her own graphic design business, Sutherland Studios, where she concentrates on creating handcrafted puzzles.

Become a word search whiz — and boost your brain power to boot!

Are you wild about word searches? This fun, go-anywhere guide is packed with puzzles to stretch your skills and strengthen your mind. Inside you'll find eight different kinds of word searches — including one invented by the author! — as well as extensive tips and tricks to improve your puzzle-solving abilities. You'll have a great time mastering increasingly difficult searches while you reap the brain-boosting benefits.

• Working with word searches — get familiar with the eight word search varieties in the book and the strategies for solving each collection
  
  
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  Start with straightforward puzzles — try simple and story word searches, find hidden words, and solve secret-shape puzzles
  
  
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  Conquer more complex searches — gather your wits for scrambles, quiz questions, and secret-list and winding word searches
  
  
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  Play like a pro with bonus puzzles — tackle anagrams and other word games that are guaranteed to make your brain hurt!
  
  
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  Try not to peek — the answers to all puzzles feature full grids, so you can see where each word is placed
  
  

Open the book and find:

• 250 brand-new, handcrafted puzzles
  
  
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  The brain-boosting benefits of doing word searches
  
  
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  A chapter with hints for every puzzle
  
  
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  Ten letter-pattern tips
  
  
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  Extra or "Ultra" challenging puzzles
  
  
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  Secrets to designing your own word searches
  
  
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  Web addresses for online resources
  
  
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  Fascinating word puzzle facts
  
  

Biography

Denise Sutherland is a syndicated Australian puzzle author. Her crosswords, word searches, and other puzzles appear in a wide range of Australian and international publications, and she has written five themed puzzle books. Sutherland runs her own graphic design business, Sutherland Studios, where she concentrates on creating handcrafted puzzles.

About This Book.

Conventions Used in This Book.

What You’re Not to Read.

Foolish Assumptions.

How This Book Is Organized.

Part I: Working with Word Searches.

Part II: Starting with Straightforward Puzzles.

Part III: Moving On to Complex Puzzles.

Part IV: Hints and Answers.

Part V: The Part of Tens.

Icons Used in This Book.

Where to Go from Here.

Part I: Working with Word Searches.

Chapter 1: Hunting through the World of Word Searches.

Word Searches at a Glance.

Using Word Searches to Keep Your Mind Sharp.

Understanding dementia.

Considering the importance of mind puzzles and games.

A Fun Romp through Word Search History.

Chapter 2: Perfecting Your Puzzle-Solving Strategies.

Solving Word Searches.

Gathering your equipment.

Marking the words.

Tackling the grid.

Moving Past Word Searches: Anagrams and Other Word Games.

Understanding anagrams.

Anagramming tricks.

Rearranging letters for tile games.

Baffl ing letter squares.

Staying alive in Hangman.

Part II: Starting with Straightforward Puzzles.

Chapter 3: Trying Your Hand at Simple Word Searches.

Chapter 4: Reading up on Story Word Searches.

Chapter 5: Finding Hidden Words in Your Puzzles.

Chapter 6: Solving Secret Shapes.

Part III: Moving On to Complex Puzzles.

Chapter 7: Gathering Your Wits for Scrambled Searches.

Chapter 8: Are You Ready for Some Quiz Words?

Taking the Quiz.

Turning to the Grid.

Chapter 9: Solving Secret List Word Searches.

Chapter 10: Weaving Your Way through Winder Words.

Chapter 11: Discovering Anagrams and Other Word Games.

Part IV: Hints and Answers.

Chapter 12: Helpful Hints to Keep You Going.

Understanding the Grid Coordinate System.

Chapter 1 Hint.

Chapter 3 Hints.

Chapter 4 Hints.

Chapter 5 Hints.

Chapter 6 Hints.

Chapter 7 Hints.

Chapter 8 Hints.

Chapter 9 Hints.

Chapter 10 Hints.

Chapter 11 Hints.

Chapter 13: The Answers You Seek.

Part V: The Part of Tens.

Chapter 14: Ten Letter-Pattern Tips.

Letters by Frequency.

Common First Letters.

Common Last Letters.

Follow Me: Common Letter Sequences.

Two’s Company: Digraphs.

Make That Three: Trigraphs.

Double the Fun: Double Letters.

Common Prefixes.

Common Suffixes.

Common Consonant Patterns at the Beginnings of Words.

Chapter 15: Ten Benefi ts of Doing Word Searches.

They’re Portable Boredom-Busters.

They Keep Your Brain Active.

They Increase Your Vocabulary.

They Help You Learn New Languages.

They Help You Gather Knowledge in a Way that Makes Sense to You.

They Let You Relax and Have Fun.

They Sharpen Your Spelling Skills.

They Train Your Brain to Recognize Patterns.

They Help You Overcome Insomnia.

They’re a Way to Spend Quality Time with the Family.

Chapter 16: Ten Steps to Help You Design Your Own Word Search.

Step 1: Choose a Theme.

Step 2: Gather Your Words.

Step 3: Make the Big Grid Decisions.

Step 4: Assemble the Tools of the Trade.

Step 5: Just Add Words.

Step 6: Ponder the Punctuation.

Step 7: Erase and Change as Needed.

Step 8: Fill in the Grid.

Step 9: Check and Recheck the Puzzle.

Step 10: Make It Pretty.

Using a computer.

Writing it out by hand.