About Us

Gail Marie Beckman is what puzzle lovers call a cruciverbalist—someone who not only loves word puzzles but designs them. After realizing that her true talent lay in creating crosswords rather than working for a cable company, she left her corporate job in 1991 and launched Custom Crosswords & More. For more than thirty years she has been crafting personalized crossword and word‑search puzzles for individuals, couples and families and has also built custom puzzles for businesses and trade‑show booths.

Gail still sketches out each grid the old‑fashioned way—on graph paper with pencil—so every puzzle reflects the client’s words, phrases and special moments. Her portfolio ranges from intimate gifts to training and marketing tools, including a technical crossword developed for the State of California to train firefighters on hazardous materials.

Gail moved the business to Las Vegas in 2003 to serve the trade‑show industry with contest puzzles that keep visitors engaged and make marketing materials stick. In addition to running her puzzle company, she nurtures her creative side as a stand‑up comedian—a passion she picked up in 2010. She performs at open‑mic nights, plays guitar with her husband and hosts local events. Gail’s favorite puzzles include “A Diamond Is a Fan’s Best Friend,” “A Frog’s Life” and “What Are You Afraid Of?”. Whether she’s designing a romantic anniversary crossword, a puzzle book or a corporate training tool, Gail brings humor and heart to every project and loves sharing what it was like growing up as a self‑described “word nerd”