Word game parties
By Hot
To get a local puzzlers’ group off the ground, the best approach may be to organize word-game parties. Berkeley area Krewe have hosted Equinox word-game parties for decades. Different regions have different traditions, but Boston, New Jersey, New York, and Los Angeles all have regular get-togethers, which are often chronicled in The Enigma. NPL members from all over the Northeast participate in the epic MIT Mystery Hunt in the winter, and the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament in the spring draws NPLers from all over. Of course, the summer NPL convention is the mother of all word-game parties!
The easiest party to organize involves a small group playing commercial word games, such as Scrabble®, Boggle®, or Anagrams, and their spinoffs. In a more ambitious, larger word-game party, two or three dozen people congregate to solve puzzles, play game-show-like games, and compete in team challenges. A good way to learn how to organize such a party is to attend an NPL convention and bring back the games for local use, or to borrow games and puzzles from members in other areas. Eventually, you will want to design your own games and puzzles especially for the occasion, and bring them to the next convention!
[This article originally appeared in the Guide]