Darrell Louder (@getlouder) joins the Happy Mitten Podcast (@HappyMitten) to discuss the Unpub program for unpublished games:

http://www.happymittengames.com/49/

Data on how much offering a print-and-play copy helps a Kickstarter campaign:

http://www.jamesmathe.com/does-a-print-play-version-of-your-game-help-sales/

Protecting intellectual property in a crowded market:

http://casualgamerevolution.com/blog/2015/01/when-games-collide-protecting-intellectual-property-rights-in-a-crowded-market

Guidelines for great art in board games:

http://www.acrosstheboardgames.net/nicole/what-makes-great-art-in-games/

“It’s okay to not put a mediocre thing on Kickstarter just because you’ve spent a lot of time on it.”

— Jamey Stegmaier (@jameystegmaier)

The Long View podcast (@Longviewpodcast) discusses the characteristics and popularity of dice games:

http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepodcastepisode/135031/long-view-dice-games

Adventures in pitching–lessons learned from a year of shopping a design to potential publishers:

http://ludology.libsyn.com/ludology-episode-95-the-pitch

“For early prototypes, use what’s on hand. Borrow art from the web, if you want art. Don’t spend a lot of time reinventing the wheel.”

— Brett Myers (@brettspiel)

Advice for honing your rulebook:

http://hyperbolegames.com/2015/01/12/the-rewrite/

Thoughts on unique player powers:

http://lawofgamedesign.com/2015/01/09/theory-rules-for-player-powers/

“Like the first draft of a book, the first physical prototype is a real hurdle to overcome. Remember: freedom to fail. A book could be well-written without an editor. I don’t think any game can be well-designed without playtesters. That’s the second hurdle.”

— Behrooz Shahriari (@bbshahriari)

DFW Nerd Night Game Design Competition

http://www.dfwnn.org/design

Michael Lee and Brent Kinney of Panda Game Manufacturing (@pandagm) discuss the process of manufacturing board games on the Plaid Hat Podcast (@PlaidHatGames):

http://plaidhatpodcast.libsyn.com/163-manufacturing-with-pandas

Thoughts on goals besides winning:

http://drwictzboardgames.blogspot.com/2015/01/thoughts-on-winning-goals-besides.html

“If you want to do something you’re not completely proficient at, then bring in some help from someone who is. Go make friends.”

— Ben Pinchback (@pinchback21)

Tips for building relationships with publishers and getting published through the back door:

http://www.leagueofgamemakers.com/getting-published-through-the-back-door/

The Game Crafter is running two events for game designers: Protospiel Madison on Oct. 23-25, 2015, and Crafter Con on Nov. 6-8, 2015:

http://thegamecrafter.libsyn.com/the-game-crafter-and-conventions-episode-2

Announcing Protospiel Madison 2015

tgcnews:

We’re bringing Protospiel back to Madison again this year with Protospiel Madison 2015. Last year we had over 80 attendees, and this year we’re expecting even more. Save the date: October 23-25, 2015

The theme for the January 2015 24-hour contest is “fireworks”:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1295876/24-hour-contest-january-2015

Recommendations for online playtesting tools:

http://www.reddit.com/r/tabletopgamedesign/comments/2r8uyq/what_tool_for_remote_playtesting/