“I highly recommend blind playtesting! If you’ve never placed a rulebook you’ve written in front of someone else to figure out, you definitely need to. Even if you’re not a publisher, you’ll find out so much about how people learn and play games.”

— Carla Kopp

Lots of pointers for making a pitch video:

https://bluecubeboardgames.com/2018/08/18/making-a-pitch-video/

Terms that one publisher includes in their licensing contracts:

https://stonemaiergames.com/game-designer-contracts-and-stonemaier-games/

The essential elements of pitching your design to a publisher (audio):

http://www.thespiel.net/node/1160

“Every game you design will be better than the last. You will be smarter. You will be better. Don’t be afraid to put a game on a shelf for a year and work on something else. You’ll figure it out when you come back!”

— Jonathan Gilmour

“Goals can be useful in starting designing, but don’t get hung up on them. Follow your game wherever it leads you, even to places you didn’t expect to go.”

— Matthew Dunstan

Three ways to improve the process of writing and editing rulebooks:

http://joshuayearsley.com/2018/08/09/were-making-rulebooks-all-wrong/

How much upkeep is too much for players? A Board Game Designers Forum discussion:

https://www.bgdf.com/forum/game-creation/design-theory/what-percentage-game-should-be-spent-doing-upkeep

Kickstarter advice for first-time project creators:

https://www.gatekeepergaming.com/article-10-advice-panels-faq/

Lessons learned from pitching to publishers at several summer conventions:

https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/79795/things-ive-learned-summer-about-pitching-games

How to put together an engaging short description of your game:

https://bluecubeboardgames.com/2018/08/10/writing-short-game-descriptions/

Tips for making your game's rules publisher-ready:

http://faidutti.com/blog/?p=9909

Some graphic-design tips for making your prototypes more user-friendly (video)

Different ways the development process between designers and publishers can work (audio):

http://thespiel.net/node/1157

Some ways that social-deduction games can be more open to introverted players:

https://www.3dtotalgames.com/social-deduction-for-introverts/

How to win a game design competition (audio):

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/how-to-win-a-design-competition-with-corry-damey/

How to figure out why your Kickstarter campaign is failing and how to fix it (audio):

http://theforbiddenlimb.libsyn.com/saving-your-failing-kickstarter-campaign-ep-71

“LISTEN to your playtesters. Ask questions, take notes. Don’t argue with them! Even if they played “wrong” or you disagree with them or you tried their suggestion and it didn’t work. Playtesters are a valuable, limited resource. Treat them with respect.”

— Emma Larkins

Things to consider when designing a family game (audio):

http://www.boardgamedesignlab.com/designing-family-games-with-bez-shahriari/

The Board Game Workshop Design Contest 2018

Deadline: Sept. 19, 2018

Prizes: cash

http://www.theboardgameworkshop.com/p/the-board-game-workshop-design-contest.html