From heather at burningvoid.com Wed Mar 15 12:50:28 2006 From: heather at burningvoid.com (Heather Grove) Date: Wed Mar 15 12:54:22 2006 Subject: [Burningvoid-announce] Site update #20: reviews of cookbooks, cookware, and more! Message-ID: <815586e3e28bd48cd39fa32ee3eda25a@burningvoid.com> This time around we have a handful of new reviews for you: The Microplane 36030 grater gift set: http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/microplanegiftset.php The Kaisercast Flora Bundform pan: http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/kaisercastbundform.php "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Starting a Restaurant": http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/startingarestaurant.php "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Starting & Running a Coffee Bar": http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/cigcoffeebar.php The "Barbecue! Bible" cookbook by Raichlen: http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/barbecuebible.php Dr. Agatston's original "South Beach Diet" book: http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/southbeachdiet.php Dr. Agatston's "South Beach Diet Good Fats Good Carbs Guide (Revised)" book: http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/goodfatsgoodcarbs.php Dr. Agatston's "South Beach Diet Cookbook": http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/southbeachcookbook.php Enjoy! Heather Grove heather@burningvoid.com http://www.burningvoid.com/ We value your privacy and will never give your information to anyone, barring a legal requirement to do so. This list is opt-in only! In order to unsubscribe from this mailing list, send a blank email with a subject of "unsubscribe" (without the quotes) to burningvoid-announce-request at seven.pairlist.net or visit the listinfo page and log in with your password. From heather at burningvoid.com Fri Jun 9 10:25:17 2006 From: heather at burningvoid.com (Heather Grove) Date: Fri Jun 9 10:31:56 2006 Subject: [Burningvoid-announce] Site update #21: new review system & blog; a ton of reviews Message-ID: Hello! The big news this time around is that I'm in the process of moving our reviews into a new content-management system that will allow greater flexibility and interactivity. So far I've moved roughly a fifth of our reviews over, and any new reviews are going directly into that system: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/ Since I'm using Six Apart's Movable Type software in order to do it, I also decided to move my blog of personal thoughts, site announcements, etc. over to our own site: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/thoughts/ Even better, you'll find a blog of writers' exercises to enjoy: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/epiphany/ The link directory has been updated several times since the last announcement email, and the following reviews have been posted (writers' book reviews have not yet been moved over to the new system, nor have RPG reviews and some others): "Writing Children's Books for Dummies," by Lisa Rojany Buccieri and Peter Economy: http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/childrensbooks.php Inspiration 8, from Inspiration Software (for Mac OS X or Windows): http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/inspiration8.php "The Pocket Idiot's Guide to Performance Appraisal Phrases," by Peter Gray and John H. Carroll: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/05/ the_pocket_idiots_guide_to_per.html "The Pocket Idiot's Guide to the New Food Pyramids," by Elizabeth M. Ward: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/05/ the_pocket_idiots_guide_to_the.html "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Core Conditioning," by Patrick S. Hagerman, Ed.D.: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/05/ the_complete_idiots_guide_to_c.html "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Cleaning," by Mary Findley and Linda Formichelli: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/06/ the_complete_idiots_guide_to_c_1.html "The Complete Idiot's Guide to 30,000 Baby Names," by Marcia Layton Turner and Robbi Hess: http://www.burningvoid.com/review/2006/cigbabynames.php "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Yoga Illustrated, Fourth Edition," Joan Budilovsky and Eve Adamson: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/06/ the_complete_idiots_guide_to_y.html I'm currently reading "The Creative Dreamer" and the Writer's Digest "Handbook of Magazine Article Writing," and soon I'll be reviewing another Yoga book. I also have a handful of other books waiting to be read and reviewed. See you again soon! Best, Heather Heather Grove heather@burningvoid.com http://www.burningvoid.com/ We value your privacy and will never give your information to anyone, barring a legal requirement to do so. This list is opt-in only! In order to unsubscribe from this mailing list, send a blank email with a subject of "unsubscribe" (without the quotes) to burningvoid-announce-request at seven.pairlist.net or visit the listinfo page and log in with your password. From heather at burningvoid.com Mon Jul 24 12:42:13 2006 From: heather at burningvoid.com (Heather Grove) Date: Mon Jul 24 12:49:40 2006 Subject: [Burningvoid-announce] Site Update #22: Reviews, blogs, exercises, and a book! Message-ID: <09924e5457ff095cb5060d8155bb5a2d@burningvoid.com> The big news for this update is that we've turned our popular character questions pdf into a simple saddle-stitched book available from Cafe Press: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid.67408020 We also used Cafe Press to put together a few fun other ideas we had: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid We have most of our reviews moved over to the reviews blog with the exception of most of the cookbook reviews; soon I'll be putting in redirects from the old reviews. Remember, new reviews will appear here now: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/ If you want more frequent updates on the site than through this list, or you feel like reading some more personal rambles, there's the blog: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/thoughts/ And if you enjoy the character questions pdf or our writers' material, the writers' exercise and prompt blog is coming along quite well: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/epiphany/ Also, Jeffrey has started a blog of his own, and has also started adding some tech book reviews to the reviews blog: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ardor/ All blogs have had new styles incorporated since the last mailing to better reflect each one's personality and purpose. New reviews include: "Extreme Programming Installed," by Ron Jeffries, Ann Anderson, and Chet Hendrickson http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/07/ extreme_programming_installed.html "The 3 A.M. Epiphany: Uncommon Writing Exercises That Transform Your Fiction," by Brian Kiteley http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/07/ the_3_am_epiphany_uncommon_wri.html "Henry Potty and the Pet Rock" by Valerie Frankel http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/07/ henry_potty_and_the_pet_rock_b.html Movable Type 3.2 http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/07/movable_type_32_1.html "Extreme Programming Explained: Embrace Change," by Kent Beck http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/07/ extreme_programming_explained.html "Writer's Digest Handbook of Magazine Article Writing, Second Edition," Ed. Michelle Ruberg http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/07/ writers_digest_handbook_of_mag.html "The Creative Dreamer, Revised," Veronica Tonay, Ph.D. http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/06/ the_creative_dreamer_revised_v_1.html The Epiphanies also include a write-up on "How to Free-Write": http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/epiphany/2006/06/ how_to_freewrite_1.html Best, Heather Heather Grove heather@burningvoid.com http://www.burningvoid.com/ We value your privacy and will never give your information to anyone, barring a legal requirement to do so. This list is opt-in only! In order to unsubscribe from this mailing list, send a blank email with a subject of "unsubscribe" (without the quotes) to burningvoid-announce-request at seven.pairlist.net or visit the listinfo page and log in with your password. From heather at burningvoid.com Tue Sep 5 10:58:23 2006 From: heather at burningvoid.com (Heather Grove) Date: Tue Sep 5 11:03:46 2006 Subject: [Burningvoid-announce] Site update #23: Reviews, shirts, Twilight Time, and more! Message-ID: Good morning! It's time to catch up with another update on what's been going on at the Burning Void. Writers' book reviews: "Between the Lines," by Jessica Page Morrell: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/09/ between_the_lines_master_the_s.html "The Curious Case of the Misplaced Modifier," by Bonnie Trenga: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/08/ the_curious_case_of_the_mispla.html "Writing Down the Bones, Expanded Edition," by Natalie Goldberg: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/07/ writing_down_the_bones_freeing.html Fiction reviews: "Dead Lines," by Greg Bear: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/08/ dead_lines_greg_bear.html "Panic," by Jeff Abbott: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/08/panic_jeff_abbott.html "Mount Dragon," by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/08/ mount_dragon_douglas_preston_a.html Other reviews: "Success with Cafepress.com", by Daniel M. Clark: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/08/ success_with_cafepresscom_firs.html Ecto Blog Editor, 2.4.1, for Mac OS X: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/08/ ecto_blog_editor_241_for_mac_o.html The Technorati service for bloggers: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/07/technorati.html The Viscotech memory foam support pillow: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/reviews/2006/09/ viscotech_memory_foam_support.html Note that we very nearly have all of our old reviews moved over--less than 15 to go, I'd estimate. That leaves us at roughly 450-475 reviews in the current blog! There was a new Twilight Time issue on "Using Random Items to Complicate the Plot": http://seven.pairlist.net/pipermail/twilighttime/2006/000046.html and Morrell's "Between the Lines" has given me one or two ideas for the next issue as well. Finally, we have a ton of new designs up at cafepress, available on everything from shirts to mugs to buttons and bags: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid You'll find a bunch of mmorpg designs, sure, but there are also a handful for fans of writing, cooking, and reading. We've been experimenting, and I think we've got some pretty cool designs up. Some of my favorites are: Loot tax: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1761640 Ninjaed my life: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1688041 WTS a clue: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1686742 Elixir of Coffee (also our most popular design so far): http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1674776 60 Warlock: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1782548 LRN2TYPE: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1677766 Coffee addict: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1688081 But honestly, I have trouble choosing. If I wrote up this list on a different day I'd probably give you a different selection of "favorites". Heather Grove heather@burningvoid.com http://www.burningvoid.com/ http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid We value your privacy and will never give your information to anyone, barring a legal requirement to do so. This list is opt-in only! In order to unsubscribe from this mailing list, send a blank email with a subject of "unsubscribe" (without the quotes) to burningvoid-announce-request at seven.pairlist.net or visit the listinfo page and log in with your password. From heather at burningvoid.com Wed Sep 27 13:48:16 2006 From: heather at burningvoid.com (Heather Grove) Date: Wed Sep 27 13:53:14 2006 Subject: [Burningvoid-announce] Site Update #24: Reviews, a couple of articles and some humor Message-ID: <8cbc71426e02dc2d36a13eebf52407c7@burningvoid.com> It's that time again--time for another irregular update on what we've been posting at burningvoid.com. Since the last issue, several programming-related book reviews have gone up: "Planning Extreme Programming," by Kent Beck and Martin Fowler: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ reviews/2006/09/planning_extreme_programming_b.html "Extreme Programming Explored," by William C. Wake: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ reviews/2006/09/extreme_programming_explored_b.html "Programming Ruby: The Pragmatic Programmers' Guide, Second Edition," by Dave Thomas with Chad Fowler and Andy Hunt: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ reviews/2006/09/programming_ruby_the_pragmatic.html As well as a writers' book review: "Sun Signs for Writers" by Bev Walton-Porter: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ reviews/2006/09/sun_signs_for_writers_by_bev_w.html And a quasi-review of a piece of software for writers: StoryWeaver 3.1 for Macintosh OS X: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ reviews/2006/09/storyweaver_31_for_macintosh_o.html In addition, you'll find reviews on: "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Psychology, Third Edition," Joni E. Johnston, Psy.D.: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ reviews/2006/09/the_complete_idiots_guide_to_p.html Pet Supply Factory 78" Cat Tree Condo House: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ reviews/2006/09/pet_supply_factory_78_cat_tree.html We also posted a new Twilight Time article, on "Creating Tension in Roleplaying Games": http://seven.pairlist.net/pipermail/twilighttime/2006/ 000047.html An article on "How to use writing exercises... and how not to use them": http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ epiphany/2006/09/how_to_use_writing_exercises_a.html And a bit of humor on fashion in World of Warcraft: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/ thoughts/2006/09/warcraft_fashion_rules.html Finally, not only do we have a ton more designs in the cafepress store in all of the topic areas, but we started a whole new line of entertaining designs for cat lovers called "a housecat's dictionary". We think you'll be amused by the cat's-eye view of the world: http:// www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1844218 We've also collected many blank journals with our designs on the covers into one section: http:// www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1900597 Have a great day! Heather UPCOMING: A review of Michael Turback's "More than a Month of Sundaes" A review of "Novelist's Boot Camp" A review of the Senseo coffee maker A review of the "Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook Core Rulebook v. 3.5" A review of PCGen for the Mac Yet more almost-daily writers' exercises at the epiphanies: http:// www.burningvoid.com/weblog/epiphany/ Heather Grove heather@burningvoid.com http://www.burningvoid.com/ http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid We value your privacy and will never give your information to anyone, barring a legal requirement to do so. This list is opt-in only! In order to unsubscribe from this mailing list, send a blank email with a subject of "unsubscribe" (without the quotes) to burningvoid-announce-request at seven.pairlist.net or visit the listinfo page and log in with your password. From heather at burningvoid.com Wed Sep 27 20:10:05 2006 From: heather at burningvoid.com (Heather Grove) Date: Wed Sep 27 20:15:54 2006 Subject: [Burningvoid-announce] Update 24b--with apologies Message-ID: There were some difficulties with the URLs this last update, so with apologies, here's round #2. Hopefully this'll be the only time you see a double-post from me! Here's the deal: I'm going to use "TinyURL" to make short URL versions of the long URLs; I'll make sure to test each one before putting it into the newsletter. All appropriate thanks go to the awesome free tinyurl service: http://www.tinyurl.com/ So, without further ado, the easier-to-use version of update #24: It's that time again--time for another irregular update on what we've been posting at burningvoid.com. Since the last issue, several programming-related book reviews have gone up: "Planning Extreme Programming," by Kent Beck and Martin Fowler: http://tinyurl.com/hakma "Extreme Programming Explored," by William C. Wake: http://tinyurl.com/gkre2 "Programming Ruby: The Pragmatic Programmers' Guide, Second Edition," by Dave Thomas with Chad Fowler and Andy Hunt: http://tinyurl.com/ezemb As well as a writers' book review: "Sun Signs for Writers" by Bev Walton-Porter: http://tinyurl.com/fvv8q And a quasi-review of a piece of software for writers: StoryWeaver 3.1 for Macintosh OS X: http://tinyurl.com/z9hr8 In addition, you'll find reviews on: "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Psychology, Third Edition," Joni E. Johnston, Psy.D.: http://tinyurl.com/jrjsz Pet Supply Factory 78" Cat Tree Condo House: http://tinyurl.com/k96a2 We also posted a new Twilight Time article, on "Creating Tension in Roleplaying Games": http://tinyurl.com/kelrt An article on "How to use writing exercises... and how not to use them": http://tinyurl.com/z7nla And a bit of humor on fashion in World of Warcraft: http://tinyurl.com/ztjqj Finally, not only do we have a ton more designs in the cafepress store in all of the topic areas, but we started a whole new line of entertaining designs for cat lovers called "a housecat's dictionary". We think you'll be amused by the cat's-eye view of the world: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1844218 We've also collected many blank journals with our designs on the covers into one section: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1900597 Okay, hopefully this version is tons more usable. If so, I'll keep doing it. If not, please let me know, and thanks for the emails I got today! Best, Heather Heather Grove heather@burningvoid.com http://www.burningvoid.com/ http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid We value your privacy and will never give your information to anyone, barring a legal requirement to do so. This list is opt-in only! In order to unsubscribe from this mailing list, send a blank email with a subject of "unsubscribe" (without the quotes) to burningvoid-announce-request at seven.pairlist.net or visit the listinfo page and log in with your password. From heather at burningvoid.com Tue Oct 24 10:50:11 2006 From: heather at burningvoid.com (Heather Grove) Date: Tue Oct 24 10:55:46 2006 Subject: [Burningvoid-announce] Site update #25--mostly reviews Message-ID: <5840fe5a7199f0da931f12490bf4d990@burningvoid.com> Occasionally I'm asked to pass along announcements of writing competitions. Since this list is meant to be just a quick site update I don't include them here, but you can find them in the announcements section of the Epiphanies blog: http://www.burningvoid.com/weblog/epiphany/announcements/ We have a couple of new writers' book reviews up: Alison Kent's "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing Erotic Romance" is a real sizzler: http://tinyurl.com/v6wrw Todd A. Stone's "Novelist's Boot Camp" is sure to give you the discipline you need to write like a pro: http://tinyurl.com/tawoy For die-hard foodies, Michael Turback's "More than a Month of Sundaes" is a luscious treat: http://tinyurl.com/y5kbvs And the Senseo single-serve coffee machine can be great for a quick pick-me-up: http://tinyurl.com/val6s I also posted a Twilight Time issue on World-Building Considerations: http://tinyurl.com/y47pfc Finally, the cafepress store now includes a tabletop roleplaying section: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/1985763 Have a safe and happy Halloween! Best wishes, Heather Heather Grove heather@burningvoid.com http://www.burningvoid.com/ http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid We value your privacy and will never give your information to anyone, barring a legal requirement to do so. This list is opt-in only! In order to unsubscribe from this mailing list, send a blank email with a subject of "unsubscribe" (without the quotes) to burningvoid-announce-request at seven.pairlist.net or visit the listinfo page and log in with your password. From heather at burningvoid.com Mon Nov 20 09:00:27 2006 From: heather at burningvoid.com (Heather Grove) Date: Mon, 20 Nov 2006 09:00:27 -0500 Subject: [Burningvoid-announce] Site update #26--writers' book reviews and cafepress stuff! Message-ID: Good morning! I hope you're all having a wonderful week pre-Thanksgiving. As usual we use the holiday as an excuse to cook up a storm, so you can expect our next announcement mailing to contain a bunch of cookbook reviews--in particular some fantastic-looking dessert cookbooks such as "The Chocolate Deck"! I also expect to put out a new Twilight Time zine issue soon. In the meantime, here are some of our latest offerings. Writers' book reviews: "Writing for the Soul," Jerry B. Jenkins: http://tinyurl.com/y9uxlb "The Well-Fed Self-Publisher," by Peter Bowerman: http://tinyurl.com/yjdmju "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Self-Publishing," Jennifer Basye Sander: http://tinyurl.com/ybxg84 Cafepress designs & offers: This year, cafepress is having a bit of a contest; they're taking the first 200 qualifying items submitted by shopkeepers, putting them on a portal page, and measuring sales volume from November 24 (this coming Friday) through December 24. While I have my doubts that an rpg-themed design could win, that won't stop me from trying--and I think I may well have gotten the design in before the cutoff, although I won't be sure until they make the official announcement. If you've been thinking of grabbing one of our ever-popular "I'm not lazy, I'm just out of mana" shirts, stop by the following URL between November 24 and December 24 to buy the dark t-shirt version at $1 off! http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid.87210139 We've added an entire new sub-section to the tabletop rpg section in the cafepress store, entitled "Adventurers' last words". It's filled with amusing examples of the things adventurers tend to say just before they get themselves wiped out! http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/2043819 We also updated the Warcraft-themed character class designs to level 70 in anticipation of the upcoming expansion. This includes updating our popular "level 60 nerd" design. Each design now offers a wider variety of style choices (colorful, plain, with picture): http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid/2066920 Finally, it seems our "Elixir of coffee" mug is going to be a popular holiday item this year: http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid.67841763 Sorry for spending so much of this email on cafepress stuff; it's the pre-holiday rush and all. I promise plenty of cookbook reviews next time! Have a wonderful week! Heather Heather Grove heather at burningvoid.com http://www.burningvoid.com/ Looking for excellent shirts and merchandise for roleplayers and writers? Visit our Cafe Press store! http://www.cafepress.com/burningvoid Join our announcement list to hear about new articles and reviews: http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/burningvoid-announce