Oct

20

contribute to Stolen Sharpie Revolution

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A message from Alex Wrekk, publisher of Stolen Sharpie Revolution:

Stolen Sharpie Revolution is a book I put together as a DIY giude for zines. There have been 3 printings since 2002 and I’m working on the 4th right now. I’m actually calling it Stolen Sharpie Revolution 2 because a lot has changed over the years and I had added a lot of new stuff. The printing has been delayed forever due to a large variety of things… usually money related. But I have the funds together now so here’s where I need your help.

In the back of each edition of Stolen Sharpie Revolution I have listings of distros, stores that sell zines, zine libraries, zine events and more. I need you help because I can’t really travel all over the world in search of illusive zine events (but that would be awesome!) I need your eyes and ears in the corners of the world to help SSR2 be the best print resource for zines.

I have pretty extensive listings as it is but the more the merrier. I would love it if you would mention shops or distros or whatever in this discussion thread and I’ll let you know if they are included. Also, if you have a new distro let me know and I’ll let you know the info I need to get it included in SSR2. Email alex@smallworldbuttons.com.

(We hope you’ll send us your listings, too! Email wordofmouth@undergroundpress.org.)

Oct

4

the future of review zines?

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The newest issue of Xerography Debt has brought a big change: It no longer contains reviews. The print zine continues to be a zine about zine, with commentary, discussion, columns, and more, but XD’s reviews have migrated to its blog.

In her introduction to the issue, Davida explains that her decision to change the zine’s format is a result of “the lag time between when zines are published and when reviews appear,” the decrease in zines received for review, increasing costs of printing and mailing, and decreasing numbers of supporters and subscribers. Those are issues we can certainly relate to here at ZW hq.

Prior to completing this issue, Davida sent out an announcement asking for comments on print zines versus online presence and how the Internet has changed zines. (XD #24 includes responses from some of her readers.) Read on to see Jerianne’s comments on the topic, including her predictions for the future of review zines.

I’d like to hear your response to this topic. Please let us know — either by adding a comment, or sending me an email — if you think I’m on track or way off base. Read more

Sep

18

calls for submissions & supporting indie press

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We’ve seen this in a dozen places — so we’re guessing you probably have, too — but just in case you missed it: Earlier this week Bitch magazine announced it needed to raise $40,000 in order to print its next issue in October. Over the past couple of years, several indie magazines have folded — many of them directly as a result of the closure of the Independent Press Association. (See Zine World #24 & #25 for more about this.) So the call went out for donations… and it was answered. In just 3 days, the magazine raised more than the $40,000 it needed to publish the next issue. Wow. Amazing.

If you love the independent press, $$ is a great way to show your support. From time to time, we’re all in danger of sinking because we’re short on cash. If you can, take a few minutes to order or renew a subscription and/or make a donation to the indie magazine or zine you love the best, be it Bitch, Zine World, or something other publication. Even $5 or $10 can make a big difference.

We’ve also seen lots of calls for submissions lately, including:

Sep

4

new events, other cool stuff

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Live in/near Portland? Do us a favor and go to the Multnomah County Library 4th Annual Zinesters Talking series! Each Tuesday in September will feature local zinesters reading from their work at one of the MCL branches. Featured readers incldue: Kate Lopresti (Constant Rider), Katin Imes and Diane Gilleland (Citizeen), and Kelly Froh (titles). Zines by the presenters will be available for purchase. Find out more at the MCL website. (Sorry for the late announcement of this event; things have been hectic at ZW HQ.) Find pictures of MCL zine events at the mclzines flckr page.

Fais-Le Toi-Meme (translation: Do It Yourself) Symposium will be held Sept. 27-28 at L’Hybride, 18 rue Gosselet, in Lille, France (between Paris and Brussels). The event will include zine and small press publishers, distros, silkscreen artists, crafts, t-shirts, toys, self-produced CDs, concerts, movies, and more. Admission is free. Find out more at www.fais-le-toi-meme.com/ or www.myspace.com/salonfaisletoimeme.

Fred Wright (zine publisher and, dare I say, zine scholar) has a new novel: Blog Love Omega Glee, now being serialized on wredfright.blogspot.com. He tells us: “It’s set in 2012, and about two bloggers who fall in love while the world falls apart.  One blogs on professional wrestling and the other on conspiracy theories and politics, but the plot’s mainly the skeleton to hang the silliness upon.  Originally the characters were going to be zine publishers, so I think zinesters will relate to a number of things as the novel still documents the pitfalls and pleasures of self-publishing.”

Received this announcement from France: “DIYzines is a community website about drawing zines (graphzines, artbooks, self produced edition, underground press…) and limited edition (1 to 500 copies). DIYzines is a way to share information and to follow the current events of european graphziners. For us, zine editors, distribution is the main problem ; it is difficult to make ourselves known. Together, we are stronger. Yo! More than a online bookstore, DIYzines is a free community website. Each artist or publisher is the author of  his or her article: new books, exhibitions, call for submission, link to his or her website… You are in control of the information and you can update your own page at any time. You can also sell your books by paypal or otherwise. DIYzines is a totally free website and no commission is taken on your sales, it’s your business! www.DIYzines.com

Aug

14

a message from Xerography Debt

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(Picked this up from zinegeeks@yahoogroups.com.)

Hi Everyone,

The next issue of Xerography Debt marks a bit of a transition where we try and straddle the fence between pixel and paper. One thing the paper version will try and do is discuss zine issues, plus columns and other matters that aren’t necessarily time sensitive like reviews can be. The reviews have been migrating to the XD blog (http://xerographydebt.blogspot.com/), and we’ve been posting there for a few months.

Since I am working on the next paper version, I’d like to post part of the last issue’s introduction (see below). If you’d like to send in a response for print, please direct it to leekinginc[at]hotmail.com.

Thanks,
Davida

*****************************************

Change, as always, is still brewing in the zine world. The paper vs. web debate rages on, as does perzines vs. blogs. In many ways these venues can and do co-exist, but at the same time I see the number of zines I receive dwindling. The general demographics of zinemakers and their overall productivity seem to be changing too. Most of the youngsters, the would-have-been next generation, have moved to the web. Many of the zines that I have loved for years have editors undergoing changes in their personal responsibilities (i.e. kids, older parents, jobs) and are publishing less frequently. I know that personally I haven’t published an issue of Leeking Ink in two years, the longest gap since I started the zine in 1995. (I do have plans to get the new issue done in the coming months.) The main people I see publishing semi-consistently are the people who have been at this for at least 15-20 years, are past the major life changes, and don’t view the web as a spot for natural migration. However, as long as postage and printing costs continue to rise, the future of paper as the dominant zine media remains uncertain. Regardless, it is the reading that matters, not how or where it is done.

To XD’s readers – how do you feel about the paper vs. digital changes? Are you online or have moved to online only? Why? Do you have more readers or more reader feedback? Back in the day, zines were only part of the obsession; letters from total strangers were the other part. Has e-mail wiped that component out? If you are a paper devotee, why?

Aug

14

talkin zines, makin zines

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Recent articles about zines:
Wanted: Pen, plain old paper, imagination, Christian Science Monitor

You Could Learn A Lot from a Punker

The Rozz Tox Effect on Comics, Zines, and Libraries

Collecting the Wretched Refuse: Lifting a lamp to zines, military newspapers, and Wisconsinalia, Library Trends, by Chris Dodge (zinester, librarian, and former Zine World reviewer)

Other stuff:
Check out Barnard College Library’s online zine exhibit: Elections and Protest: Zines from the Barnard Library Collection. It includes scans of selected pages and lesson plans for three different age groups on using zines in the classroom.

Here’s a few links to booklet templates and online tools that could be useful in making a zine (as seen in LiveJournal’s zinescene community) :

Also, we’ve made a big update to our upcoming events page, adding lots of cool events that will be happening this fall.