Month: February 2018

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51 (More) Ideas for Your Next Zine

So Many Zines

Inspiration is a fickle thing. You never know where it’ll strike, but you also can’t wait around for it to do so if you want to get anything done. 51 Ideas for Your Next Zine was helpful to people, so I figured I’d help out with another list. Here are…

51 (More) Ideas for Your First/Next Zine

In no particular order…

  1. Say it without words (make a wordless zine)
  2. Your favourite recipe & the story behind it
  3. Take a day/week/etc off the internet & document your thoughts
  4. Your favourite conspiracy theory
  5. Your favourite mystery
  6. Three people (living or dead) come to dinner…
  7. Who are you in an alternate timeline? What if you’d made different choices?
  8. Dreams/nightmares
  9. Goals/aspirations
  10. What comes after capitalism/consumerism?
  11. Something you’ve always wanted to learn
  12. Books you want to write/comics you want to make/stories you want to tell
  13. Dream job that doesn’t exist
  14. Your very mild superpower
  15. Play tourist in your town
  16. Character profile (real or fictional)
  17. Guilty pleasures
  18. Bucket list (things to do before ___)
  19. What you’d do with $1 million (silly or serious)
  20. Write by hand (it activates different parts of the brain than typing does)
  21. Brainstorm your next project
  22. Create a survey and share the results
  23. Go through any childhood papers/art you have
  24. Do a life audit
  25. One thing you’ve learned for each year of life you’ve lived
  26. What inspires you
  27. Who inspires you
  28. Your own life hacks
  29. Make something with a friend
  30. Try blackout poetry
  31. The Tourist’s Guide to Your Life
  32. The Beginner’s Guide to ___
  33. Things you wish for (big and small)
  34. Things you wish people knew about you the moment they met you
  35. Your dream workspace/studio (bonus points for drawing it!)
  36. Write a manifesto
  37. How I Got Started ___
  38. People you would like to meet
  39. Try something “for kids” (they’re still fun activities)
  40. Something you couldn’t finish for whatever reason
  41. Create a puzzle (crossword, sudoku, etc) to include in your zine
  42. What makes you happy?
  43. Who/What has positively influenced you?
  44. Turn it into art (take that as you will)
  45. Explore ‘generators’ online – vampire name generator, Shakespeare insult generator, etc
  46. Your ideal phone app
  47. Go ‘random article surfing‘ on Wikipedia
  48. Imagine a life story for a stranger
  49. Your muse
  50. What your pets get up to after you go to sleep…
  51. Check out my first 51 Ideas for Your Next Zine
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Happy Mail Monday: Brain Fog Edition

Hello, zine friends. I hope this Monday finds you well.

This has been one of ‘those’ Mondays for me. The desire to call it a day and go back to bed has certainly been strong for the entire day. However, my self-competitive drive to post every Monday, etc, has kept be going. That, and some help from Wanderer when things weren’t working well technology-wise.

Phew.

At least I have some lovely zines to read! Check out the happy mail that came in this week in this video. (I had planned on posting photos as well, but I’ve just run out of spoons with this day. Crossing fingers for next week.)

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmWADSGYS0E&w=560&h=315]

Welcome to another Happy Mail Monday video. So sorry about the blur there for a while! I’ve trained myself a little too well to not look at the screen, I think. Haha.

***
Thanks to the wonderful zine friends who sent me mail!

Olivia: https://www.patreon.com/oliviaszines
Billy the Bunny: https://www.etsy.com/shop/iknowbilly
Sober Bob: https://www.instagram.com/soberbobmonthly/

***

My PO Box:

Jaime Nyx
PO Box 378
Murray Bridge, SA 5253
Australia

***

You Can Find Me At:

Sea Green Zines: https://seagreenzines.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SeaGreenZines/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seagreenzines/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/zineninja
Etsy: https://www.seagreenzines.etsy.com
Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/seagreenzines
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/seagreenzines

Want to listen to The Zine Collector Podcast? Find me at: https://shows.pippa.io/thezinecollector

Also on:
Spotify: https://www.spotify.com/
Pocket Casts https://play.pocketcasts.com
Cast Box https://castbox.fm

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Zine Review: Joining the Dots: A Queer, Fat Positive Perzine About PCOS

Joining the Dots: A Queer, Fat Positive Perzine About PCOS
Holly Casio & Friends
http://www.coolschmool.com

Joining the Dots is an A5 black and white zine that describes itself best in the subtitle: A queer, fat positive perzine about PCOS.

Someone suggested this zine to me after I put together Umbrella, and I am so, so happy to see another PCOS zine out in the zineverse. There’s so much confusion, and it’s a condition not talked about enough.

I love how Joining the Dots starts out with a ‘Holly Casio Fact File’ as if to say, “I am going to write about PCOS, but I am a person – not a diagnosis”.

Joining the Dots then jumps right in with what PCOS is and the frustration people with PCOS often encounter due to how uninformed many doctors STILL are about it. This zine quickly becomes a valuable resource offering not only personal stories and tips but also places online where to do more research and find PCOS friends.

At no point did I feel like any reader knowledge was assumed, which is a big plus in my book.

I identified so much with Holly’s story. Too many doctors are focused on THE FAT that they ignore everything else. Or, even better (that’s sarcasm), they take the ‘have babies or lose weight’ track that does little to address actual symptoms of PCOS.

But I’m going off on a tangent.

Holly invited friends to share their PCOS experiences, which I think is great because PCOS is so varied from woman to woman.

I think this is an absolutely brilliant zine that covers perspectives often not acknowledged in medicine when it comes to PCOS – queer, not wanting children, IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT THE FAT, DOC.

Even if you only have the beginning suspicion you might have PCOS, get a copy of this zine.

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Zine Review: The Brokedown Pamphlet: war some of the time

The Brokedown Pamphlet: war some of the time
Mark Renney & Christine Renney

The Brokedown Pamphlet is an A5 colour zine collection of writing, drawings, and other images.

Well, pickles, zine friends. I’m not sure how to get started with this zine. I’ve been paging back and forth, lingering on the images and words, but is it flying over my head?

The written pieces in this zine are like poetry to me in that they use interesting language and create strong images in my mind. I can think about them for ages… but ultimately, I’ll always wonder if I understood what the person who wrote the pieces really meant. One piece actually is a poem, but it is no more or less mysterious.

The images are a curious collection of drawings and photos. They leave me feeling like the writing – somewhat intense, but do I really understand what I’m looking at?

The artistry of this zine extends to its physical aspects as well with a nice cardstock cover and slightly textured paper for the interior. I’m coming to really appreciate lightly textured paper. Running my hands over it while I’m reading a zine helps calm and focus my otherwise somewhat scattered mind.

In the end, I’m not entirely sure what to make of this zine. It’s definitely a curious one, but the world is better for things that make us think.

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The Zine Collector Video/Podcast Episode 004: 2018 Year of the Perzine Part Two: Consent & Copyright

Hello, dear and wonderful zine friends! It’s that time again.

This episode, I’m tackling issues of consent and copyright when writing perzines (writing about other people). Sort of. This was a big, complex topic, and I will be the first to admit that I wandered and floundered a bit, but I do hope you get something out of it.

Also in the podcast, I talk about the first zinesters I ever met as well as why I love the free, short, mailing list perzine.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzCcejwrjwk&w=560&h=315]

In this episode of The Zine Collector, I talk about the complicated matters surrounding consent and copyright when writing about other people in your perzines.

**

Links Mentioned This Episode:

*Mini-Zine March: https://seagreenzines.com/happy-mini-zine-march-2/
*Long Arm Stapler Podcast: http://longarmstapler.libsyn.com
*Fanzines by Teal Triggs and Why You Should Not Buy It: https://alexwrekk.wordpress.com/2010/12/08/fazines-by-teal-triggs-and-why-you-should-not-buy-the-book/
*Fanzines situation rundown: http://fanzinesbytealtriggs.weebly.com/featured-zines.html
*Nobody Cares About Your Stupid Podcast Episode 3: Fanzines by Teal Triggs Discussion: http://nobodycareszine.libsyn.com
*Don’t Call Me Cupcake Perzine Series: https://www.etsy.com/shop/seagreenzines
*Wolfram/Queer Content: https://twitter.com/queercontent
*Laura @Bloomurder: https://twitter.com/bloomurder
*Karley Bayer & The Filth
*@Fanzines: https://twitter.com/fanzines
*Zine World Calendar: http://bit.ly/2lAVSYK

Resources:

*Style Manual for Writers and Editors: https://www.australia.gov.au/about-government/publications/style-manual
*12 Ways to Avoid Getting Sued…: http://writersweekly.com/angela-desk/avoid-getting-sued
*How to Use Real People in Your Writing…: http://helensedwick.com/how-to-use-real-people-in-your-writing/

You Can Find Me At:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SeaGreenZines/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seagreenzines/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/zineninja
Etsy: https://www.seagreenzines.etsy.com
Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/seagreenzines
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/seagreenzines
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGzyDIb85hSvcwPsDQIP4Qg

Want to listen to the podcast? Find me at: https://shows.pippa.io/thezinecollector

Also on:
Spotify: https://www.spotify.com/
Pocket Casts https://play.pocketcasts.com
Cast Box https://castbox.fm

My PO Box:

Jaime Nyx
PO Box 378
Murray Bridge, SA 5253
Australia

Spanish Summer by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Artist: http://audionautix.com/

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Happy Mail Monday – On Video Edition!

Hello, zine friends! I hope this post finds you well and enjoying the sunshine on a beautiful Monday like I am here in this little part of Oz.

Wowza is it beautiful today.

It is that time again when I share the wonderful bits of happy mail that people around the world have been kind enough to send to me over the past week. I’m doing things a little differently this week and have actually recorded me opening the mail. Haha.

I have no idea if anyone will be interested, but I thought it might be fun to show how happy, excited, and genuinely distracted I get by the lovely mail sent to me. So without further ado, here it is!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-B9GzIThuw&w=425&h=315]

Welcome to the first ever Happy Mail Monday on video!

This is a bit of an experiment to see if mail opening/unboxing is something I want to do on video from here on out.

***
Thanks to the wonderful zine friends who sent me mail!

Billy the Bunny: https://www.etsy.com/shop/iknowbilly
Brett @ Submerging Zine: https://submergingzine.wordpress.com
Allysha Webber: https://allyshawebber.com
Log Poes: http://www.featuredmag.nl/en/

You Can Find Me At:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SeaGreenZines/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seagreenzines/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/zineninja
Etsy: https://www.seagreenzines.etsy.com
Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/seagreenzines
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/seagreenzines

Want to listen to The Zine Collector Podcast? Find me at: https://shows.pippa.io/thezinecollector

Also on:
Spotify: https://www.spotify.com/
Pocket Casts https://play.pocketcasts.com
Cast Box https://castbox.fm

My PO Box:

Jaime Nyx
PO Box 378
Murray Bridge, SA 5253
Australia

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Call for Submissions: All In Your Head Issue 8: To The Bone

[Image Description: drawing of a skeleton arching their back and tilting head backward. Text reads: call for submissions. Issue #8: To The Bone”]

Call for Submissions!

All in Your Head is a queer/feminist traditional cut-and-paste style zine with a focus on LGBTQIA neurodivergent and disabled activists, zinesters, artists, and authors, sponsored by GlitterWurst Zine Distro. Our zine operates on the following *principles:

1.) social inequality and injustice exists [racism, classism, ableism, heterosexism, cissexism to name a few];
2.) disability, neurodiversity can be understood as a viable form of human difference that intersects with/is shaped by systems of dominance;
3.) claims that there is a “normal” bodymind can have damaging and harmful effects (physically/emotionally/spiritually) and are partly shaped by current social/cultural values and white western colonial histories;
4.) neuroqueer and disabled people must navigate cultural taboos, move among complex institutions and systems of care and negotiate conflicting ideas of “wellness/illness,“ “silence/disclosure,” “visibility/invisibility;” “dis/ability” and more
5.) most importantly, our stories matter. (*this list is by no means exhaustive)

We are seeking submissions for issue #8 of All in Your Head: TO THE BONE: OUR QUEER CRIP BODIES, OURSELVES. We accept many kinds of submissions including but not limited to: essays, short stories, poems, personal narratives, manifestos, rants, drawings, doodles, illustrations, photography, collage, book or movie reviews (related to the theme), song lyrics, playlists, short plays/monologues and more! We resist the notion that there is such as thing as a “good writer/good artist” and seek to dismantle, critique, and challenge that “good writing/good art” means from a queer, disabled, neurodivergent perspective.

Some possible topics for TO THE BONE may include:
-Reclaiming and living in our bodies which exist at the intersections of gender, sexuality, race, class, disability, size, and a multitude of other differences.
-Visceral knowing, alternative modes of thinking, perceiving, feeling via a queer crip, neuroqueer bodymind.
-Queer disabled engagements with artistic or spiritual bodily movement and practice such as: dance, yoga, theater, slam poetry, film, singing (and others!).
-Critiques of and engagements with the notion of “transcending disability.”
-Explorations of the mindbody split trough the lens of disability.
-Analyses of disability, passing, and embodiment.
-The rhetoric of “loss” and disabled embodiment (i.e.: “sight loss,” “loss of limbs”).
-Queer disability, pleasure, body erotics.

*Deadline: February 28th, 2018
*Send submission and bio to: allinyourheadzine@gmail.com
*Please limit your submissions to approximately 1500 words and/or send high quality images of your artwork/photography. *We enthusiastically welcome and prioritize submissions by queer, trans, and disabled IPOC.

All contributors will receive a free copy in the mail!