I was going to do separate ‘About’ and ‘FAQ’ pages, but so much of it goes both ways anyway…
Who are you?
I’m Nyx.
Who are you?
May I send you my zines? How about other mail?
Absolutely! Yes please! I adooooore mail.
Where do I send stuff?
Nyx
PO Box 378
Murray Bridge, SA 5253
What’s all this about then?
I’ve loved zines from the word go, ‘go’ happening somewhere in 2010 or 11. I’m so sad I can’t remember. I’ve been sharing the zine love since then here on the blog and in the podcast The Zine Collector
I started out with a mini-zine dedicated to my partner’s one true love: Guinness, a zine for Occupy Melbourne and then the beginnings of my first (and currently ongoing) collab zine thing: Dear Anonymous. I also write a perzine series called Don’t Call Me Cupcake and have finished the first issue of DAFUQ, a zine about weird things people say taken out of context.
I also babble on about zine-related topics here as well as review zines every (mostly) Thursday and Friday.
What’s a Zine?
The beauty of a zine is that it is anything you want it to be. Often self-published and made by hand, the subject or subjects is/are the will of the original creator. They can be anything from anonymous to printed with all the contact details short of dental records in them. There are per(sonal) zines, political zines, DIY zines, art zines, photo zines, letter zines, all sorts. Heaps upon heaps.
They are not magazines, they are not the means by which to sell things (except, perhaps, other zines), and they are not Often created for profit.
There are mini-zines (one piece of paper folded with one cut), accordion zines (you get the picture), half fold and full page zines. Zines are like people: they come in all shapes, sizes and colours, and you can never be entirely sure what you are going to get when you encounter one.
They are self-expression, copier obsessions, sharpie addicted creations of wonder and delight.
Enjoy.
You review zines?
That I do! I try to put up a zine review every Thursday and Friday.
My approach to reviewing zines (as of Nov 2016) is this: If I don’t like a zine, as in can’t really find anything I enjoyed about it, I won’t review it. Positive reviews? Yes. ‘Meh’ reviews? Sometimes. But I’m not going to put up a review if it consists of me just plain not liking it. (This has only happened once, though, so…)
HOWEVER I also don’t review a zine if I just don’t have much to say about it. I want to write more than ‘I think it’s pretty good’.
What kinds of zines do you review?
At this point, you can send me anything. However, you should know that I don’t ‘get’ poetry 99% of the time, and my knowledge about music is distinctly lacking.
Do you review e-zines/PDF zines?
No, I’m sorry. Seriously, I am so, so sorry. Postage sucks, especially when you’re sending to the ends of the earth, and access equipment/money to print can be a huge problem. I have absolutely nothing against the practice of online zines or the people who make them. I mean no disrespect.
The thing is that, as a reviewer, part of the experience I review is the tactile one. Sometimes I’ll really enjoy the kind of paper used or the way it was bound or something else entirely. The fact remains that that is a big part of how I roll with zines.
I have a question that you haven’t answered…
Pop it in the comments. 🙂
This is awesome! And thank you for liking my About page. 🙂
I will see what I can do in terms of Dear Anonymous.
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Thank you for stopping by.
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Zines are awesome, and I encourage you to keep up with this blog.
The first one I came across was Moonlight Chronicles, by Dan Price out of Joseph, Oregon. No longer being done, but you can still view them at moonlightchronicles.com. Thanks for posting here, as I love learning about new zines I didn’t know were out there. 🙂
Cheers.
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Hello! Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment. 🙂 I really adore zines, so I don’t plan on stopping posting here. I’ll definitely check out Moonlight Chronicles. I’m always happy to receive recommendations.
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It is the best! If you can get your hands on one, do, as they are not in print anymore. Andrea Joseph also has done a few, and she uses mostly simple Bic pens. 😀
Cheers, and thanks for following my blog!
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Yeah, that seems to be the way of a few zines I’d like to get my hands on. Perhaps I should make a wishlist. 🙂
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I’m looking forward to exploring this site. I love zines and I’ve just started making them 🙂
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Welcome to the world of zines! As you may be able to tell, I absolutely adore zines. I’m certainly no expert, but if there’s anything I can help with along the way, feel free to let me know.
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Hello! I shared the ZineWriMo on my distro page and I got a question I can’t answer. I’m stumped! #11 says to make a media box. What is a media box? Thank you!
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Hi there! I think I answered this in your Instagram message, but in case anyone else is wondering, a media box is a place to keep all your bits and pieces for making zines. Pictures/images you cut out, paper samples, stickers, washi tape, so on and so forth. ^_^
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Just discovered your podcast. Loving it! Awesome job!
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Thank you so much! I’m glad you’re enjoying it. 🙂
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Even though sending a digital zine would be helpful, I am SO with you that holding the actual zine is a critical part of the experience.
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I always appreciate the understanding on that count!
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