Zine Review: Electron Libre 2
Electron Libre 2: it was the best of times, it was the worst of times
Izalixe Straightheart
28 pages
https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/IzArt
https://www.youtube.com/user/izalixe
Electron Libre 2 is a black and white, US-sized half-fold perzine about life, weddings, communities, setting boundaries, sticking up for yourself, and much more.
Full disclosure: My zine ‘BUJO’ is reviewed in this zine.
Electron Libre 2 opens with a brief nod to the typewriter Persephone that, sadly, went berserk and needed to be rehomed. Iza then gives a not to the typewriter Phyllis and The Regional Assembly of Text who generously loaned Phyllis to Iza for the creation of this zine. (Thank you from Iza’s readers as well.)
From there we launch into the real introduction to the zine, which starts with taking a little poke at the tried and true ‘sorry I haven’t made a zine in so long’ before getting into the whirlwind of events that kept this zine from coming into being up until now. (‘Now’ being November 2020 when it came out.)
This introduction is a raw and open sharing of experiences Iza has had being with and then being married to someone with a mental illness. Good times, bad times… They are all there in Iza’s ‘this is my life, so take it or leave it’ kind of way that is also reflected in her YouTube videos. I had to admire Iza not only for sharing things that are clearly painful and complicated but also for sticking with the decisions she has made. Whether you agree with her or would make the same decisions, you have to respect a person who knows that they want in life and knows who they are and what they want in life.
From there, Iza writes about YouTube communities (yes, I remember video responses!) and the evolution of not only the site itself but her channel as well. With being ‘out there’ comes hate and trolls as well, which Iza has taken a healthy approach to dealing with. She also writes about zine fests, new habits, workout tips, reviews, and more.
As I mentioned, Iza reviewed my Bujo zine. That hasn’t influenced my review of this zine whatsoever, but I must say that it was quite lovely and made me smile. The review and the zine itself is refreshingly unapologetic. Iza loves, hurts, and has joy just like all of us, and her writing voice and style embrace all of it with no expectations from the reader.
Unlike with the first issue of Electron Libre (https://seagreenzines.com/zine-review-electron-libre-1/) there are no pieces written in French. While I fully support writing in any language you want to write in, it was nice not to have to break out Google translate before I could wrap up this review.
Electron Libre 2 is a great edition to a series I have come to really enjoy. Iza’s wandering ways are so different from the life I know that it’s all quite fascinating to me. I like the variety of topics in this zine as well as the fact she includes reviews.
I recommend checking out this and Iza’s other zines.
Day 5 – Connect With Other Zinemakers
Happy Friday, zine friends, and happy day five of ZineWriMo! I am so ready for the weekend and so ready for making my first ZWM mini zine tomorrow. But today we have…
Connect with other zinemakers
It’s a huge part of making zines and being part of the zineverse – connecting with other zinemakers! There are so many ways to get to know and connect with other zinemakers.
On Instagram, I have been using the #zinewrimo and #zwm2021 hashtags on my posts. I’m not active on Twitter, but I’m sure you can use those there as well.
Facebook has quite a few different options, starting with the Zine Love Page.
There are groups as well, including one group just for ZineWriMo.
Zines Australia is a stop for Australian zinemakers (or, perhaps, anyone looking to connect with Aussies?).
Zines A Go Go is a zine group that has been going for a long time and will, with any luck, keep going for a long time to come.
There’s also the Zine Club.
We Make Zines is the former Ning where I got started on my zine journey many years ago. It may look different, but oh the nostalgia…
Have I missed any zine spaces? Please let me know.
There is also the list of participants that I post at the end of each ZWM post (and add to – so please get in touch if you’re joining in but aren’t on the list!). Click on the links and go say hello!
*Hadass
*Gettsr
*A Peaceful Homemaker
*Echo Publishing
*Warglitter
*KT Mayflower
*r28 Zines
ZineWriMo Day 4 – Get Prepared – Get out your creative tools and make mini-zine blanks
Hello and happy Thursday, the fourth day of ZineWriMo goodness. The sun is bright, the motivation is strong, and the tissues for my sneezes are soft. Haha. What do we have today?
Get Prepared – Get out your creative tools and make mini-zine blanks
I always have a stash of mini-zine blanks on hand, so that stays the same for me as previous years. However, I have changed up my art (writing, bullet journal, doodling, etc) supplies and how I carry them around the house.
This is my little tote bag beauty for all my various pens, pencils, markers, highlighters, sticky notes, rules, so on and so forth.
Earlier this year, I made a goal of adding more colour and creativity into my life in as many ways as possible. Since then, I have changed things up a big in regards to the pens I use (though I still love Papermate InkJoys) as well as washi tapes and such.
With my little creativity kit here, I feel ready to get into fun stuff no matter what time it is.
What are your creative tools of choice?
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Stop by and say hello to other participants:
*Hadass
*Gettsr
*A Peaceful Homemaker
*Echo Publishing
*Warglitter
*KT Mayflower
*r28 Zines
ZineWriMo Day 3 – Work in Progress Wednesday
Okay, so technically it’s Thursday, but a little catching up never did much harm, did it? Haha. Even if it is a rather boring catch up.
Today we have:
Work on your Work In Progress
Unfortunately, my work in progress ended up being me, who managed to get a cold. That’s what I get for pulling a few too many early mornings after late nights. A lot of rest time later, and I’m feeling so much closer to human again. Now to get back on track!
How did your work in progress go? Some people mentioned they are still brainstorming while others have already picked their focus for the month.
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Stop by and say hello to other participants:
*Hadass
*Gettsr
*A Peaceful Homemaker
*Echo Publishing
*Warglitter
*KT Mayflower
*r28 Zines
ZineWriMo Day 2 – Plan It Out – Decide on what you want to do this month
Hello Tuesday! We’re certainly already off and running this month. At least, I certainly feel like it. Why did I dislike naps as a kid? I always want naps now as an adult. Hahaha. So what are we doing on this glorious second day of ZineWriMo?
Today we have:
Plan It Out – Decide on what you want to do this month (and how you’re going to do it)
I must confess that I was a touch cheeky with this one. I actually moved into a new planner for the rest of the year on the weekend, so I made myself a ZineWriMo calendar and was already thinking about what I want to do for this month.
That started with an extra calendar in my bullet journal just for ZineWriMo.
The main thing I will be working on – and what I will be focusing on for my Work In Progress Wednesdays – is putting together and finishing Dear Anonymous 9. This zine has been such a long time in coming, that is for sure. A recent submission from a friends for it really lit a fire under me and made me want to focus on getting it done. (That said, if you want to sneak in a submission for it, you have a couple weeks left!)
There is a tonne of other things that I’d like to accomplish this month. However, I’m trying to live by my intentions for ZineWriMo and have as little stress as possible. If it turns out I can do more, awesome. But DA9 is my goal, and I am happy with that.
What are your plans for ZineWriMo this year?
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Stop by and say hello to other participants:
*Hadass
*Gettsr
*A Peaceful Homemaker
*Echo Publishing
*Warglitter
*KT Mayflower
*r28 Zines
ZineWriMo Day 1 – Brainstorms & Thought Gardens
We are here! I am not quite sure how we got to November so fast, but it has arrived, and it’s time to get our zine on!
Today we have:
Brainstorms & Thought Gardens – Get those ideas going
Off the top of my head, I’m not sure how many years I have been using this exact title for the first day. But I still love it. I love a good thunderstorm, and I love the visual of ideas being plants in a garden that we can nurture, grow, and help spread. The type of garden you have is up to you. Perhaps you are a careful planter, keeping your ideas organised in beautiful, neat rows. Or perhaps you’re a wild gardener, throwing seeds around to grow and sprout where they may.
I’d say it’s possible I have thought too much about this, but I love the visual so much that it doesn’t really matter if I have. Haha.
I have so many ideas for zines! Oh my gosh. A new perzine series, a perzine for what has been happening since Don’t Call Me Cupcake 10, some collaboration ideas… However, there are a few zines that have been ready to start cooking for a while, and I simply haven’t had or made the time to bring them to life. So that might be my focus for the month…
But today isn’t about decisions. Today is all about those beautiful seed ideas and starting them growing in whatever way pleases you best.
Do you have some storms and seeds starting in your mind?
*****
Stop by and say hello to other participants:
Welcome to ZineWriMo 2021
Hello Monday, hello November, and hello ZineWriMo! Welcome everyone to this year’s edition of ZineWriMo.
I am so excited – as usual – but especially excited because I know some people are discovering ZineWriMo for the first time! Hello to new ZineWriMo-ers too!
What’s ZineWriMo then?
If you’re not familiar, ZineWriMo is the zine alternative to NaNoWriMo created by Jasper (I no longer have any social links for them) a few years ago. I am another happy participant who decided to dive right in and create a prompts list for the occasion. I try to focus on a list that gives a bit of challenge but isn’t too stressful.
In Jasper’s words:
ZineWriMo is a new idea that came to me in wanting to combine the original NaNoWriMo and zines!
ZineWriMo is November! We focus on making one, or many, zines in November! Our only goal is to create zines, no word count requirement!
Dive in, join up, and let’s get ready to zine!
Here’s the list once more if you’d like it. Feel free to email me at seagreenzines@gmail.com if you’d like me to send you it in PDF form.
Happy Mail Monday – Good Vibes Edition
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yNEHo8OCZ8&w=425&h=315]
Hello friends, hello Monday, and hello November! In this edition of Happy Mail Monday, I stumble over my words often while showing you awesome newsletters, awesome perzines, awesome comics, and more from around the world. Asimov the cat also decides to make an appearance. More than once.
Thank you so much for watching.
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Awesome People/Places/Spaces Mentioned:
*Billy – https://www.patreon.com/iknowbilly
*Kristopher Storey –
*Ken Bausert – https://www.instagram.com/passcribe/
*Feral Publication – https://linktr.ee/FeralPublication
*Sarah Hoffman – https://www.instagram.com/sarahehoffman/
*Nina Echozina – https://www.instagram.com/echozines/
**https://echopublishing.wordpress.com
*ZineWriMo – https://seagreenzines.com/zinewrimo-is-coming-2/
***
My PO Box:
Nyx
PO Box 378
Murray Bridge, SA 5253
Australia
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You Can Find Me At:
seagreenzines@gmail.com
Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/seagreenzines
Mini-Zine Review: How to Draw Doctor Strange (made easy!)
How to Draw Doctor Strange (made easy!)
Eric Sobel
12 pages
https://www.etsy.com/shop/ericsobelart
https://www.instagram.com/ericsobelart/
How to Draw Doctor Strange is a black ink on orange paper mini zine guiding you the process of “impressing your friends and family with a Doctor Strange drawing made with your own two hands!”
“Greetings! You’ve begun your journey…”
Indeed I have! How to Draw Doctor Strange opens with a fun greeting from Eric that made me smile with fun as well as encouragement. From there we go through the steps it takes to create your own at least passable rendition of Doctor Strange.
I must admit I expected more of a ‘draw this line, make this curve’ sort of drawing instruction specific to Doctor Strange. Keeping in mind that I’m not sure when, if ever, I last read drawing instructions. That said, I was very happy to find Eric giving advice as well as direction. Eric writes about how eyes are a mater of ratios and ears are weird. It made me feel like I could take this advice beyond the Sorcerer Supreme and start practising other faces as well.
This zine also surprised me with the layout. It’s not one page folded but rather cut pieces of cardstock stapled together. (With the staple ‘teeth’ on the inside – thank you!) I like the extra work put into it and also appreciate the sturdiness as I can take it with me to practise when I’m out and about.
How to Draw Doctor Strange is a great little zine with great general drawing advice as well as instruction for drawing Doctor Strange specifically. I enjoyed it a lot and will be referencing it in the future, as I would like to learn how to draw well.