Hello, zine friends!
I hope this post finds you well and adjusting to the year. January 2nd is always a little weirder than the 1st because the glow is dying down, and the real work of the year begins. Small adjustments are already being made to keep those resolutions and whatnot.
For instance, I’ve come to see that I loaded a lot more on my plate than I realised, so it’s time to reevaluate things now before being burned out later.
It’s all a process, but enough of my prattling.
2018
It’s the time of year for plans, intentions, changes, so on and so forth. It’s also the time of year for creators – no matter what you create – to announce on various platforms what’s happening. While I don’t have a heap to report, I figured I’d join in and let you know what’s happening in my head.
*ZINES
– Don’t Call Me Cupcake: I’m taking a little break from Don’t Call Me Cupcake. Writing 9 and 9.5 was really intense for me, and I need to work on ‘lighter’ projects just for a little while.
– Dear Anonymous: Dear Anonymous 7 will be finished and sent out very soon. I apologise for the delay. I set dates back when moving dates were really flexible, and I forgot to adjust dates for the zine. At the moment, I just have to put everything together and then save the money to send the contributor copies.
– Paper Currency: I really want to focus a lot more on this zine this year. I’m still really excited about the idea and want it to be a great resource for zine people around the world.
– Missives From Murray Bridge: If you know what this is, no worries; it’s sticking around. If you don’t know what it is, that’s okay. It’s a silly little something I put together every now and then.
– Other zines: There are still a stack of zine ideas I’d love to make. I think by shuffling around a few priorities, I will be making a lot more one-off zines in 2018.
THE BLOG – I always want to be moving forward with things, but I feel like the blog is going well right now in the current way of doing things. Happy Mail Monday, reviews Thursdays and Fridays, calls for submissions and event announcements on the weekends. I like the rhythm of it, and it’s a workload I keep up with for the most part.
Ideally, I’d like to review three zines a week, but I’m really not seeing that happen. Not with what I’m announcing below. I also feel like that would be stacking things too heavily in that area. If I do anything else, I want it to be something fresh and different.
*OTHER PROJECTS – I haven’t forgotten what I was saying last year about starting an APA. I do still really love the idea of it, but there are a lot of logistics I need to work out before I can go forward with it. But yes, it is still on the cards.
I know. Not very exciting, but now you know where my head is at.
Now, for the little announcement…
Finally! Finally, finally, finally, I am starting my own podcast about zines!
I probably shouldn’t even be announcing this because I don’t have a firm start date (still waiting on some things to arrive in the mail and such), but I’ve been finding myself hiding behind note-taking and perfectionism due to the anxiety involved. I am absolutely terrified, but if I announce it, then it’s out in the world, eh?
I will have links for you as soon as I can get everything set up. (I had some hiccups trying to set things up online, but I’m slowly getting them sorted.) As much as I am scared, I am also really excited. Many people weighed in to vote about whether I should do this, and some of you even messaged me about your thoughts on the matter. I value your feedback, and it was lovely to know I’d have support going into this.
Anyway, that’s me for today and my plans for the year so far.
If you have any questions (perhaps questions for the FAQ section of the podcast?), thoughts, or requests for this blog, The Zine Collector, or anything else, please let me know. I’m always happy to hear from you.
Until next time.
