Category: Zine Reviews

Title: The Other Herald V4 I7
Author: The Other Herald
Type: Magazine size (?) single sheet
Author Site(s): http://www.otherherald.com/

Review: I’m pretty sure this is one I have bought off Etsy, and it has to be the best example of economical use of space I have ever seen. With quotes and writing prompts running along the edges, this single piece of paper is packed with a lot of content.

I like the whole concept with this one. While it is quite a lot for the eyes to take in, it actually made me feel like I was getting really good value for money spent. The fact that it’s on volume four, issue seven already says a lot of people agree with me.

The Other Herald has a very professional feel about it, down to the contact details and submission details on the back. A great zine that all beginners should have a look at, I reckon.

STATUS: For Trade

Title: I Look Miserable, But I’m Bubbling Over With Joy
Author: Karen Redlich
Type: 2x 1/4 fold
Author Site(s): http://www.facebook.com/pages/Black-Designs-by-Karen-Redlich/116245431858833

Review: I found this zine at Sticky Institute. I was so taken by the cover that I just had to pick up a copy.

I’ve always admired people with artist abilities in the drawing/sketching arena. I love all the little illustrations in this zine. The way they are drawn and the content all fit the amusing cover. I hunted for her Facebook page (as in, it’s not on the zine), but it’s worth the extra little bit of work. Definitely check it out.

STATUS: For Trade

Title: Black Hole Brains
Author: Lady Dorian
Type: Single Sheet fold
Author Site(s): http://www.ladydorian.deviantart.com/

Review: I’m pretty sure I got this through a big zine trade. A strange combination of fun and absurd, I smile every time I open this little zine. Especially the giraffe picture. Very fun and creative.

This one kind of skirts my ‘thing’ about contact details being in the zine. She has her name – Lady Dorian – but nothing else in the zine. Plus, I received this with her card with her DeviantArt URL on it. But you can’t always count on a business card staying with the zine…

But it will with me. I love her little drawings and the strange things that pass through her mind. I hope to get my hands on her other Black Hole Brains creations.

STATUS: For Keeps

Title: Stitch This!
Author: Tasha
Type: 1/4 BNW
Author Site(s): http://wemakezines.ning.com/profile/Tasha

Review: This zine came from a trade with a fellow Australian. While cross stitching isn’t my thing, I did used to embroider a lot. I also love someone taking a hobby and making their own. The patterns are cute and funny, and they will appeal to a wide array of people.

My favourite is the space invasion bugs.

STATUS: For Trade

Title: G-String Tremolo
Author: Malenky Monologue
Type: Single Sheet fold
Author Site(s): http://fsuzine.weebly.com/

Review: Another one where I can’t remember where I got it… Maybe where I got it shouldn’t be part of the review.

Anyway, I have to love (at least a little bit) any zine with bold lines and clear typing. I’m a fan of the handwritten zine, too, but typing makes it easy to read. With this little gem, there is the handmade element, too, so the zine soul still exists.

This zine is chapter one of Adrien’s story. For a first chapter, it’s pretty interesting. The editor in me is rearing her head, but that’s only because the writing reads very ‘young’. Now that fits the voice of the character, but it also makes me wonder if the creator is a young writer as well… I’m curious to see if I come across the rest of the chapters floating around.

This zine is a great example of author and contact details being clear and easy to find. You might think that things aren’t hard to find in a single-fold zine, but there are always exceptions… Anyway, two thumbs up for making it easy to check your other stuff out.

STATUS: For Trade

Title: Dude
Author: ok d’pluma (?)
Type: Single sheet mini-zine
Author Site(s): ?

Review: It’s been so long since I have sorted through my collection that I can’t remember where I got this little zine…

I was amused by ‘Dude’, given my addiction to saying it – a lot – when I was a teenager. The quick commentary on the word as well as illustrations made for a fun little read.

But, this is a pretty good example of why you should have clear handwriting. I think the author’s name is “ok d’pluma”, but I am really not sure. If anyone wants to enlighten me, comment and I’ll fix things up.

STATUS: For Trade

I was thinking about the other times I’ve mentioned other people’s zines that I have bought/received here, and it seemed to me like they were mini-reviews. Nothing flash, just a bit and bob and a link to buy.

So I’m thinking I should keep up with that, eh?

I went to Sticky Institute in Melbourne a little while ago, but I’m only just getting to talk about my gloooorious purchases. (Okay, it was hot, I was nervous, and I had somewhere to be – but it was still glorious!)

I can’t seem to find all the zines I bought there on the Sticky, but I’ll put up whatever buy links I find.

I bought this zine for my bloke in my effort to convert him to the zine side. We’re a bit ‘into’ conspiracies, so none of what was in the zine was new to us, but it is CC #1 and I imagine it would be a good introduction for people who aren’t as familiar. The few typos were a bit distracting just because my mind works like that, but I wouldn’t say that was a reason not to get it.

I always find it amusing when I ‘just so happen’ to stumble across something that is so much bigger than I first thought it to be.

This is a zine I got purely because it looked interesting and different. I say ‘got’ because, unknown to me, this is a free zine that had been appearing in Melbourne for years. Read the description on the sell page because it’ll do a better job, but this was a letter in a paper bag. The letter was beautiful and somehow strange. I’m glad I got it, though. I am thinking about saving for the anthology (also on the linked page).

This zine wins the award for first zine to make me laugh out loud. This zine is a tongue-in-cheek guide to writing your bodice-ripper romance novel which, frankly, is a guide in writing the worst kind of romance possible. With quotes like “But make certain to never choose names that reek of boganess (‘Tayla’, for example). If you do you quash your chances of achieving an educated audience while undermining the aspirational delusions of bogan readers everywhere…”, you’re not going to get much better. Highly entertaining even on second and third reads.

So simple yet so funny! I absolutely love this zine. The beauty comes in its simplicity and just goes to show that zines can be about anything. I just have to wonder how the creator ever thought of rhyming couplets for zombie survival instructions. Haha. Love it.

More mailbox goodness! I’m thinking of having a change jar that I will use for buying up zines. I love them all so far and I like supporting zine makers. That’s a thought for another time. Zines!

This zine was definitely a ‘softy’ buy in that firsts are very close to my heart. When I first moved to Australia, taking in and experiencing as many ‘firsts’ as I could became my mission; a mission that led to me trying many things I would not have tried otherwise. I really liked the cute art and the uncomplicated subject. I would definitely check out her other work.

If there was ever a zine that I thought I needed to have to get started in the zine world, it’s this one. With it’s own ISBN and awesome binding, it’s more like a small book than a zine. But it’s a sort of zine-topia in all the information it holds. From thoughts on layouts to an index of distros and zine events (worldwide!), Stolen Sharpie Revolution 2 is definitely a must have, in my opinion.

This is also one of those cases where I wish I would have looked at everything in the shop before making my purchase because they have so much awesome stuff in addition to zines! Check it out.