My International Zine Month started off well. Made a 24 hour zine, bought drawers with which to archive my beloved zine collection, wrote letters to zine makers, and so on... But life got taken over by: www.savewimbledonlibrary.org There would be no zines made by me, latterly in life, without this library, in fact! Whilst I had hoped to pick things up again, and had two more 24hour zines planned for the making, I am just going to pick things up for the very final couple of days, with a photo post, on a zine theme! My zine-related badges! I do have a Brain Scan badge or two somewhere, I swear, but I've misplaced them for the moment. I include the star one, as it is made by zine maker Emma Jane Falconer. The rest are from distros or are directly zine related. I did find time to write to a zine maker I have never written to, nor met, before, last night - which is part of International Zine Month. Or rather, I replied to a lovely letter from Emma of Hedgehog in the Fog zine, about Cambridge, and about zines, and about culture and about music. In the background, there are new copies of the brill new zine I've been sent: Milk and Apples, too! Lastly, above, are the zines I have been reading for the end of International Zine Month. I would love to include every single zine I have been reading and been moved by this month, but time is scarce, so here is a selection of ones I've enjoyed from the last couple of days.
From left to right: 1. my friend Vicky's inspiring 24 hour zine about youth depression (see her online zine shop here for similar zines from her), 2. & 3. Milk & Apples amazing new zine series from Human Bean, about self-harming/invisibility of mental health problems/borderline personality disorder/hospital admission, 4. Viva Quinto! zine about the wonderful secondhand book emporium on the Charing Cross Road (this shop looks to be the reserve of lavishly rich collectors from the outside, but there are some true bargains and affordable works to discover) - I love the spirit of this book zine, made by Yo Zushi, who was involved in this year's brilliant Clapton Zine Fair. Viva Quinto zine only available from the book shop as yet, I understand. July 8th: Zine picnic with friends in Guildford! Swapping favourite recent zines, sharing our newly made perzines, and generally sipping and eating and enjoying. We even piqued the curiosity of a duck! Gorgeous entrance to grounds of Guildford Castle, where we picnicked... July 9th:
Headed to our favourite zine library for photocopying of our zines, new and old. I also photocopied some flyers for a feminist charity project that a friend is involved in: Armpits for August. July 6th:
Trip to the library to photocopy the finished 24hr zine - which may or may not be the first of a string of several! The usual capers involving wrong-shaped copies, coin dispenser spitting out coins, and swearing, finally admitting defeat and seeking library assistant's help... but got there in the end! And there is still nothing in the world like that feeling of holding in your hands a finished zine, and cherishing it, and feeling a burst of pride that you made all this. Who's soaking up the sun whilst reading zines today? It's very, very hot... July 3rd: Plotting 24hr zine ideas in my head... have an idea! Go through old zines again and pick some old ones out for the journey to work next day. I pick out what has been a recipe bible to me, when I was still eating meat, and when I became vegetarian: Grime & Punishment, the 56a cookbook, which is vegan. Take it along with a tiny in-season foods booklet I bought at a really lovely farm café in Dalston. July 4th: Went to Stuart Hall library at Iniva art gallery, photocopied some out of print zines. Started writing my 24hr zine! Got the text typed up and printed, before cutting/pasting collation. July 5th: Read an old zine called Kersax Must Be Destroyed! by Tukru who writes Your Pretty Face is Going Straight to Hell and Vampire Sushi fame. Loved the artiness of the layouts, especially the photography, handwriting, and personal style. Finished 24hr zine (naturally!). Phew! I also somehow managed to find the time to finish making a hand-sewn/crafted purse from upcycled materials (old pajama trousers with hearts on!!) to replace my broken wallet. It is festooned with a pretty patch, made by Emma Jane Falconer, and has a zip and is customised with a keyring with a supermarket trolley 'coin' attached (from the Mayhew Home cat charity). Somehow, today, also managed to fit in a visit to the local library, and a spot of local campaigning talk. Here's the purse as I was sewing the Write More Letters patch: And here it is finished:
July 2nd: Read the above mini zines on the way to work. Returned to filing my zine collection in their new home. Had phone conversation and sent emails to a few people about possible future zine events. All whilst having copious hayfevery sneezing fits. Old music zines in their lovely snug new home. The first zine I ever bought was A Chance to Shine, a zine about Morrissey - in 1995. Apart from two or three losses, and maybe a handful of swaps, I have hung onto every zine I've ever bought/been given, over the years. They're definitely one of the things I most cherish if I had to name possessions.
Remember the incredible art book shop - funnily enough, named BookArtBookShop - that I raved about in an earlier posting? After months of admiring the many, varied artistic wares, from zines, to art books, to poetry books, to interesting music CDs, to one-off hand-made crafts, and spending a fair amount of wages there at every opportunity... I finally got the guts - and more importantly, the adept organisation! - to get myself and zines over.
The response was positive, so please go look and, if you like, buy the zine! It's the Bristol/Bath travel issue with colour photograph image on cover (each cover, a different photo!). On my nearby travels, was Housmans radical bookshop, which, as you know by now, is a haven to me. And I had my latest zine with me - issue 10 of Athemaura. So that one is in stock at Housmans in Kings Cross now along with a a couple of others, too. I topped the afternoon off with an irresistible visit to Vx vegan shop, for vegan blue cheese, and a calzone! Now it's sunshine and blue skies. Fancy a nice cold beer atop a green hill! After a browse and chats at the craft market near me, it was into Bloomsbury for The Radical Book Fair 2013. Conway Hall was a stunning, historical venue for the occasion. Housmans Bookshop were out in force, with a selection of political book wares from their shop in Kings Cross. Active Distribution I got to know over the years through my visits to 'zine events, plus 56a Info Shop, which sells lots of their political pamphlets, badges, and so on. These posters were up behind the Active Distribution stall. The stall was right by the door that led to the vegan food stall. Many tempting food items were being cooked, including Cheezly burgers. And there were vegan cooking and gardening zines for sale close by. There was also a beer bar. This was such a packed event, it was gladdening to see. So, so many amazing, inspiring stalls crammed full of books, pamphlets, flyers, information, and friendly, informative people. I got to wishing such an event could happen every two months or monthly, even though I'd end up broke and drowning in literature at home... I pretty much wanted to buy every zine I saw on the Active stall. Not pictured here, but as well as lots of books on all kinds of topics, Active Distribution had its ever-reliable selection of zines and pamphlets. I had no idea there would be a number of zines on sale at this event, and felt bad for not inviting more people along. One zine I leapt at the chance of buying was about vegan cooking and living, and it is so beautifully handwritten and sketched out. I owe it a post all of its own. Another inspiring zine was Scary Hairy, about societal beliefs/assumptions about female body hair, and about freedom from confines of gendered norms - I seem to remember being told by someone on the stall that its writer is Dutch. I'm not so hot on comics/visual zines, but this zine is a pleasing mix of both. My haul of zines, pictured below... I shied away from buying books as I wasn't that flushed for cash, and I felt very overwhelmed by the sheer number of books that I wouldn't've known where to start / how to narrow down a choice, but got plenty of ideas and food for future thought. My partner got a book that I too had noted as interesting, about radical 1920s culture. It's as much about picking up flyers and getting informed about events, campaigns, and so on, when I go these events. Plus, talking to people and getting recommendations, swapping thoughts/talking about resources. Fantastic to see representatives from The Feminist Library, and I had a long chat with them about zines, and bought a fair few, as well as badges (including a 'NOT MY SISTER' badge of Margaret Thatcher for a friend). An incredible day, and I am still working my way through all the excellent writings.
Not sure how the ever genius-like Clod magazine ended up in this photo, but I think it may be because I picked it up at the ICA afterwards. Really ecstatic to hear that the event is looking to be held on a larger scale next year - brilliant! London Radical Book Fair / Alliance of Radical Book Sellers The tenth issue of my perzine Athemaura is ready to go! I did think I would launch it at Bradford's pop up zine shop on my travels there, only I was too caught up in nerves, and feeling tired from travel and overwhelmed by the joyousness of all the zines and creative people around, that I totally forgot to even mention my new zine ! I'm disappointed in myself, but my modesty and inability to promote my work never seem to wane! So, here is the newest issue of Athemaura. I decided that the poor badgers needed some support. If you have not yet signed the petition against the hideousness that is the governement's planned culling of badgers, here it is. The key facts laid out by the RSPCA are that many healthy animals would be killed as the process cannot be selective, and that research has proven it does not make a meaningful difference to controlling the spread of TB from badgers to cattle. This issue not only features a bewildered looking badger (small wonder), but a mini zine that I made by hand, to set out reasons for not supporting the cull. Athemaura #10 also features writing on: the joy of reading your way to work, favourite independent book shops and libraries, the need for solitude, coping with being a radical mind in a conventional work environment, an ode to a friend who recently passed on. There is also writing about feminist literature and feminist networks. And there is a feature about doing battle with assumptions people make about part-time workers (and actually how part-time work doesn't easily = working less hard than a full-time worker, nor is it necessarily less stressful or time-consuming!), and as is becoming usual, lots on gardening, libraries and enjoying a vegetarian diet. There is also a little on veganising
your life (whatever your diet choice), but I shall be writing lots more about that in issue #11 of Athemaura, I think! You can contact me by email for a copy, or head onto this online shop on Etsy. Or look out for the next SW London & Surrey Zines event where you can buy a copy in person! There was a brilliant selection of stalls at DIY Cultures fair. I bought a really wide range of stuff, taking chances on stuff that was totally new to me, as well as incorporating old favourites, and taking on chances to swap random 'zines with people who approached me, covering everything from: Bruce Springsteen fandom (from the point of view of a northern, working class, queer), to feminist politics, to foraging for flowers, to life working as a paramedic, to collecting postcards, to horror film festivals, to touring with a hardcore punk band in the US, to the politics of work, to the history of pirate radio, to Percy Bysshe Shelly, to lost indie music zines from the early 2000s, to superheroes from Croydon, to a kitten tote bag that I simply couldn't resist !
As an aside - thank you to the Polish man who approached me about swapping zines with him. I find such off-chance things really interesting! I swapped a Brian Jonestown Massacre zine with his zine about the history of pirate radio. Ace! Also: How excited was I to find an early 2000s created indie zine with Justine Frischmann on the cover, and coverage of bands of yore, like Elastica, Sleater Kinney, Bis, Brassy - interviews with Kristin Hersh, and Angelica !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I never meet people who make indie music zines anymore, it was so exciting to get these zines (alas, the author wasn't around at that moment, it seemed). I am sad to be coming to the end of reading all these wonderful creations. They are keeping me sane on long, stressy train journeys at awful hours of the morning, and enlightening me on new world perspectives. I will aim to post more in depth photos and write-ups on these zines, but I find it hard to keep up, so bear with me if I fail here! Copies of Athemaura 'zine were received positively - in fact, I near-sold out of all copies, which is a first. But it's not so much about that - I met so many inspiring, positive, creative people at this event, and came across so much inspiration and food for though - so here's to many more DIY Cultures events. Zine fairs for ever! |
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