Transcend the nonsense, the mundane, the blahzay, the boring, and the uninspired. In other words, rise above the bulls**t. My zines are an exploration of stories and perspectives that are meant to inspire us to work with what we have and use our innate super powers to reach our true potential. It's not easy in this world we're in, but someone's got to do it, why not us? 🙂
- Digital
- Stapled
When I was a kid, I used to make short comics featuring stick men in silly little adventures. I'd hand them out to a few of my friends on the playground. In high school, I was the creator of all flyers and brochures for church, school, and community events. Fast forward to my college years, and I became the editor of Florida A&M University's CIS Times newsletter. All this time, I would enjoy the feeling I'd get handing out something and immediately watching people flip through it. There's something tangible there that is unlike any other artistic feeling out there. Years later, I said, "Screw it. I'm going to get that feeling back."
Facing the freedom of writing whatever you want is actually quite intimidating. There is no predetermined format for zine creators to follow, and that's the point. With other formats, there are generally accepted and standardized norms, but zines challenge you to be different in your own right. In that sense, it's one of the purest forms of art out there.
They would like to tell you that there is only so much room out there for your culture, but if you're really into it, statistics say that there's quite a few people out there with the same vibes. Zines make tangible a lot of those ideas that we think no one is taking seriously.
Start. Start now. Start now and fill up some pages. Get those pages out there and do it again. I have to tell myself this often, but it's necessary. There is nothing like getting your work out there and in circulation in the real world. It doesn't have to be much, but if it's not out there in some form, it's not doing anyone, including yourself, any good.