spreading the zine culture

[Denise]

Because I live in a small town, where probably no one knows about zine, I thought about trying to introduce zine culture around my area... I find it only fitting especially since we will be launching the first celebration of the international zine month this july (did I remember that correctly?).

The thing is, I don't know where to start. bah. any ideas? does anyone else feel lonely and isolated in a small town just like me? haha

thanks guys! have a great day!

[Derek Neuland]

I'd say if you have copies of zines you've made, go around to different stores and see if they will display them for sale. If you don't have a local bookstore, try places like coffee shops, thrift stores, diners, local grocery stores, record stores, etc... If you explain that you are local and you published it yourself, then they might be excited to sell it for you on consignment. Typically if the zine sells for $2, you and the store each would get $1 when an issue sold.

Otherwise, maybe talk you your local library about starting a zine collection, and then you can donate any zines you don't want and make a post here and other places online for people to donate zines. A lot of zine authors are more than happy to donate copies of their zine to a new zine library, or sometimes will even send copies of other zines they no longer want.

I hope this helps!

[Alex Wrekk]

I used to live in Salt Lake City, Utah and while not totally a small town, it was very isolated. I used to leave my zines on buses and in bathrooms or at record stores or in bookstores in the pages of my favorite books. I also spent a lot of time obsessing over my post box! Before I left I found that the Salt Lake City Library actually had a zine collection! maybe you can talk to your library about a small press collection or, even order books about zine through your library so that they will be on the shelves.

[Nat Rally]

I'm glad you brought this up. Originally from NYC, I was once overflowing with zine culture in school and with friends, however that soon died out when I came upstate here.

Anyway, I guess I was the one frantically introducing zines to my friends. I showed them how cool it is to put yourself on pages and what zines could and couldn't be. I suggest you do this, start talking to your friends about it, let them know what you're doing and let them know how cool it would be if they did it too..

If your buddies aren't all too interested, start flyering or leaving your zines in places you think would be recptive to them. The next thing we did was to try and reach out and get some other cats to start talkin about zines with us and encourage them to make their own. Start up a lil group or collective or whathaveyou. Good Luck!

[Grrrl Zines A-Go-Go]

Perhaps you can organize a zine workshop at your local library and advertise around town. Then maybe have a small exhibit on display at the library or local community center.

[TimT]

Get another person of the same age, dress up conservatively, and go round knocking door to door, giving out specially-prepared pamphlets to people as you go round... if it works for the Mormons, it can work for you!

Actually, if you wanted to emphasise your difference to the Mormons, why not dress you and a friend up in a ballgown, and *glide* from door to door, reading pieces of poetry to people when they open the door. Gosh, that's got to work...

[Stephanos]

Put ona zine event, such as a workshop on making zines, or get hold of some other zinesters to do some readings. Set up a zine library, attempt a small zine fest. Loadsa stuff you could do

[Denise]

Stephanos said:

Put ona zine event, such as a workshop on making zines, or get hold of some other zinesters to do some readings. Set up a zine library, attempt a small zine fest. Loadsa stuff you could do

i was considering this one, but since i know no other zinester within the same city, i just feel like I wont be able to handle it on my own...

[Denise]

TimT said:

Get another person of the same age, dress up conservatively, and go round knocking door to door, giving out specially-prepared pamphlets to people as you go round... if it works for the Mormons, it can work for you!

Actually, if you wanted to emphasise your difference to the Mormons, why not dress you and a friend up in a ballgown, and *glide* from door to door, reading pieces of poetry to people when they open the door. Gosh, that's got to work...

i'm not sure how to take this reply... is that some sort of satire humor that i sense (i can be dense and sarcastic, which is weird..................)

[Denise]

Grrrl Zines A-Go-Go said:

Perhaps you can organize a zine workshop at your local library and advertise around town. Then maybe have a small exhibit on display at the library or local community center.

somethig i am considering...

[Denise]

Nat Rally said:

I'm glad you brought this up. Originally from NYC, I was once overflowing with zine culture in school and with friends, however that soon died out when I came upstate here.

Anyway, I guess I was the one frantically introducing zines to my friends. I showed them how cool it is to put yourself on pages and what zines could and couldn't be. I suggest you do this, start talking to your friends about it, let them know what you're doing and let them know how cool it would be if they did it too..

If your buddies aren't all too interested, start flyering or leaving your zines in places you think would be recptive to them. The next thing we did was to try and reach out and get some other cats to start talkin about zines with us and encourage them to make their own. Start up a lil group or collective or whathaveyou. Good Luck!

thanks! these are all great ideas :) something i might actually be able to do :P

[Denise]

Alex Wrekk said:

I used to live in Salt Lake City, Utah and while not totally a small town, it was very isolated. I used to leave my zines on buses and in bathrooms or at record stores or in bookstores in the pages of my favorite books. I also spent a lot of time obsessing over my post box! Before I left I found that the Salt Lake City Library actually had a zine collection! maybe you can talk to your library about a small press collection or, even order books about zine through your library so that they will be on the shelves.

thanks! i think i might try leaving them in places... (darn it, im running low on ink and im too cheap to pay for photocopying! lol)

[Denise]

Derek Neuland said:

I'd say if you have copies of zines you've made, go around to different stores and see if they will display them for sale. If you don't have a local bookstore, try places like coffee shops, thrift stores, diners, local grocery stores, record stores, etc... If you explain that you are local and you published it yourself, then they might be excited to sell it for you on consignment. Typically if the zine sells for $2, you and the store each would get $1 when an issue sold.

Otherwise, maybe talk you your local library about starting a zine collection, and then you can donate any zines you don't want and make a post here and other places online for people to donate zines. A lot of zine authors are more than happy to donate copies of their zine to a new zine library, or sometimes will even send copies of other zines they no longer want.

I hope this helps!

thanks! great ideas :)