For aspiring publicists, the book industry can be one of the most recommended fields you can get for a career. From popular companies such as Hachette and Tor, to indie groups like Tachyon, there are many venues for getting your book published and being part of this creation process. It's even common to spot online courses and internships for these companies, which allow readers to make their mark in departments like editing.
However, the magic within creating a book doesn’t have to be decided by big companies, or tiny organizations, for that matter. There are plenty of indie creators who create their own stories right out of their houses. Sometimes professionally, but usually with any materials lying around. Folded paper. Thread. Glue. Whatever tools they have at their disposal, they’re able to create their self-published booklets.Â
This can be you, too, if you know where to start.
A book circulated through self-publication is called a zine (pronounced ZEEN). The origin of the first zine remains dubious at best, being that the definition includes booklets that are self-made and done by an independent group. Some historians have looked towards play pamphlets and broadsides dating back to the 1700s as the first usage of zine. However, the contemporary definition wouldn’t start appearing until the 1920s and 1930s, when Science Fiction conventions had fans creating compilations of their favorite Sci-fi tales through avenues like Amazing Stories by Hugo Gernsback. Eventually, these compilations would include both established and upcoming pulp writers like Ray Bradbury.
This tradition of creating your works would start to populate communities. With the rise of copy machines and printing shops, the ability to make your books came easier from increased accessibility. This is why zines today are usually done with printer paper, and more expensive copies would be produced with matte or cardstock.
The main takeaway with zines is that they are all from small or niche publication runs. They aren’t books where it’s mandatory to go through an extensive process of editing, production, and judgment by higher-ups, rather, they are magazines curated for specific reasons. Sometimes, zines don’t even need a reason to exist!
From political pamphlets to fandom art compilations to indie literary publications, zines all orientate towards a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) philosophy. Anyone can create a book. Anyone can write about their experiences, without having to censor their voice. It allows a variety of perspectives to be heard and amplified within specific communities. This is why zines are renowned in marginalized, creative, or activist spaces—the power of creating your distribution allows for information to spread freely, unfettered by the thoughts of editors, corporations, or businesses that might not align with the author’s original purpose.
Zines have also been a great way for artists to gain experience with publications. Complications with paper stock, formatting, text, management, and contacts with nearby printing businesses are a few examples of what a zine creator can tackle during their process. Freelancers use this medium as a way to showcase their portfolios, selling their art for income through an accessible format. These booklets can be a serious pathway in presenting expertise to others.
Despite these professional benefits of zines, they’re also capable of archiving personal reflections within the author. It’s a source of journaling and creative output.
Zines even connect people due to the medium's creative focus. Many participants of zine fests and conventions get to befriend each other within the same hobby; if you look around your local area, you’ll be able to see libraries and bookstores that encourage these respective communities to grow through workshops and selling.
It doesn’t have to be a niche thing, as well. You can create a zine at any time and any place. If you’re interested in where to start, there are a few ways you can begin.
1. Work Onto the Paper
Pay no heed to any sleek books you find while googling this process. You don’t have to make digital art or have fancy editing experience to make a zine within a couple of hours. Better yet, you don’t even have to worry about printing copies.Â
You can use crayons, pencils, markers, and highlighters. Anything you want on a zine, go and mark it onto the pages. Write some poetry, doodle your favorite animal, and list out your best experiences from your childhood. Zines are a form of self-expression. There doesn’t have to be a professional bar on how your zine should be represented; as long as you are satisfied with the direction of where your book is going, the production value doesn’t matter.
2. Collage It
If you’re not into writing or drawing, then scrapbooking is the next best thing to show self-expression. Find any scraps like unused stickers, photos, magazine clippings, ribbons, or any miscellaneous objects you can find, and then create a composition to your heart’s content. That’s still creating something and a great way to use up materials you have in excess.
3. Use An Editing Program
For the creators out there who are in love with the sleek books, or the ability to put your work into organized formats, this would be for you.
There are plenty of art design programs that allow for zine creation. There’s Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Publisher, GIMP, Krita, Inkscape. If you're worried about where to find digital resources, Itchi.io, an indie creator site, has plenty of zine tools that allow for easier formats and free image collections. I highly recommend looking into the website if you want assets under a Creative Commons Attribution License.
With that being said, the amount of tools for digital editing is out there, and all you need to do is research for them!
4. Contribute to a Publication
One of the best ways to learn about the publishing industry would be to work within it. While internships for big companies have a high rejection rate, there are plenty of independent groups out there that love volunteers and employees. Look towards your Makerspaces, universities, or online magazines.
There are plenty of positions you can work in that let you be part of something special, especially in bringing together the works of multiple artists under one platform.
If contributing to a publication isn’t up your alley, then…
5. Submit to a Publication
As a student-run magazine, Iceblink Literary follows the same principles on what it means to publish as any in-person publisher. While the traditional definition of literary magazines is new including the rise of digital prints and internet copies, that didn’t stop the term from expanding into the online space. Creators can find a great deal of zines that are found, distributed, and archived to this day.
Even if rejection is a part of the publication process, it doesn’t hurt to try and see what pieces get accepted in the end, no matter if the process is digital or traditional.
If you have any writing pieces ready to submit, feel free to check out Iceblink’s submissions page for more information on contributing. If you want to find other lovely publications, then discover them through sites such as Chill Subs, Reedsy, or Submittable.
Comments