Zines A-M

This issue features 14 different contributors,  talkin' zines.  Todd Taylor of Razorcake discusses the importance of  organization, Cynthia talks about Zine Club Chicago, Ed Kemp and Johnny Gamber discuss the overlap of pencil nerds and zine nerds!  Chris Aumen, of Reglar Wiglar, wrote a piece on why you should or shouldn't use social media to promote zines.  Liz Mason talks about creating the  world's worst zine.

Half-size, black and white, 40 pages long. 

Number 14, the September 22 issue.  Contributors include Liz Mason, Anna  Jo Beck, Todd Taylor, Ed Tillman, Scotty Leonard, and several others.

Topics include:
*Making DIY films vs. Making DIY zines
*Embracing the life of a Luddite
*Getting a tattoo of a stapler!
*Zines in academia
*Finding the time and inspiration to write

As well as some zine reviews and zine interviews.

Half-size, B&W, 40 pages.

Danny Noonan has put together a fun and interesting look at our United States of America.  He found 50 different people to write about the 50 different states, using only 50 words each.  Yours truly (Billy McCall) wrote the short piece about New Mexico!  With so many different writers, you have every style of writing imaginable, with every emotion as well.  Great project.

Half-size, B&W, 28 pages.

Donna Ramone, renowned punk rocker and rockstar writer for Razorcake Magazine, brings us the REAL story of Christmas in America. With her sarcastic charm and forehead-slapping incredulousness, Donna explains the origins of Christmas in America, a holiday that has only been around for 150 years. Did you know that celebrating Christmas used to be illegal in Boston? Well, now you know. Just one of the many fun facts that will destroy your notion of America's most beloved holiday.
 

As someone who completely loves Christmas, let me tell you that this zine is flat out amazing. It has become a Christmas tradition in our house to read Donna's zine...WHILE DECORATING FOR CHRISTMAS. Yes, it turns out that this whole holiday is a giant sham, a capitalistic ploy to boost the economy, but yo, I still love it! And I love this zine!
 

Half-size, 12 pages, color cover.  

Another issue of Creepy Ephemera, the best zine you've never heard of!   Donna Ramone, of Razorcake Magazine, tells us the history of American  children writing letters to Santa!  Who came up with this idea, anyway?   We don't write letters to the Easter Bunny, or to St. Patrick, or any  other imagined entity.  So why Santa!?

And where do those letters  go?  And do people respond to them?  Who responds?  Why would they  respond?  Or why WOULDN'T they respond?  So many questions, I know.

Learn  all about it in this hilarious zine, full of all the smart-ass  commentary you'd expect from Donna.  But also a lot of, "Well, duh, yes,  okay, I get it Donna, you are 100% right" type moments.  I love this  zine.  Informative and hilarious, a full history on something you've  never thought about before.

Half-size, 12 pages, color cover, with some color images inside.                  

EVI is one of those old school zines that has been around forever.  Imagine what happens when a wacky NY theater person, full of creative energy, decides to put out a zine!  She’s been documenting her life, and the life of her family, for decades.

This particular issue is the “Sports Issue,” and I love it.  Don’t you want to read about Ayun’s sports’ life when she was in middle-school?  How about drawings of her watersking?  Bowling?  Tennis?  I mean, all kinds of funny, exciting, and embarrassing stories, it’s great!

Quarter-size, B&W, 40 pages.

This issue is definitely one of my all time favorite issues of EVI, because it is all about mail!  She talks about her first experiences with mail, as a child.  She talks about penpals now, she gives tips on how to lower your mailing costs, she talks about postage stamps!  Also included is a discussion about mail art, as well as a “mail carrier’s hall of fame,” with really great illustrations to go with it.  If you love the USPS, you’ll love this zine!

Quarter-size, B&W, 40 pages.

This zine is a dude in his 40s going back through all his concert ticket stubs from every concert he’s ever gone to, starting with shows he attended as a teenager in the 90s.  Bands like Nirvana, Tool, RHCP, and tons of others, some known, some forgotten.

Remember the joys of going to concerts as a teen?  Oh man, takes me back.  There are 8 different issues available, but can be read in any order.   If you like American rock music, you’ll love this zine.

Quarter-size, full-color, 16 pages.

Keith Helt has been writing Flotation Device off and on for almost 20 years now.  His writing style envelops the reader in memory, creating a dream-like state where sensation and feelings override traditional storytelling methods.  Most writers try to tell a linear story, where one thing leads to another, but Keith lets you soak into an emotion, then explains various events which lead to that emotion.

This particular issue explores the death of a close friend and bandmate by the name of Alex.  Keith doesn’t tell you step by step how and when he met Alex.  Keith shares a variety of stories about him, bringing us closer and closer to the memory of a person we already know is gone.  It’s a puzzle, coming together one piece at a time, until we finally get a glimpse of Keith’s heartache.

Half-size, B&W, printed on manila paper, 40 pages.

This zine came out a few years ago, but I recently obtained a few copies from the editor, Kris Mininger.  As the title might suggest, this zine is all about snail-mail correspondence.  Why we love it, and also the frustrations we have with it, but ultimately this is a love letter to the postal system.  If you are involved in the zine scene, or in mail-art culture, then you will recognize a lot of names in this collaborative effort: Dale Spiers, Neosho, Jason Rodgers, and many more.  Stories include a history of rubber stamps, a history of zines, a history of chewing!  And lots of art-related articles.  Full-size, B&W with green cover, 30 pages.

 I am so excited to have Ricky Vigil's work in my distro.  He has A LOT  of great comics, cartoons, and drawings.  I only wanted one thing of his  for my distro, because if you want more then you should just go get it  from him directly:  https://www.rickyvigil.com/

Ricky is one of  the most talented artists in the zine scene, with a style that is cute  and cartoony.  His work is often fairly innocent in nature, meaning  PG-13 maturity level, but the topics generally speak more to middle-aged  adults.  And this little zine is a perfect example.

This tiny  zine gives advice to the "aging punks" who are still going to shows, but  not like they used to.  tips about what to wear, where to stand, and  how to enjoy a good show, even after you are too old to mosh.  Short,  cute, fun, funny.

Mini-zine, 1/8 size out of a single folded piece of paper, 8 pages, B&W.                  

This fantastic zine was written by Mark Cunning, and tells the story of the time he picked up Alex Jones for an Uber-Ride.  But before we get to that part of the story, we are regaled with stories of Mark’s drug-dealer friend who was obsessed with conspiracy theories.  From 9/11 theories to gun violence, this friend of his had a seemingly simple answer to all of it.  And much of his info came from InfoWars, the media outlet run by Alex Jones.

So when Mark picks up Alex for an Uber, should Mark simply drive Alex to his destination?  Or should he drive that freaking car off the side of the cliff, killing them both?  Tough call, I know.  Pick up this zine to read more about the anguish of his decision.

Quarter-size, B&W, 36 pages.

This is another  amazing zine by Donna Ramone, the queen of researching weird shit.  But,  not only is this a well-researched history of the wrestling character  known as Undertaker, it is also a bit of a perzine.  Donna talks about  her relationship with wrestling, the love she had for Undertaker, then  her evolving mixed feelings about him as she grew older.  If you like a  well-written zine on a unique topic, then you'll like this zine.  If you  follow wrestling at all in any way, then YOU NEED THIS ZINE.

Half-size, 12 pages, color-cover with color pictures throughout.                  

I loved Rachel’s first issue, I love this one more.  She is once again documenting her travels as she moves across the country from farm to farm.  The loose theme of the first issue was the travel itself, whereas this issue’s theme is the animals she comes across as she travels.  Goats, cats, dogs, ducks…  She knows them, she names them, she loves them.  Not only are there lots of great stories about the animal-friends she encounters, but lots of full-color photos as well.  Quarter-size, full color, 24 pages.

Written by Stacey Piotrowski, who also writes the zine Phases of the Moon, comes a new work of per-zine expression.  Well-written prose takes up the first half, as Stacey reflects on what it’s like to be an anti-capitalist in a Covid-world.  “I understood the need for protection, but didn’t want to have to purchase something.”  But buying masks is the least of her worries when her father goes in for surgery.  She makes a deal with God, and starts attending church.  But if the words are too much, then don’t worry.  The second half of this zine is filled with full-color photos, mostly of skylines and trees.  This zine hits hard at the front, then eases into tranquility by the end.

Quarter-size, full-color, sewn binding, 24 pages.

Her first issue was half words, half photos.  This one is mostly words, with a couple of photos towards the end.  Stories include growing up in Pittsburgh, reading Goosebumps and making mixtapes.  From family life, to suburbs, to punk house, she lives through it all and does her best to keep making art.  This zine is a trip down Stacey’s memory lane, a bittersweet mix of nostalgia and trauma dripping off every page.  A recurring character in this zine is the house Stacey lived in for so long.  

Quarter-size, partial color, sewn binding, 24 pages.

There is a type of art that I like to call “Zombie-Pizza-Skateboard” art, and that’s what Chris likes to draw.  You know, weird gross drawings of pizza melting all over the place and being eaten by some weird zombie that’s surfing and wearing knee-socks.  Do you know what I mean?  Anyway, if you like weird drawings paired up with random sayings, you’ll love this zine.  

Half-size, full-color, 24 pages.

Brilliant zine by Liz Mason.  She took a survey and asked people what they HATE about bad zines.  Then she made a zine with all those bad traits.  Full of cliches and inside jokes, this is the most UNWANTED zine to ever be made.  I begged her to actually charge the $18.87 cover price, but she wouldn’t do it, so for only $5 you can read all the bad poetry you want, see all the pointless pictures you can handle, read a long intro about why this issue is coming out late, and so on.  A stupid meta-joke gone to far, I love this zine.

Half-size, color cover, 20 pages long.