Author Archives: Violet

ZLuC 2023 BIPOC travel grant

Posted on by
Reply

Every year, the zine librarian community gathers at the Zine Librarians unConference, which will be held this year in San Francisco on August 4th and 5th. And every year, the community crowdfunds money for travel grants for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to attend ZLuC. If you’re a BIPOC library worker or zinester interested in attending ZLuC, please fill out our travel grant application. Previous awards have ranged from around $250 to around $750. The number of recipients and the amount distributed depends on how many donations received—if you’d like to contribute to the ZLuC BIPOC travel grant fund, send money via PayPal to julia.huddleston [at] gmail, or get in touch at that address to discuss other ways to donate.

flyer showing a photo of the Golden Gate Bridge and a wall of zines. Text reads "ZLuC BIPOC travel grant applications now open, apply by April 21"

New article for teachers and school librarians

Posted on by
1

Long-time zinester and zine librarian Cathy Camper has written a new article for School Library Journal introducing zines to teachers and school librarians, “Zines: Cut-and-Paste Publishing by and for the People.” Sidebars also written by Camper include “9 Books about Zines for Teens and Tweens,” “9 Tips for Zine-Making Workshops,” “A Brief History of Zines,” and “Online Zine Resources from A to Z.” Delightful cut-and-paste style illustrations by Mark Todd accompany the cover story.

colorful, cut and paste style illustration on the cover of School Library Journal's March 2023 issue

ZLuC 2023: save the date

Posted on by
Reply

The Zine Librarians unConference will be held in person this year! This year’s ZLuC will be held in San Francisco, California on Friday August 4 and Saturday August 5. There may be additional events (like tours of zine stores/zine libraries or a zinester reading) held on Sunday August 6, too, so consider keeping your schedule free that day as well.

ZLuC 2023 Registration is now open! We are capping in-person to 100 attendees. In addition, we will be exploring virtual options, for at least one of the days.
You can register here: https://forms.gle/SM7SQrXCv5Bx3EU5A. Registration is free and the due date for registration is July 10th.
You’ll be able to find all the info about ZLuC 2023 as it’s announced at this landing page: zinelibraries.info/wiki/zluc-2023-san-francisco.

If you’d like to support the travel needs of one or more zine librarians to attend ZLuC, please consider donating to the ZLuC BIPOC Travel Grant. The travel grant is a no-strings attached yearly tradition that has allowed several zine librarians of color to attend ZLuC without worrying about finances. Send donations via Paypal to juliahuddleston [at] gmail [dot] com (specify “ZLuC Travel Grant” in the comments). If you’d prefer to contribute without using Paypal, please email that address to coordinate an alternate method of payment. Thanks for considering!

flyer with photo of the Golden Gate bridge and an announcement that the 2023 Zine Librarian unConference will be held in San Francisco

Zine Libraries and Collections online panel

Posted on by
Reply

This event was originally scheduled for October 2022 but was rescheduled due to a strike.

Spineless Wonders is a network of artists, writers, academics and librarians, creating and researching small press publications including artists books, based in the Slade School of Fine Art at University College London (UCL). On Friday February 10, they’ll be hosting an all-day event titled Spineless Wonders: The Zine, Type And Script, consisting of in-person and virtual sessions. An online panel discussion titled “Zines: In/Out: The Institutional Dilemma: Zine Libraries and Collections” will happen at 1:30 pm London time:

As institutions, libraries and archives follow sets of rules for access, development, and description of their collections. Increasingly, libraries and archives are collecting zines – do-it-yourself, short-run publications created and distributed outside mainstream channels. This panel is made up of library and archive workers who have developed and organised zine collections in a range of institutions. The session will have four short presentations followed by discussion and will consider the ethics, challenges, and joys of zines in library and archive settings.

The chair is Kirsty Fife (researcher into digital information and curating, Manchester Metropolitan University) and speakers will be Holly Casio (Queer Zine Library), Kyle Gibbens (Queer Zine Library), Nicola Cook (Wellcome Library), and Tavian Hunter (Stuart Hall Library at Iniva). There will also be an online tour of the Manchester Poetry Library.

Zine Librarians Code of Ethics second edition

Posted on by
Reply

The Zine Librarians Code of Ethics (ZLCoE) was drafted in 2014/2015 and published in print form in November 2015. It was the labor of love of an informal group of library & archives workers who wanted to share their knowledge of the zine community’s norms and how they saw those intersecting with libraries and archives practices.

The zine librarian community has been talking about updating the ZLCoE for a while now; let’s make it happen! Please join me over Zoom for an informal session discussing what should be updated and how we’ll make it happen. If you haven’t read the Code of Ethics recently, it’d be great if you could do so before the meeting so we can talk about what we like and what we’d like to add or revise.

Meeting details: Zoom/virtual meeting. Friday November 11 (2 pm eastern, 1 pm Central, noon Mountain, 11 am Pacific). Registration required.

Can’t make the meeting? Here’s a quick form to fill out for your thoughts about what we should add or change in the next edition, and to add your email address if you’d like to be involved in the second edition in some way.

Zine Libraries and Collections online panel

Posted on by
Reply

screenshot of Zines event on October 21st at University College London, featuring a photo illustration of the stapled spines of zinesSpineless Wonders is a network of artists, writers, academics and librarians, creating and researching small press publications including artists books, based in the Slade School of Fine Art at University College London (UCL). On Friday October 21, they’ll be hosting an all-day event titled Zines: Reading, Preserving, Making, consisting of in-person and virtual sessions. An online panel discussion titled “Zines: In/Out: The Institutional Dilemma: Zine Libraries and Collections” will happen at 11:45 am London time:

As institutions, libraries and archives follow sets of rules for access, development, and description of their collections. Increasingly, libraries and archives are collecting zines – do-it-yourself, short-run publications created and distributed outside mainstream channels. This panel is made up of library and archive workers who have developed and organised zine collections in a range of institutions. The session will have four short presentations followed by discussion and will consider the ethics, challenges, and joys of zines in library and archive settings.

The chair is Kirsty Fife (researcher into digital information and curating, MMU) and speakers will be Holly Casio (Queer Zine Library), Kyle Gibbens (Queer Zine Library), Nicola Cook (Wellcome Library), and Tavian Hunter (Stuart Hall Library at Iniva). There will also be an online tour of the Manchester Poetry Library and Gloria Kiconco’s exhibition ‘Queering the Form’.

Get ready for the Zines & Librarians Conference 2022

Posted on by
Reply

Illustration of a Black person with an orange shirt holding zines in their hands, there is the text "Zines and Libraries Conference"

The ZINE & LIBRARIES CONFERENCE is a two-day virtual conference happening Thursday July 7th and Friday July 8th that will gather together librarians, zine artists and educators to learn about all things zines! Presenters will go over zine history, cataloging, starting a collection as well as provide tools, resources and tips on how to successfully integrate zines into libraries and instruction.

For more information about the schedule and free registration, check out the Zines & Librarians Conference 2022 page. Note that all times listed are in the U.S. Pacific time zone!

Zine Pavilion at ALA 2022

Posted on by
Reply

The Zine Pavilion makes its triumphant return to the annual American Library Association conference Friday June 24 through Monday June 27, 2022. This year’s ALA will be in sunny Washington, D.C., so look for the Zine Pavilion on the exhibit floor at booth 3009 in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. Find more info about what the Zine Pavilion is, and all the up-to-the-minute details at the twitter account @zinepavilion.

Interview with three authors of “Zines in Libraries” book

Posted on by
1

Three of the authors featured in the new book, Zines in Libraries: Selecting, Purchasing and Processing, were interviewed by the University of Illinois School of Information Sciences. Check out the interview (“iSchool alumni share their zine experiences in new publication“) and get inspired to read the book; many of the chapters are available to read in institutional repositories.

screenshot of article featuring photos of the three librarians interviewed

Compendium of Zine-Related Books

Posted on by
Reply

Aj Michel, creator of the long-running zine Syndicate Product, has published a new site called “From Staple to Spine: A Compendium of Zine-related Books“. The site features 140 titles of books based on zines, including individual titles, multi-author anthologies around a particular topic, academic works, and how-to-guides. If you have additional books to include, get in touch with Aj to suggest an addition!

screenshot of website header

Short video about the Salford Zine Library

Posted on by
Reply

A four-minute video, “The Living Room Library,” was created as part of the LGBTQ+ filmmaking project, E.D.E.N. Digital 2021/22. The video shows what happened to the 4500 zines of the Salford Zine Library during COVID, ending up in boxes in a volunteer’s flat before being temporarily shifted to Salford University. It’s clear from the film what a labor of love zine collections can be.

title screen of film showing text "The Living Room Library"

New digital zine library for mental health zines

Posted on by
Reply

This week marks the soft launch of a new collection, the Take It Back Zine Library, based in Scotland. The library consists of zines about mental illness and madness in physical and digital format. They’re accepting new submissions as well, so check back as the collection grows! Zines are a powerful medium for self-expression and sharing personal experiences, and creating a dedicated library for such content can provide valuable resources and support for those dealing with mental health challenges. Here are a few things to consider as the collection continues to grow:

Diverse Voices: Encourage a wide range of voices to contribute to the library. Mental health experiences vary greatly, and it’s important to reflect this diversity in the collection to help as many people as possible find relatable content, while is important to take care of the mental health and products like THCA carts can totally help with this. You may now order various cannabis products online including this forbidden fruit strain vape cartridge.

Exploring premium cannabis products can greatly enhance your wellness routine, particularly when seeking options that align with your mental health needs.
To explore a wide selection of high-quality cannabis products, visit High There, a trusted destination for both premium strains and expert guidance. Their curated offerings can help support your mental health journey, ensuring you have access to effective and trusted options.

By leveraging their knowledgeable support and premium offerings, you can confidently integrate cannabis into your wellness regimen, enriching your overall health experience with trusted and effective solutions. In addition, you can also rely on other stress-relieving products, such as Disposable Vape Pens, to help you manage negativity.

Accessibility: Ensure that the library is accessible to all, including those with different abilities. Offer options for various formats, such as audio versions or transcripts, to accommodate different needs.

Support and Outreach: Consider partnerships with mental health organizations, local community groups, or educational institutions to promote the library and provide support to individuals who may benefit from its resources.

User-Friendly Interface: Make sure the library’s digital platform is easy to navigate and search. This will help users find relevant zines quickly and efficiently.

logo of the Take It Back Zine Library, shaped like a shield