First: You Organize!
So we've spent a little time dipping our toes into the world of zines! We've looked at what zines are and why girls are making them. We looked at a famous zinester and who is reading zines that girls make.
Now it's time to start working!
I'm going to write the steps to making a zine in two different posts. This is the first one, and will look at the different tools you'll need to make a zine. The second post will look at how to actually put a zine together!
Part One:
To begin making zines, you don't really need a lot of complicated or expensive tools. As you get more experienced, you may discover that you really wish you had a huge stapler or a massive paper cutter that could slice through 100 sheets at a time. But the only way to figure out if you need expensive tools like that is to actually make zines and see how committed you are to making lots of them. You may find after making one zine that you just don't have the patience for it, and you'd rather work on a blog (or some other type of media)!
So the list I have created here is based on the idea that you are brand new zinster who is just getting started!
Paper: Although there are no set rules that say you have to make your zine using paper (some zines I have seen have been on old pieces of blue jeans!), most people find it easiest to start with paper. But it would be a waste to go out and buy paper only to have it all ripped up and cut to peices! So the better idea is to gather paper that you would otherwise put in the recycle bin, paper from old school projects, or even old journals with paper still left in it. It doesn't really matter what size the paper is or what color it is! You will use this paper to practice and sketch ideas on and to actually make your final product.
Old Markers, Scissors, Glue: None of these things has to be brand new--you can just use what you already have and is probably laying around your house! You'll be using each of these things to create the content of your zine (what you're going to put on your pages, or, the story you're going to tell).
Interesting scraps, found objects, throw away 'stuff': Most zinesters don't like to use stuff they find at stores to make their zines. They instead use interesting pictures they find in magazines, scraps of paper they find on the floor, or even cool objects they find in second hand shops or in the garbage! Zinesters like to use interesting things they find because it makes their zines even more original and unique. Remember, zinesters like to be different! So keep your eyes out for bits of old ribbon, colorful paper scraps or even pine cones or flowers from outside! You never know what sort of interesting patterns or pictures that your found objects will make!
Optional: A stapler. There are no rules saying you have to staple your zine! I've made zines and not stapled them because the picture where the staples would go are too interesting to be ruined with a big ugly stapler right in the middle of it! But other times, my zines are so big, I've had to staple them so the pages don't get mixed up. It's up to you if you want a stapler or not!
And that's it! Pretty easy, don't you think?
Ask any questions you have in comments! And stay tuned for Part Two, where we actually start working on our zines!