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Just Do It

Philly Zine Fest


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Published: Sep 30, 2008

Sun., Oct. 5, noon-6 p.m., free, the Rotunda, 4014 Walnut St., phillyzinefest.com

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In 1999, in the ninth grade, Sheena Allen's friend showed her a hand-drawn comic zine she had found while browsing the stacks at Doylestown's Siren Records. "There's someone who thinks just like I do," she thought. And then: "I could make one of these."

Now in its sixth year, Philly Zine Fest hosts 30-odd zinesters who acted on the same idea. The pre-Livejournal network of writers mailing well-concealed dollar bills in exchange for zines will gather at the Rotunda to sell publications and handmade crafts. They'll be joined by small-press distributors, including local Parcell Press, and Food Not Bombs.

Zine Fest wants you to join the self-published conversation. Allen, one of this year's organizers, has scheduled five free half-hour workshops for people at all levels of experience. "One of the things I remember was thinking, 'How do I do it? How do I put it through a photocopier?'" she says. One workshop will explain publishing basics such as page layout; for the pros, another will discuss reaching a more mainstream audience. Other workshops will teach you how to take your work to the next level with block printing, hand sewing and "magical consciousness."

According to Allen, there is more style and polish today than in the Fest's early years. "For some zinesters, it doesn't matter — all they want is to put their thoughts onto photocopied paper. It's funny to see the serious, I-want-to-be-in-a-magazine people and then to go back to that."

The supportive network of DIY-ers and the satisfaction of making and receiving permanent — and frequently personal — art objects are what make zine culture so magnetic for those who have for years been chronicling and photocopying the stories of their lives. Among the distributors will be Taryn Hipp of My My Distro, with whom Allen corresponded when she started publishing her first zine, Mister Fujiyama Loves You.

Since they are made largely for the pure satisfaction of creation, most zines cost only a buck or two. Allen's advice: "Come armed with dollar bills."