Connect @ The Learning Commons

At long last, zines are finally here in the Learning Commons library!

Now, you might be scratching your head and saying to yourself, “What are zines?”

Zines (/’zi:n/ zeen; an abbreviation of fanzine, or magazine) are independently, sometimes self-published materials and cover a variety of topics, such as education, sexuality, Do-It-Yourself or how-to, gardening, politics, parenting, history, and much more. Very often they are handwritten or typewritten, and sometimes they have a comics quality to them.

Those who make zines (zinesters or zine-writers) often go on to be graphic designers, video producers, writers, or activists in their communities, and zines provide an unfiltered space for them to flesh out ideas and create content without the fear of strict editing. The message and voice of zines can be completely unfiltered and adorned with drawings, newspaper clippings, or other matter. Many zines also have a hand-printed quality to them with covers produced using screenprinting or other printmaking techniques.

If you are interested in finding out which specific zines we have in our collection check out our library catalog. There is a resource list for zines in there and it should give you a good sense of what is available before visiting the collection. A free flyer is available if you want to find out more about what a zine is and make your own.

The zines are located on the other side of the Multimedia/DVD shelving unit on the main floor of the library. There is a big cardboard sign that says ZINES. You can’t miss it!

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact a library staff member.