# Get to Know the Zine Collection
You might not have known it but if you’ve ever been to the Main Library in downtown Jacksonville, you probably walked by one of Jacksonville Public Library’s most unique features: the Zine Collection.
This collection was started in 2009 by the first Library Zine Committee, composed of Andrew Coulon, Josh Jubinsky, Matthew Moyer, and Jessica Whittington. In the years since, the collection has grown to include over 2,000 zines from authors all over the country, from Jacksonville to Portland!
What’s a zine?
A zine (pronounced ZEEN, as in “magazine”) is difficult to define—and that’s on purpose. Zines are made by people who feel strongly enough about something to write, draw, compile, print, and distribute their thoughts about it, and that’s the only requirement! They usually take the form of a small pamphlet, but they can be any size, any length, and about any topic.
What ties them all together is the passion of their creators and their do-it-yourself (DIY) beliefs. Zines are a labor of love, not profit, and they are as varied as their creators!
# Zine Collection Staff Picks
Here are just a few examples of zines that show the variety of our collection:
Shotgun Seamstress, Vol. 2 – Alongside science fiction fandom, punk culture is one of the foundational sources of zine culture (for more on the history of zines, check out Notes from Underground: Zines and the Politics of Alternative Culture by Stephen Duncombe, which is also in the Zine Collection). This zine, created by Black queer punk Osa Atoe, contains essays on punk culture, a “scene report” of concerts and events in Portland, Oregon, and interviews with other Black punks.
shortandqueer, Vol. 4: the coming out issue – Many zines tell the personal stories of their creators (these are known as “perzines,” short for “personal zines”). This zine tells the story of how Kelly came out as transgender to his friends and family. The zine includes Kelly’s personal thoughts, emails between him and his mother as they discussed his transition, and a tongue-in-cheek flyer created by Kelly and his friend to give tips and tricks on how not to misgender them!
What Do You Know about the Higher Education Censorship Bill (SB266)? - Zines often draw attention to current and local events, like this zine made by local University of North Florida students to highlight Florida Senate Bill 266. The creators of the zine asked UNF students to give their thoughts on the bill, and the results were compiled to create the zine—a format that successfully brings attention to the issue without violating the terms of the bill itself!
Robin & Cat, Vol. 1 – This is a great example of the comic/sequential art zine, in which artists can publish their work independently. Just like graphic novels, comic zines can be about any and all subjects. This zine tells the story of Robin, “a shy, video-game-loving nerd” and Cat, “a cool monster-loving punk,” who will “face rude comic book guys, overprotective roommates, and their own insecurities so they can be together” (summary from the back cover).
Zine World, Vol. 30 – Zine World is focused on the zine community itself (the zine’s tagline is “A Reader’s Guide to the Underground Press”). It provides reviews of zines, letters to the editor, and opinion columns about people and events within the zine scene. This particular volume includes reviews of zines that are also in our Zine Collection—see if you can find them!
How can you support the zine collection?
There are two ways you can support our incredible collection. The first way is also the easiest: just check out zines! Increasing the checkout numbers for zines is a great way to show the library how much the community values them. You can visit the collection in person on the ground floor of the Main Library, located at 303 North Laura Street.
If that’s too far away, no worries—click here to browse our zine catalog online. You can put zines on hold just like other library materials, and they will be sent to your preferred branch!
# Add Your Voice to the Collection
If you’d like to support the collection in a more advanced way, why not donate a zine yourself? You can bring your donation to any library branch in person or mail it to the following address:
Main Library c/o Zine Collection
303 N. Laura St.
Jacksonville, FL 32202
If you donate a zine, please include the following information to help us correctly describe it in our catalog:
- Name of Author(s)/Artist(s)
- Volume number(s), if any
- Year of publication
- Your email address
- A short (1-3 sentence) summary of your zine (optional)
# Upcoming Events and Activities
If you’d like to learn more about the Zine Collection, drop by the Main Library for Zinester Meetup the first Wednesday of every month from 6 - 8:30 p.m. (during Art Walk) to talk, create, and hang with folks who are passionate about independent publishing. If you’ve never made a zine/comic but have an interest, this is a great place to start! Or just browse through the collection yourself. You never know what you’ll find!
Learn Zine-Making 101 with Lindsay Anderson, a prolific zine maker and self-publisher based in Jacksonville, FL. Using non-digital methods, you'll make a quick one-page zine and discover different layouts and content from Lindsay’s personal zine library. Join us on Saturday, June 8, from 1-3 p.m. at South Mandarin Library. The workshop is FREE and all resources will be provided.
Since 2013, Lindsay Anderson has developed a long-running zine project, she has helped to organize the annual Duval Comic and Zine Fest (DCAZ) and recently launched a new quarterly zine Mischief on the River. She's passionate about creating from existing resources and making space for others to develop and showcase their own works.
The Main Library will also host the third annual Duval Comic and Zine Fest on Saturday, June 15, from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. A celebration of local, independent publishers, the event will feature over 50 zine and comic creators, a risograph printing activity, a Writer's Lab workshop with Thony Aiuppy, and a Lit Chat with award-winning cartoonist Nate Powell. The event and all programs are free to attend!
Writer's Lab: Formatting Your Work for Print with Thony Auippy
Formatting your passion project can be a daunting task. You spend all that time planning, making, and editing your work. You have all the parts and you’re ready to make your dream a reality. But how do you take all that work and convert it into something tangible, someone physical that can be held, flipped through, and read? Learn some of the tips, tricks, and formatting hacks Thony has learned over the last decade of making zines, comics, and graphic novels.
Saturday, June 15, from 12 - 1 p.m. | Main Library (during DCAZ Fest)
Register for the free workshop!
Whether you hand-make every book or create your work digitally, you will get information, tutorials, and resources that will help you organize and format your project.
Thony Aiuppy is a visual artist, cartoonist, zinester, and storyteller. For more than a decade, Thony has worked as an art educator with learners of all ages. This year, Thony was awarded the Wolfsburg Fellowship for Social Justice in Education and finished the Sequential Artist Workshop Yearlong Program in Gainesville, Florida. He lives and works in Jacksonville, Florida.
Ama-ZINE Creations (for ages 12-17)
Teens: Make your first mini-zine! Using the book, Whatcha Mean What's a Zine? by Mark Todd and Esther Pearl Watson (as well as several zines from local creators), you'll explore what a zine is and how to create one of your own! These hour-long programs include an icebreaker, games and discussion to kickstart your creative thinking.
Zine-making supplies provided. When you're done, you can donate your zine to the Library, trade it with a fellow zinester at the festival, or take it home.
Saturday, June 15, at 1-2 p.m. or 3-4 p.m. | Main Library (during DCAZ Fest)
Lit Chat Interview with Nate Powell
Nate Powell is a National Book Award-winning cartoonist who began self-publishing as an Arkansas teenager in 1992. His work includes the new graphic novel Fall Through and a new comics adaptation of James Loewen’s influential Lies My Teacher Told Me, as well as Save It For Later, civil rights icon John Lewis’s March trilogy, Come Again, Two Dead, and more. He has discussed his work at the UN, on MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show, PBS, and CNN.
Saturday, June 15, from 4-5 p.m. | Main Library (during DCAZ Fest)
Powell has received multiple Eisner and Ignatz awards, the Comic-Con International Inkpot Award, multiple ALA and YALSA distinctions, and is a two-time finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. A book signing will follow the interview with books available for purchase on-site.
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