Latest news and reviews of zines are now on our blog.
Our latest producer interviews include Pinktricity, Kerry Ann Lee and Bryce Galloway.
About the Wellington City Libraries' Zine Collection
Wellington City Libraries has a collection of over 600 zines (and growing!) with special emphasis on locally produced Wellington zines.
Zine (pronounced "zeen") comes from the words "magazine" and "fanzine" and is a self published, inexpensively produced publication with a small circulation. Zines come in paper form, usually written in computer-printed or handwritten text, photo-copied and stapled.
People who make zines are motivated by a desire to express themselves. For that reason a zine can be on any topic from art and music to politics and social commentary.
Zines offer a unique insight into people, their points of view, politics, philosophies and lifestyles, while locally produced zines also help preserve information about our history and culture that might otherwise be lost.
At Wellington City Libraries, zines are divided into two collections:
- Open access zine collection
- Closed access Wellington zine collection
Open access zine collection
This collection is located next to the enquiries desk in the Arts, Music and Literature section on the 1st floor of the Central Library.
It features zines created locally, nationally and internationally on a range of topics sure to interest just about everyone. We have zines full of crafty DIY instructions and recipes, travel zines, music zines, self-published comic books, and loads more.
All these zines can be issued for 4 weeks at no charge. So please grab a few to read in the Library or take home with you.
How do I find them on the shelf?
The open access zine collection is a browsing collection and currently not catalogued. However, title lists of our holdings are available below.
Also, to help you navigate the collection, zines are arranged into 6 colour coded categories:
- Red - Personal zines, usually personal insights or stories inspired by the author's life
- Yellow - Art and literary zines
- Black - DIY zines
- Blue - Music zines
- Orange - Comics
- White - Miscellaneous zines, including history and politics, compilation zines and everything else that doesn't like to be categorised
As zines are often comprised of more than one of these categories, the colour represents the chief element of the zine. Also all of our New Zealand zines have "koru" stickers.
Please remember that if there is something in particular that you are looking for and can't find it, ask for help at the enquiries desk.
List of zines held at the library (Excel)
Closed access Wellington zine collection
This reference collection is housed in the rare books room on the 2nd floor of the Central Library and features zines produced by Wellington based zinesters.
The collection is indexed in the Wellington Local History Database at:
http://www.wcl.govt.nz/wellington/aotearoa.html.
To see a list of all our holdings, enter in the keyword: zines. To search for a specific zine, try entering in the title.
To view the collection or for more information, please ask at the 2nd floor enquiries desk.
Not sure where to start?
The gold 'librarian's choice' sticker is our way of highlighting some of our favourite zines. Using the sticker as a guide is a great way to browse if you don't have a lot of time or are new to the world of zines. You can also check some zine reviews below.
Zine reviews
What I Did on My Summer Vacation by Christoph Meyer, reviewed by Carlita
Mr Meyer decided to go on a train trip across the US and write a zine about it. The result is a compilation of mixed anecdotes; from talking about coffee addictions, analysing how humans behave when visiting a zoo, trying to figure out the mystery of tipping and being the witness of a horrendous hot dog accident. His zine not only amused me, but also made me rethink about various deep moral facts. This zine is a handmade petit book that reflects love and dedication on each of its pages and that is worth reading!
The Book Bindery by Sarah, reviewed by Kylie
This zine is full of stories about working in a book bindery; it dispels stereotypes and myths about making books but also shows the pleasure in your job can come from anywhere and anyone. Sarah takes a joy in shaking things up, playing bingo with the paging system, drinking terrible and awesome coffee and being fully involved in the little things that make a dead end job a glorious dead end. Favourite quote 'How's it going in the stamping area?' 'Oh you know, just trying to make in impression'.
Hoard : Stamps, issue one by Hurricane, reviewed by Carmel
This is a very cute collection of stamps from around the world, it leapt out at us for its full colour (unusual for zines!) and the very impressive curatorial skill- only the quaint and very interesting made the cut. What makes this zine extra special, however, is the fun story behind it. Lorene, one of our wonderful zine suppliers, explained to us that the zine was produced purely as a prop for a short film- the main character was supposed to be a very geeky hoarder who regularly compiled zines representing his collections of nerdy things (the next issue is about old library issue cards). The filmmaker decided to release the zine to see how the public viewed it, but unfortunately, we just think it is super cute and awesome, not geeky at all! Or if it is geeky, only in the cardigan wearing cute librarian way, not in the sci fi reading IT way. So enjoy.
Axis of Evil Banquet #1
What a great idea! Instead of bombing folks because we don't understand them (or because we think we can conquer them), let's EAT with them instead! This zine focuses on the many nations that Amerikkka has sought to dominate. For each country there is information about US interventions followed by traditional/popular recipes from said land. A good way to expand your cuisine, try new spices and bond with your community. Please note: not all recipes are vegetarian, but you can substitute your favourite fake meat for those that aren't. (review by Microcosm Publishing)
Sobstory? #8 by Andrew M. Scott
Kronos by Susumu Mukai, reviewed by Carmel
Sobstory? #8 is all ruminations about life in and amongst tales of travel. Andrew wanders around Europe and wonders if the internet is as scary to him, as television was to previous generations. This zine has just turned 10 years old, and it covers the topics you think it might. Thoughts on aging in the punk subculture and the endlessly liberating sensation of traveling. Features tons of sweet pictures of the streets, shops, and punk shows of Paris and London. (review by Microcosm Publishing)
This is quite a special highbrow zine, hey any zine that is published by someone other than the author is virtually a book, right? P.A.M, of course, is a fashion and art collective from Australia. Anyway, the lovely Greek deco coffin on the front cover, (black lines with some fluro orange fill) sets the tone: the book is mostly minimal quirky line drawings. There are plenty of skulls and skeletons- they seem to be quite trendy at the moment-, some surreal visions of cats in the power pylons and pages of fantasy animals (2 headed scorpions, man/slug with wings - that type of thing). By all means it is a lovely and dreamy adventure through the imagination of Susumu Mukai. Check it out!
The Frugal Vegan's Harvest & Holiday Survival Guide II by Lisa, reviewed by Steph.This zine (along with its predecessor) is one of our most popular zines at the moment. It has awesome easy recipes, like stuffed green peppers, pineapple cake and avocado fudge! There's also information on how to keep warm on a budget (which would be quite good right about now) and other general tips on how to save cash. Plus there's a jumbo valentine's section, and I know it's not valentines day for a few months, but hey you can give cool and inexpensive gifts to your loved one anytime - they'll love you for it!
Papercutter #4Papercutter #4 is the dramatic fourth issue of the acclaimed new anthology series by tugboat press dedicated to showcasing the best young, underexposed and emerging comic book artists. Sarah Oleksyk (Roadside, Ivy) tells the featured story about a pair of lovestruck misfits who meet at an all-night copy shop. Vanessa Davis (Spaniel Rage) displays a beautifully painted snapshot-style story of a few big weird parties. And John Porcellino (King-Cat) completes the issue with tales of a man's peaceful winter companionship with a cat and a snowstorm. (reviewed by Microcosm Publishing)
Pry on Murmurs by Evah Fan, reviewed by Carmel.This zine is so nicely produced that I wonder if we can even call it a zine. Aren't zines meant to be scruffy quickly produced jobs? Well the gorgeous Pry on Murmurs, with its rounded edges, thick manila pages and neatly stitched spine does not match that description, but give it a moment of your time and it will charm you. Depicted with geometric paper collage, strange landscapes set the stage, while Fan's whimsical line drawing tells us stories about the bizarre creatures that inhabit them - a whale flies over stripy mountains with an alien explorer on its back, a tiny mermaid reclines on a piano being serenaded by the player - and all in a pretty wee package."
Boys Boys Boys Boys Boys by Joanna McLeod, reviewed by CarlitaRight! This is very short, simple, homemade and low fi zine; nevertheless I could not stop laughing while reading it. If you are a girl you must read it to corroborate that you were not wrong when thinking that boys still need to learn a lot about the way we approach the whole girl-boy business. If you are a boy you ought to read it to understand and accept that girls not always get attached after hooking up with a boy, and that they are also capable of having a pretty relaxed and practical way of dealing with the love game. This hilarious zine is dedicated to all the lovers that Joanna had encountered over the years. Giving them some tips, writing them letters, illustrating the way she categorised them, keeping a statistical record of funny sexual events, etc. Give yourself a chance and read it.
Mixtape premiere issue edited by Nichola Prested & Justine, reviewed by CarlitaThis is another of the "do it yourself" zines, but what makes this particular one unique is the fact that includes many interesting topics among the varied potpourri of crafty activities: eco living tips for all types of busy people, reviews on books, music recommendations, yoga for kids, yummy recipes and more, much more!
For more reviews, visit our Archived Reviews page.
Making a zine
Making a zine is fun, frustrating, exhilarating and satisfying. There are some great places on the web that show you how, talk about content, binding, distribution and all the other things you need to know before you start. A really comphrensive site is this one from zinebook.com: How to make a zine.
We also have a number of zine-making books that could be of use to anyone wanting to start a zine.
Stolen Sharpie Revolution, by Alex Wrekk
"A brief, but engaging, and eminently useful guide to doing a zine. From tools, to layout, copying, printing, trading, promotion, ordering, mailing, distribution, and a whole lot more. Over 150 (albeit pocket sized!) packed pages. The new third edition includes 32 more pages of distributor listings, stores, and libraries that work with zines." (Book Description, Amazon US)
Whatcha mean, what's a zine? : the art of making zines and mini comics by Mark Todd and Esther Peal Watson, with contributions by more than 20 creators of Indie comics and magazines.
"This book is for anyone who wants to create their own zine. It's for learning tips and tricks from contributors who have been at the fore front of the zine movement. It's for getting inspired to put thoughts and ideas down on paper. It's for learning how to design and print your own zine so you can put it in others" hands. Whatcha Mean, What's a Zine? is for anyone who has something to say." (Book Description, Amazon US)
Contact us
As the zine collection is new and growing fast we would love your feedback, ideas on zines to buy, and any questions you have about the collection. Please contact Stephanie Poulopoulos with any feedback.
