How To Make A Zine

Sex workers have always been more punk than punk rock because sex work exploits systems set up to exploit us, and therefore IS the most punk of all the punk, in this essay I will… No wait, that’s another essay. Anyway, the DIY ethos of punk means that sex workers have been making zines for as long as the practice has been accessible. There’s a long history of marginalised communities who decide to put out their own shit when the barriers to publishing are insurmountable, and sex workers are no different.

Workers have been printing out resource pamphlets and blacklists for decades, and were churning out photocopied, stapled little morsels like everyone else in the golden zine era in the 90's. Take a look at this amazing 1988 NZPC (New Zealand Prostitues Collective) zine Siren for an example!

These folded sheets are ephemeral and tough to document, existing on bookshelves and in boxes, sometimes gathered together in little zine libraries spotted throughout all the cities of the world. Ephemeral as they are, they deserve to be made, acknowledged, and celebrated as important documentation.

The why

Traditional publishing (‘trad pub’) is not accessible to a range of sex workers, and is why the canon of published sex worker books is skewed towards white women with tertiary education (telling on myself here). It means that the stories we can access through trad pub are so immensely limited.

It’s not only an issue of access. There’s also a warranted fear of putting your words into the hands of civvies. Will they show them the respect they deserve? This is especially true when it comes to personal stories, and stories involving sex work. We’re a marginalised community and with that comes the need for care, understanding, and deference. You can't guarantee this when you entrust your work to trad pub.

The how

To begin with, you need to figure out what your zine will be about. The best thing about making zines is that you don’t have to adhere to the whims of publishing tastes. If you wanna make a zine about your Dr Martens boot fetish, or your fav soup recipes, go for it! If you want to tell your story free of censorship, and in the way you want to tell it, then please do! Zines are a wonderful format for expressing yourself your way.

The layout

Zines take many forms and there are so many ways to make them. You can do some origami and make an eight page folded zine, try a simple bunch of paper folded in two and stapled, or make a bound book. If you do opt for the book-fold, remember that your total page numbers need to be divisible by four, as each sheet of paper is four pages of your zine.

You can lay a zine out old-school-style, decorating each page with drawings, text, cutouts and glue. Maybe you get fancy and utilise your creative suite software of choice.

The paper-and-photocopier method is the most simple and accessible way to layout a zine: staple some sheets together, write your zine content directly on the page, go to town with a glue stick for pics, etc. It helps to number each page so when it comes to printing, you can easily see the pagination. Once you’ve filled out your zine, you can take it apart to photocopy sheet by sheet.

It’s controversial, but I use Word to layout my zines. I draw the images in Affinity Designer, then add them to the word document. This isn’t easy because Word is fucked when it comes to images. BUT the “book fold” template setting is GOLD – you add your content consecutively, then the template sorts out the pagination for you automatically for printing. It’s perfect if you don’t want to fuss around with working out pagination yourself.

Printing

I send my files to my local print store, who have a fold and staple option, and can add a nice card cover. When I go to pick them up, everything is done. I prefer this option because I’m lazy, but it is also because I like the uniformity of the finished zines. You might hate this aspect of it because we all have different aesthetics. That’s what makes zines so fucking cool, because you can share what you like with everyone else. Getting them printed and stapled obviously costs more than DIY, but I think it can be worth it.

You can go utterly DIY and photocopy your zine yourself, preferably using the copier at your stupid office day job so you can steal some paper in the process. If you’re dayjob-free, good for you! Libraries offer copying but the cost can add up. Your local print store will likely have a DIY option, or you can make use of your own printer (if you can get it to work)!

Binding

Staples are the simplest way to bind your zine. You may need a long-reach stapler, as a regular one might not be able to reach the centre of your folded zine. These are cheap and relatively easy to find.

If you’d prefer something craftier, you can bind the zine by sewing the centre of the fold. This is a pretty and crafty way to bind, and gives the zine a more personal quality–the reader will know you took care and time to sew the pages together.

If your zine is hefty, you might need to have it professionally bound, so take a look around for printers that offer this, though beware–some printers are known to not accept certain content and may refuse to print and bind your zine if it contains anything they find objectionable.

Distribution

How do you get your zine out there? You’ve done all this work, now you want someone to actually read it. There are many ways: look up zine libraries in your city and around the world–they often take zines and stock them in their libraries for people to browse, read, or buy. If there’s a radical bookshop near to you, ask if they’re interested in selling on your zine. You can also go to a zine fair! The Sticky Institute in Melbourne Australia has a yearly zine fair where you can get a table and hawk your wares, and so do many other cities. You could take matters into your own hands and sell it on an online marketplace–I promote my zine on my socials and then sell them through Etsy. Though the fees are exorbitant, it’s a relatively easy way to handle sales. You could also create a store on Big Cartel–they have a free plan for small stores.

Zines are a powerful way to tell your story, express yourself creatively, and make yourself heard. They are the ultimate DIY way to get your creative output and your voice out there! Embrace the punk ethos of zines and tell your story your way.

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