What is a Zine? A discussion with Sully from the Evergreen Zine Union in Everett

Zines and zine culture is always one of the most interesting and accessible forms of creation. Show Your Art sat down with Sully from the Evergreen Zine Union in Everett, Washington to talk more about this form of art.

Hi Sully! For people who might be new to zines, what exactly is a zine? 

In the simplest terms, zines are DIY, handmade booklets. Traditionally, they are made to be easily duplicated at low cost, depending on how long and how it’s assembled. There is no one way for a zine to be a zine; I’ve seen zines made of bus transfer tickets, matchbooks, dried leaves. There really aren’t any rules when it comes to zines. All zines are good zines!

What makes zines really special is that they can be about ANYTHING. A bugaboo you’ve got, your favorite fandom, a comic, or as protest material. There’s no limit apart from your imagination. 

Do you consider zines art? Why or why not?

I say: All zines are art, but not all zines contain “art”.

If we think about art as an act of intentional creation, then hell yes, they are. Maybe not all zines are “fine art”, but they CAN be. The barrier to entry for making zines is low and artistic quality can range, but it’s not always the “visual” that is the thing of value in a zine – it’s the story, the feeling it evokes, the purpose or intention. 

Looking at selling zines, I think there’s absolutely a place for this printed work in more traditional art markets and stores. It certainly does fall more into the umbrella of “book” than other artforms, but I do think that zines help to fill out the broader range of the artistic landscape and absolutely deserve a place at the artists’ table. I can understand why more traditional artists may not consider zines “art” (again, not all contain art!), but in my opinion that’s a bit gatekeepy. (Plz don’t fight me, artists!)

What do you love most about the zine community and your community the Evergreen Zine Union?

My friend, a fellow zinester, told me once: “You’re never going to get rich off zines; the best we hope for is to make enough to pay to print the next one.” Commerce is so much a part of our lives that I think that this can come across as a taboo idea, but this artistic endeavor is often a labor of love more than a money-making venture. That is something I admire about the zine community, zinesters do it for the love of the zines. For the love of sharing information or art in an accessible way. 

With EZU I have found a really fun, interesting group of people who inspire me to create. I want it to be that kind of place for everyone else, too. We have a variety of folks join us for our monthly Zine Hangs from all over the PNW, not just Everett, and it’s really fun and wholesome. If you zine, go to a zine event, you will find your people!!

If someone wanted to make their first zine ever, what would be the first step?

Mini zines are often the easiest to start with – they have (6) 2.75×4.24” pages plus and front and back (8 total). The first step is really just to start. Take your idea and get it out on paper. The first draft might be shit, and that’s OK. First make it exist, then make good – whatever ‘good’ means to you!

At EZF we will be selling a set of zine templates at our merch table, so if you want to get started (and want to help us do this again next year) pick one up!

How do you pitch zines to local businesses to sell or showcase?

Honestly, I’m still working on figuring this out and would LOVE advice! Ha!

 Zines are often low dollar value and can take up a little more space than something hung on a wall, there’s a little bit more of a barrier to entry concerning wholesale or consignment. A lot of businesses aren’t familiar with zines and don’t necessarily know – yet! – that the general public are usually really interested in zines once they’re introduced to them! That said, one of things I want to do with EZU and Zine Fest is to find stores willing to stock zines here in Everett. One really important consideration I’ve come across personally is finding the right fit – making sure your work fits the vibe of business.

What role do zines play in building community?

One of the greatest things about the zine community is the tenet of reciprocity. Of helping each other, encouraging people starting out, and also sharing information and knowledge through zines themselves. Zine communities attract and welcome marginalized voices, disabled voices, queer voices, neurodivergent voices and things that you might not find otherwise. It’s a good way to teach and share information that betters the community at large by allowing that information to be disseminated.

One really powerful example of zines being used to build community comes from everyone disseminating anti-ICE whistles. The pieces of paper than come with those whistles is often a zine, that tells you how and when to use it, and offer resources to get more involved in protecting our communities. That for me is peak community building through zines. Zines can be protest material, mutual aid, something to make people smile or find peace -or distraction- through a hard time and all of that is beneficial to the greater community. 

How many different kinds of most common zine formats are there? What’s your favorite? (mini zine, folded, photocopied, illustrated, collage, etc.)

Oh – that’s a loaded question. In the zine community there is sometimes a question of “when is a zine not a zine?” or “are comics zines?” If you make something and it generally fits the guidelines of a zine, it’s a zine. I think the only limit to type is the zinester’s imagination! 

Format-wise, my favorites will always be something that stretches the expected type or has something unexpected about it. I don’t know the creator, but I got a cootie catcher zine at Bremerton Zine Fest that recommends romance novels based on classic tropes (if anyone know who made it – let me know!). Some might say that pushes the boundary of what a zine is, but I still consider it a zine because of the intention behind it. 

Where are some go-to places in the PNW people can find and buy zines?

Fests and markets are going to be the best place to find zines. There’s a lot of creators together and you will have access to a lot of different things! Some folks aren’t sure how to get their work into a brick & mortar – or aren’t inclined to – so fests and markets are #1. However, they are infrequent.

Looking at brick & mortars, the two places I point people to in the PNW would be Push/Pull in Ballard and Fantagraphics in Georgetown, but there’s a number of other shops that carry small selections (Crowns Nest Comics, Phoenix Games, etc.). There is also ZAPP, a SPL. I’m no expert on all this, but those are places I know. I would love to see more shops carry zines and more little zine libraries pop up. There are A LOT of people making zines.

Why are zines important?

I’ve already talked about how zines build community and share marginalized voices, and can be mutual aid and protest, share info and recipes and all that and I think that is foundationally important for our country and communities right now. The low skill/financial barrier to entry makes them really equalizing. 

A zine doesn’t need to be serious or have a “purpose” to have a place in the zine scene! Plus, zine making is fun as hell! It’s a good time. On deeply personal level, zine making can be an artistic outlet and a lifeline. 

Tell us more about the Evergreen Zine Union!

Despite the formality of the name, Evergreen Zine Union doesn’t have member rolls, just drop by. I needed a name to put on a poster that let everyone know what we were up to and I like extra formal titles for no reason. The EZU community is a group of people making zines in the PNW who hang out and talk about paper types and local events; we do some show and tell with one of us finds something cool; and it’s just a welcoming community of fellow weirdos. 

It’s open to anyone who is actively making zines; regardless if it’s your first or your 1000th, and either for yourself or for sale. All skill and experience levels are welcome! 

You can find out more about the Evergreen Zine Union HERE.

And their Instagram HERE.