Today’s book recommendation is inspired by a local indie bookshop I frequent. They’ve been making some updates and additions to the store and they now carry zines. Some folks may be thinking, “Zines are back?” and to that I say, “They never left!” If you aren’t familiar with zines, they’re physical media that is generally a self-published booklet. They could be small and made from a single sheet of paper folded into a booklet or they could be many pages, usually stapled or even stitched together. Today’s book recommendation is a great resource for folks who are new to zines and established fans of zines who are looking into making their own.

Stolen Sharpie Revolution: a DIY Resource for Zines and Zine Culture by Alex Wrekk First published in 2002 and now in its 6th printing, Stolen Sharpie Revolution has been the quintessential guide for all things zines. It starts with a description of what zines are and readers quickly learn that the “definitions” of a zine can have fuzzy edges because they’re such a creative and unique medium. After a bit about where to find zines, the author gets into the details about how to make zines.

One of the things I love about zines is that they have seemingly endless potential. While the form is flexible within the “booklet” medium, a zine can be on any subject. Just the other day, I picked up a zine on sapphic quotes from Emily Dickinson and another on the history of the original Batmobile. Stolen Sharpie Revolution gives a crash course on zine layout as well as fair use, copyright, and Creative Commons. There is also a ton of practical advice like where to get your zines printed, how to bind them, some layout templates, and a 101 on the US Postal Service. There are tutorials on things like block printing and making your own paper.

One of the things that I really appreciate about this book is the information about the zine community. There are so many opportunities to connect with other folks who make zines, whether it’s in person, virtually, or by mail. No one is going to become a millionaire from making zines and it is truly a thing people create out of passion for zines. I found Stolen Sharpie Revolution to be inspiring and engaging.

That’s it for now, book-lovers!

Patricia

Find me on Book Riot, the All the Books podcast, Bluesky, and Instagram.

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