2012 Chapters (Layout Features)

Self-Publication with Riot Grrrl Ideals: Zines ≠ Vanity Press Publications

Freedman, Jenna

Zines are self-published, but the motivation behind their publication is different than that driving many vanity press and chapbook authors. Punk rock and riot grrrl community ethos are fundamental to zines, not just as the cultures that birthed them in their current incarnation, but also as what separates them from other self-publications. By collecting and preserving zines, the non-music primary source of punk rock, librarians are documenting these movements in the participants’ own voices-the voices of those too young, too politically radical, too crust, and/or too bad mannered to appeal to the corporate media. It is important to notes that zine producers are not only people who have been relegated to the margins but also people who have chosen to claim the margins. In contrast to most writers, many zine producers might choose to reject and offer from a corporate publishing house. Why let someone else control what you can say, when you can do it yourself?
The focus of this essay is on print publications.