Hello Amber!

Fight Boredom Distro & Blog Has A New Website!

2011-08-21T05:04:00.002-04:00

The rumours are true! Fight Boredom Distro & Blog has a new home. You can now find me and all of my favourite zines at www.fight-boredom.com. Please update your links.

Dear August, I'm Having a Nice Time

2011-08-10T16:50:00.008-04:00

The above photo was taken in Guelph by Dave Cave and he wrote about our adventures here.

I haven't updated in ages. I want to. But I think I'd rather just cut the legs and sleeves off all my clothes and lie in the grass and read French books and dance at shows and wander the city 'til dawn.

I'm in the midst of creating a website that will be the new home to both Fight Boredom Distro and my blog. Shall unleash it to the world in the next week or so. And I've got stacks of zines to review, and a bunch of new titles to add to the distro catalogue as well. Patience, my friends.

Don't forget to come to the Queer Between The Covers bookfair this Saturday, Montreal. I'll be tabling, along with many other fine people.

It's Burning Up In Here / We Got Something To Tell You

2011-07-23T20:33:00.004-04:00

Get Fit For The Pit #1 getfitforthepitATgmail.com
Such a good comp zine! This one is all about health and fitness, specifically viewed through a punk and activist lens. In the intro, Nicole says that she'd like to counter the romanticization of sleepless nights and drunken adventures. This first issue includes contributions by Maranda Elizabeth (of Telegram Ma'am), who writes about joining their local roller derby league, Ramsey Beyer (of List), who shares a comic about crossfit (noting that her fitness friends are interested in her 'punk life' but her punk friends scoff at her interest in exercise), Ele (of Cats Teeth), who writes about hooping, as well as several pieces on running, rugby, yoga and more. It's a pretty inspiring read and a creative theme, so I'm really looking forward to future issues. Order yours through Click Clack Distro!

Land Of Make Believe And Dress Up rachel_hATriseup.net
I felt that this zine was haphazardly assembled and definitely could have used some editing, but I did really enjoy reading it. Rachel begins by writing about her introduction to sex work via selling used underwear online, and eventually moving on to porn and more. She identifies as a queer anarchist and discusses where her politics and work meet and/or clash, how sex work affects her relationships, whorephobia in society and more. If anyone has any recommendations for more zines on sex work, please leave 'em in the comments 'coz I'd like to read more about it.

Motor City Kitty #17 motorcity_kittyATyahoo.com
This zine is very much a continuation of Motor City Kitty #16 (which was a split with Culture Slut #24) and picks up where the last one left off, writing about the state of feminism in her local music scene and some shitty experiences with dudes, plus some heavy stuff about the death of her father. I love Bri's zines because they feel like a letter to a friend (and well, she is one of my best friends) and I feel like her skillz in writing, illustration and even cut-and-paste just keep getting better and better. Love you, Bri!

What I've Been Up To Lately: Dancing, thrifting, jumping through sprinklers, complaining about the heat, and playing dress-up.

This is my last post 'til August 'coz I'm spending the week in Toronto and Guelph with friends and lovers. Ta!

No Gods, No Masters, No Shoes

2011-07-19T00:24:00.004-04:00

Adventures, adventures. I've found myself staying up 'til dawn more often than usual these days. Exploring the city, going to shows, conversing with strangers, wandering in bare feet and making out in parks. Watching the sun rise from near-deserted downtown streets, or my bedroom window. It's strange because the season had such a horrendous beginning for me, yet it seems to be quickly turning into the Best Summer Ever. I feel like everywhere I go, every corner I turn, this city gives me more and more hints that this is where I'm supposed to be. I'm currently living in an apartment that is both the nicest and the cheapest I have ever had. I'm surrounded by friends who love and support me. My French is getting better all the time. It's amazing to finally be living according to my own rules and my own schedule. To meet people and be able to say, "This is what I want out of life, and if you don't want the same things, then let's not waste each other's time." To sing and dance with little self-consciousness.

It's been quite a few years since I kept up with my horoscope, but I clicked a link on a whim today and found this one pretty meaningful. Then I went back and read my horoscopes from the past two and a half months, and all of them were eerily accurate. So I've been officially converted to Real Detroit Weekly.

LIBRA: September 21 – October 20
It's pretty trippy to be you right now. You're in the middle of a very intense and perhaps difficult experience that will turn out to be totally rewarding if you manage your energy with some degree of intelligence. Don't be naïve about the things that are making everything in your reality so stressful but be careful not to be overly concerned. This is a test; all you have to do is show up, stay centered in the moment and take the good with the bad. If you can handle it, the things that are pushing you around will soon mold all of this pressure into something lasting and real.

For someone who doesn't work (at a 'real' job) or go to school, I sure am busy. I flip through my agenda and I don't have a free day for weeks. I don't have time to work on every project that interests me, or to see all of the people that I wanna see, but I'm doing my best and I'm content.

When I got dressed this morning, I put on my Midwest is Best t-shirt, and I guess it was yet another sign, because I wound up writing letters to three Chicago friends. My new goal in life is to go to a White Sox game and share beer and nachos with my favourite Midwest zinesters. I've got quite the stack of correspondence to catch up on. I think my concentration is slowly coming back to me.

Fight Boredom Distro News: I'm going to be in Ontario during the last week of July, making a trip to visit my sister and friends. If you live in Toronto or Guelph, now would be a really awesome time to place an order through Fight Boredom Distro, because I'll be able to pack up your zines and hand-deliver 'em, saving you the postage costs. Just make sure to send your order before July 24th (and you can pay through Paypal or give me cash in person). Seriously, go for it. The more zines I sell this summer, the more titles I'll be able to add to the catalogue in September. Please share the link and tell your friends!

Anyway, here's a nice song to listen to before you get on with the rest of your day. Comme Sam disait, c'est tellement parfaite pour une romance d'été.

I Can Tell That We Are Gonna Be Friends

2011-07-14T17:00:00.000-04:00

Important Message! Montreal People! Last week, I was at the Riot Grrrl For Rock Camp cover band show at Il Motore and someone came up to me and told me that they like my blog. I thanked them, but I get kinda awkward and flustered when this happens, so I forgot to ask them their name or tell them that their X-Ray Spex cover band totally ruled my night. So, if you're reading - I think you're really great too! You should comment with your contact info or something and we can be friends. Actually, this goes for any Montreal readers. Because one of my favourite things about being involved in zines is all the lovely friends I've made, but if people read my things without interacting with me, then it becomes a very one-sided thing and that makes me nervous. So let's hang out!

What I've Been Up To Lately: Let me tell you about this amazing date that I had last week. We had a picnic at Mont-Royal, which is always a good idea. Things were going along swimmingly, but suddenly turned strange. Two elderly people approached us from behind, one pushing the other in a wheelchair. They stopped right next to us, and the woman who was walking simply put on the brakes and began to walk away without her friend. She said, en français, "I'll come back to get you at dusk." It was three o'clock in the afternoon. She waved goodbye and left us sitting in the grass completely confused. My date and I made faces at each other, looked back and forth between the two women and laughed nervously. Then it hit me: This is the park where they film the Just For Laughs gags. I started to look around for hidden cameras or any hints as to what was going on. I spotted the person who was recording sound about thirty feet behind us, wearing headphones and carrying a large bag that was meant to hide his equipment. I smiled at him, and when he smiled back at me, we knew it was a prank. The woman in the wheelchair began to talk to herself, « Il neige, il neige » and got up and walked away, too. Finally, the crew came out from behind some trees, waving contracts and asking us to sign. We couldn't stop laughing! It was such a weird day, and a totally funny thing to happen on a first date! So we signed their papers. It was actually for a show called Les Détestables (more info here), and it'll be on television in the fall. I don't really watch tv, but maybe it'll wind up on YouTube someday? Would be pretty silly to see myself.

From all the pictures I post, you'd think that I do nothing but hang around Vincent's place singing along with Spice Girls and watching movies and eating ice cream. Well, that's mostly true. But I've also been making different kinds of homemade iced tea, buying fun apartment things at Ikea, making my bed with vintage sheets, getting soaked in the rain, warding off creeps, daydreaming about some creative projects that I'm gonna start soon, making new friends, getting a whole ton of snail mail, and trying to stay excited about life.

Another Dreaded Sunny Day So I Meet You At The Cemetery Gates

2011-07-05T12:55:00.000-04:00

Kim Gee Comics #1 - #3 www.kimgeecomics.com
I had planned on going to see The B-52s downtown last night, but instead I curled up in bed to daydream and read zines and eat this yummy black cherry soy pudding stuff. Kim sent me a collection of her comics in the mail earlier this summer after reading about my forays into the world of online dating. I joked that I wanted to add to the newly burgeoning genre of OkCupid zines (but actually I'm quite serious, and hey, it is International Zine Month after all), and this is exactly one of those. In the first issue, Kim finds herself newly single after a long-term relationship has ended and is convinced by her friends to put an ad on Craigslist. She receives the requisite strange responses, but then a legitimately nice person writes to her. They date for a little while, but the real story begins when they drift apart and she finds herself signing up for OkCupid. We get to watch her travel all over New York (and sometimes New Jersey) to meet up with random internet dudes, all of whom come with their own emotional baggage. It was an engrossing read that had me laughing out loud at times, and also made me really glad that I have no intentions of entering into a monogamous relationship. The drawings are really simple and nice, though I did occasionally lose track of who each person was and had to check back with previous issues. Totally a fun read though.

Sex Work: 14 Answers To Your Questions www.chezstella.org
So this is more of an informational booklet, but it's in zine format and I liked it, so here goes. It's basically an explanation of what sex work is, why it's important to use terms like 'sex work' rather than 'prostitution', and how individuals and organizations can support sex workers. Really simple layout, with thoughtful and understandable explanations, kind of a sex workers rights 101. The only trouble I have with it is that it's written as if all sex workers are cis-women, and well, that's just not true. Still, it was informative. And I imagine it's available en français aussi, being that it was printed by Stella and the Service aux collectivités at UQAM.

Six Letters Addressed To You #1 patrokolosATgmail.com
I'm just going to admit it. I had this zine sitting on my shelf for like eight months before I read it. I probably flipped through and caught Neitzsche's name and the lackluster layout and set it aside. Had I read further, I would've seen that Doris was also quoted. And that the whole zine is actually really good. So, the premise is that this guy is writing six letters to people whose identities we will never know, and while they sometimes get a little personal, he also uses the opportunity to expand upon his own beliefs and ideas. It's a little heavy on the quoting-from-other-authors front, but he's obviously someone who enjoys reading and has an interest in both philosophy and anarchism and is able to articulate it in a really accessible way, so that's cool.

What I've Been Up To Lately: Road-trippin' it out to the Parc Nature du Cap Saint-Jacques for swimming and adventures with some lovely ladies, feeling hella relaxed as a result, planning more swimming and camping trips for the summer, laying in the grass on the mountain (I just wanna lay down and daydream forever), exploring the Cimetière du Mont-Royal, listening to Veruca Salt on cassette, hosting another get-together of the Post A Letter Social Activity Club, going to see Dekoder and The Facials, discovering that Sam Ectoplasm lives within walking distance (finally, friends in the neighbourhood!), collecting a bit of cash from zine sales at the Concordia Co-Op Bookstore, finding copies of On Beauty by Zadie Smith and Sex, Gender & Sexuality: The Basics in a free pile, and considering a trip to Queeriot.

I've been having so many lovely days and when I walk home from the metro at night, I can often be found with a smile on my face, tapping my fingers on my legs to the beat of my favourite songs. The other day I had my music on shuffle and Chairman Of The Bored by Crass was followed by I Have No Fun by Vivian Girls. Amazing set. (But I always have fun).

Canada Post Service Has Resumed

2011-06-29T13:20:00.003-04:00

It's true! Snail mail is back on. I've already received a letter from the lovely Heather, and a care package from my sister containing notebooks, assorted teas and Hello Kitty treats. I may wait 'til the end of the week to mail out my distro orders, because I know the workers have a huge backlog to deal with. You can read updates on the dispute here and here. Thank you for being so patient! Feel free to send me a letter at my new address.

Amber Forrester
1402 Blvd. Pie-IX #4
Montréal, Québec
H1V 2C1 Canada

Planning For The Future Is Escapism

2011-06-28T00:35:00.011-04:00

Razorcake #62 www.razorcake.org
First of all, the cover of this issue features a volcano erupting with slices of pizza, so I'm in. (That pepperoni is vegetarian, right?) I actually got this in the mail for free, since they reviewed the Culture Slut / Motor City Kitty split. The highlight of the issue was Amy Adoyzie's piece Unthinking What We Know on sexism in punk, but especially this irritating phenomenon of shirtless dudes chuggin' back their beers and takin' up space. I've been reading a lot of articles on the I Live Sweat blog these days, and this one is in the same vein. Though oddly enough, the rest of the zine contains interviews with very dude-ly types and photos of many a shirtless body. Oh well, gotta start somewhere, right? I did enjoy Nardwuar's interview with Tommy Chong, if only because I enjoy all of Nardwuar's interviews. True fact: I began writing zine reviews last night, but quickly became lost in a YouTube vortex of Nardwuar interviews. So here he is with Best Coast, The White Stripes (on Going Coastal... remember that show??), Florence Welch, and Nirvana (and Courtney Love). But seriously... more shows that look like this, please:

(Photo by Shira Mario Pilarski; I found it on Facebook.)

Virgin #2 virginzineATgmail.com
The first issue of this zine came out last year and was printed by an anonymous author who wrote about being a virgin. In this issue, six people write about their lives as virgins and their reasons for choosing (or not) to remain so. The views presented come from a range of contributors, including one who writes about being a survivor of abuse, another about how having Spinal Atrophy Muscular Dystrophy type 2 has affected their sex life, a piece on the 'myth' of virginity and how it's marketed, and more. An excellent read.

Doris #25 www.dorisdorisdoris.com
It's no secret that I love this zine. You can buy it through Fight Boredom Distro. And I've got a Doris tattoo for goodness' sake. I've read this issue a couple of times, and I just sat down and re-read it tonight and I think it means even more to me now than it did the last time. The letter Q is the theme (because Cindy was doing an alphabet series), so that means Questions and Quitting. The last seven pages are dedicated to Cindy's tale of how she quit drinking. Let's just say that some of those paragraphs are relateable. I must get my hands on a copy of her comp zine, Filling The Void: Interviews About Quitting Drinking & Using. The bulk of the zine features questions asked by friends and readers, like What do you want to do most? and What are your favourite comfort foods? So she writes about setting up a five-year plan to achieve her goals, filtering out negativity, allowing herself to dream, memories of her mother, and admits to having a thing for Hello Kitty bandages (me, I've got one on my hand right now 'coz I'm no good at climbing fences). This is my favourite part:

"Friendship should not be a way to pass the time, a way to kill time, a distraction. Friendship should be a beginning place for the revolution.

Prioritize friendship. Don't get sucked into the isolation of just being a couple or wanting just trueloveonepersontoreallyunderstandyou. Don't force someone to be monogamous, don't force someone to be non-monogamous. If your loved one is sick or hurting so bad, prioritize them. Know the difference between self-righteous politics and a politic of compassion and love. But prioritize friendships. Talk to your friends about your hopes and dreams and fears and secrets that you usually save for your lover. Let them close to you. Commit yourself to them. Move to maintain friendships, not just to maintain relationships.

Don't let yourself become bored. If you are bored, there are things that need doing."

What I've Been Up To Lately: Waking up at sunrise next to this, picnicking pretty much everyday, thrift-shopping, drinking too much cream soda, dancing in bedrooms, taking pictures, sidewalk-chalking, going on good dates, going to good shows (hello Hedwig & The Angry Inch at the Fringe Festival), planning a fake wedding with Vincent, reading my sister's blog, buying stacks of French language novels for a dollar each, prioritizing the fuck outta friendships, selling all my shit, tumblin', trying to find a good spot to go swimming, signing up for medical studies, making too many phone calls, smiling at the children who point at my hair and exclaim, « Regarde! Elle a des cheveux roses pis mauves! »

(The photo of my feet and a container of what basically looks like vomit, but is actually poutine with guacamole and sour cream and tomatoes, and the one where I'm swingin' from a tree were taken by Vincent Wilde.)

I Love You, Montreal

2011-06-22T21:24:00.001-04:00

The above photo was taken during the summer of 2008, when I was passing through Montreal on tour with The DGB. It was at St-Laurent and St-Viateur. I loved this image. I used the photo in zines and on fliers and thought of it frequently. About six months after I took it, I moved to Montreal (of course I did not know at the time of the tour that this was going to happen). When the weather was nice, I went back up to that intersection to see if it was still there. Alas, it had been painted over in white, like much of the graffiti in any city.

Next month will make three years since I took the photo. I walked back up there on Monday afternoon with some friends. I held the image in my mind, knowing that it was no longer there. But as I turned the corner and approached the building, I saw something new.

It had been repainted in green! Oh, I was so happy to see it again. This tiny message written by a total stranger somehow gives me hope that there are good things in the world, and that I will be okay. And upon further exploration, we found more and more...

What beauty we are sometimes surrounded by.

Gimme Back My Polaroids

2011-06-22T13:42:00.013-04:00

A few years ago, when it was first announced that Polaroid film was being discontinued, I bought a boxful on Ebay. I knew that it wasn't going to be around forever and I wanted to make sure I could document my adventures this way for just a little bit longer. I used to carry my camera with me all summer long, bringing it to parks, to parties and on road trips, mostly taking pictures of my friends, graffiti, and interesting signage.

I made two zines of my photographs - issues #18 and #23 of Culture Slut (the latter can still be purchased through Marching Stars Distro and at Quimby's Bookstore).

Sometimes I see my life inside a Polaroid frame. Everywhere I go, my eyes are peeled for interesting sights, and I can imagine exactly how I'd take the photo if my camera were in my hand. Just the other day, my phone had to suffice when I had one of these moments.

Throughout these years, I'd been keeping my film (both Polaroid, and 120 film for my Holga) in the refrigerator. The temperature keeps the film longer (anyone who's used expired Polaroid film knows what I'm talking about - here's an example of a photo taken with expired film). I had about twenty or thirty Polaroid exposures left in the fridge, and my plan for this summer had been to use them all up and be finished with them forever. Admit that it was a simple and fun phase in my life, and move on to play around with my Holga some more. I know that The Impossible Project sells corresponding film, but it's too expensive and I'm not really interested in it anyway - I've read stories of people's images simply fading away after a few months. Maybe I'd make another zine out of my Polaroids and that would be it.

But now my film is gone. My Polaroid film, and a whole ice cream bucket full of 120 film. It was accidentally left behind when I moved, and now my ex refuses to return it to me. In fact, it's likely that he simply threw it in the garbage along with my other things (please do not let my suspicions be proven true, I will cry and cry). Taking away my film... taking away the things that I use to create. Isn't that equal to me taking his guitar, or the paper on which he writes his songs?

I've never had a breakup like this before. I've always remained friends with my partners; or civil and well-behaved at the very least. And it's actually kind of surreal, because he's changed so much over the past few weeks that I feel as if he is a stranger. A vindictive, vengeful, immature stranger. Like I was in love with a dream or a fictional character or a ghost this entire time. I don't hate him, and in fact feel no ill will toward him, mostly because I feel like I don't know him at all. But I'm annoyed by him in the same way that one would be annoyed by a child throwing a temper tantrum, or mosquitoes who buzz around your head as you try to sleep. I am sitting here, bewildered, wondering How can I end this? Yet there is no end in sight. All I want to do is collect my things and disappear, but he won't allow it. He is drawing out this breakup for some inexplicable reason. Maybe an attempt to cling on to what little power he has left over me. I wish he would just give me my stuff and let me go.

I myself am trying to learn how to let things go. I've gotten better at it lately. I got rid of all my cds, all my records, half my dvds, a whole bunch of unused craft supplies and a garbage bag full of clothes. I've been giving away my books. I listed my guitar and several typewriters for sale on Craigslist. The dumpster divers of my neighbourhood must love me, because I've been throwing away some pretty cool stuff. I put my least favourite typewriter out behind my building and it was gone within an hour. Soon I will rid myself of much of my zine collection, by packaging them up and offering them at the price of postage. I will be fine living in a room with nothing but my bed, my laptop, my cat and some notebooks.

I let friends go, too. I am good at cutting toxic people from my life, most of the time. Maybe one day I'll forget that I was even in love. Or be lucky enough to be in a relationship with someone who loves me, and not just the idea of me.

"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best." -Marilyn Monroe

In other Polaroid news, check out this one of Kurt Cobain with his kitten. Awwwwww.

Quick-And-Dirty Zine Reviews

2011-06-21T19:57:00.003-04:00

Allow me to try something new for a moment. I've got this stack of zines sitting next to my computer just waiting to be reviewed, but I keep putting it off. I've had awful concentration for the last little while. Been spending all of my days outdoors, and when I come home at night, I just don't feel like sitting in front of my computer. I told myself (and you) that I would only review zines as long as it was fun. And right now, I think it would be fun to give quick-and-dirty reviews of all of these zines because they are most certainly worth checking out, but I just can't scrape together too many words right now. Here goes...

Ship Of Fools #4 kafkaesqueATriseup.net
Badass punk rock comics by Emilja Frances - I've reviewed several issues before. The artwork in this one is detailed, with a little more depth than previous issues, as Emilja had recently discovered ink-washing. Mostly about touring with Shallow Breath. When I think of Emilja, I think of Hermann Hesse and stick-and-poke tattoos.

The Next Body lewispantsATgmail.com
This is a brilliant, well-written, crushing and beautiful zine about living in a body that is neither male nor female. Thick and wordy, the kind you'll read again and again. Get it through Stranger Danger.

Rip It Out: Awesomely Bad Fan Art racheldinkATyahoo.com
This was sent to me for distro consideration, and I'm not entirely sure why, as it clearly does not fit in at all with the description of the kinda zines I stock, but at least the envelope was decorated with Hello Kitty stickers. It's a sixteen-page collection of yeah, awesomely bad drawings. Mostly of dudes in 80s hair metal bands. It's probably funny if you're into that kinda thing.

Roots Of Hope #2 and #3 rockstarwithwordsATyahoo.com
I've been procrastinating on reviewing these ones for ages because they are just so good that I'm not sure I can do them justice. Korinna Irwin, who has written a whole bunch of great zines in the past, uses these two issues to write about her travels through Latin America. Rock star with words indeed; you are going to spend days devouring these stories. I think it's cool because Korinna talks not only of her own travels and happenings, but about the people she encountered along the way, and touches on things like racism and cultural appropriation and drug-trafficking. Just really engrossing and good.

All of those zines that you see behind me still need to be organized.

Support Postal Workers / Postbox Artwork In Montreal

2011-06-17T00:13:00.005-04:00

After several days of rotating strikes, Canada Post employees were locked out. I just wanted to make a quick post about what's going on, and also remind those of you who ordered zines from my distro and my Etsy shop recently that I'm not actually able to mail them out at the moment, but I will as soon as Canada Post is up and running again. Please be patient. The following information was taken from Support Postal Workers.

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) and Canada Post Corporation (CPC) have been in bargaining since October of last year but have failed to come to an agreement on several issues.

Canada Post Corporation wants to:

• Pay new employees 30% less and give them reduced benefits; an inferior pension and weaker job security
• Increase the amount of temporary employees and reduce the number of full-time employees
• Dramatically increase the amount that retirees have to pay for their extended health care plan
• Replace the sick leave plan with a complicated and inferior short-term disability plan
• Force letter carriers to adopt a new, unsafe delivery procedure involving longer routes and the carrying of double bundles

Canada Post Corporation is a crown corporation. It has been profitable for the last 16 years. In its last reported year, 2009, CPC declared a net profit of $281 million.

And in the spirit of snail mail love, I'm going to share some interesting postbox artwork that I've spotted recently. Most of these photos were taken near my place in Hochelaga, except for the first one, which was taken at Mont-Royal and St-Laurent. I'm really fascinated by the artwork and graffiti that people choose to put up around the city, especially when images of women are being represented. Were they created by other women? Are they based on real people? What are they there for?

This last sticker was actually affixed to a hydro box, but it was made on a customs label, which I thought was pretty clever.

Zine Reviews & French Films & Cream Soda

2011-06-10T18:54:00.007-04:00

I am finally back with some zine reviews for you! Feels a bit strange to be writing 'em again, after about a month and a half. Going to start slow because I've been finding it difficult to concentrate on anything for very long these days, but here goes. I'm making my way through a stack of zines that I read back in March and April, with the exception of Echo! Echo!, which was the first zine that I received at my new place. Thanks, Keet!

Echo! Echo! #8 nerdturdATgmail.com
This is seriously one of my favourite perzines. Keet writes in an intelligent and introspective manner that can't really be compared to that of anyone else. Short tales that are easy to get lost in. In this issue, she documents happenings of the past year, including designing and making her own deck of tarot cards (I would love to see the results), finishing university, small joys, kissing lessons and more. My favourite piece is The Girl Who Liked Lizards, and her illustrations are pretty fantastic, too. Keet has a real eye for graphic design, and a wonderful way with words. An excerpt: "Once I wanted to write, 'All I want is to be less alone' but my hand slipped and I wrote 'to be left alone.'"

Jen(ny) Ambular #3 jtwiggATgmail.com
So this series is one of my current favourites as well. Jen plays in a pop-punk band called The Ambulars and does a lot of writing about being a lady in 'the scene'. You can get the second issue through Fight Boredom Distro. In this third issue, Jen documents her experience as a volunteer at the Girls Rock Camp in Chicago (it exists in various cities, so look it up!). She begins by writing about a couple of people in her local scene that influenced her when she was younger, then gets into the camp stories. Working with two different bands - one made up of children, the other teenagers, then closing with a piece on the token female bassist stereotype. Rad reading!

Rum Lad: The Stories Issue rumladzineATgmail.com
In this issue, Steve has let his friends do the talking (er, writing). He sent out a request for stories from various friends, then printed them in this zine along with his own illustrations of each contributor (which I believe will soon be on display in a UK gallery, if I'm not mistaken). Hannah writes about roller derby, Talia writes about dumpstering watermelons, Jamie writes about the fallout from a bicycle accident, Giz writes about fighting boredom in the French riviera, and there's a whole lot more. It's really interesting to see the stories each person decided to tell without being given much instruction or a theme. My sister and I appear in this issue as well; she writes about a routine of self-care, whilst I wax nostalgic about small town cab drivers. Have a look at Steve's blog to get a feel for his style.

What I've Been Up To Lately: So a few weeks ago, I watched this French film Jules et Jim with Kit, at their recommendation. The main character, Catherine, reminded me so much of myself that at one point, Kit apologized for choosing the movie, thinking that I ought not to watch it with a broken heart. But perhaps that made it better. Of all the times I'd watched Amélie, I never realized that this was the film that she was watching in the theatre scene. I fell in love. I've had certain scenes that stick in my head like a song and I simply can't get it off my mind. So I decided that I needed to read the book, too. According to the internet, only one copy of this book existed at all the Renaud-Bray locations in the city, so I tracked it down and bought it this afternoon. As soon as I am finished reading Henry David Thoreau's Walden, I'm onto this one.

On my way back to the metro from the bookstore, I may have spotted something of a dream girl. She was standing at the corner of St-Denis and Marie-Anne playing her accordion, with a Hello Kitty water bottle by her side. As usual, I turned shy. Stared at the ground and pretended I never saw her.

Tonight I will write in various notebooks and sip on cream soda.

In Other Zine News: Everything in my Etsy shop is currently on sale for 50% off - just make sure to enter in coupon code SUMMERFUN at the checkout. The Culture Slut / Motor City Kitty split has been reviewed at Hannah Reads Zines and in the latest issue of Razorcake, and my last Polaroid zine was reviewed over at Zines Zio Reads.

Culture Slut at Quimby's Bookstore

2011-06-08T23:18:00.004-04:00

Just a quick reminder that back issues of Culture Slut are still available at Quimby's Bookstore in Chicago. I'm rather fond of the descriptions on their website. I think this is the first time anyone has ever applied the word 'whipsmart' to myself or my zines. How positively encouraging!

Culture Slut #20
Good times in Montreal, packed with vagiphile stories of good self-care, bad health care, boldness and shyness and an ode to the diva menstrual cup. It's almost like Rebel Girl just starts playing everytime you open this zine up.
40pp, b&w with hand colored cover, 7"x4.25"

Culture Slut #22
In addition to running the Fight Boredom zine distro, Amber also puts out the cheeky riot grrl perzine Culture Slut. At this issue's core is a progression of really funny letters, and by that I mean they are serious, but not so that they don't understand that they are funny also. There's a weasely break up letter to an old bicycle and a feminist breakdown of Freak Show addressed to Silverchair's Daniel Johns (followed by a brief history of twins and the sideshow and identity autonomy from a twin's perspective). There's also a three-part riff on Courtney Love and a report on Selfish Summer. Everything weaves itself nicely together, covering a lot of ground through the magic of intuitively connected stories. -EF
52p, b&w, 4.25"x5.5"

Culture Slut #23
Saturated full-color polaroid zine of scraps, gems and travels. Oh yeah - and no matter how much you love Amber's zines, don't mail her any glitter. Seriously, it's bad for cats.-EF
48p, color, 4.25"x5.5"

Culture Slut #24 / Motor City Kitty #16
Hearty, critical, whipsmart feminist split zine - Amber reflects on Kurt Cobain's 44th birthday and feminist men, winter survival (sex, zines and mulled wine sounds pretty accurate), and takes a look at misrepresentations of zines and identities (including her own) in Teal Trigg's beefy coffee table lookbook Fanzines. She talks about recognizing privilege, and announces her hiatus from zine making for a while to make more space for listening. Plenty of zine reviews from the Fight Boredom Distro, too.

Bri breaks down why feminism is still neccessary, how its been culturally manipulated and the importance of being a self-defined feminist. She also talks about starting to sing in a band and overcoming nervousness about her own unconventional voice. Solid. -EF
48p, b&w, 4.25"x5.5"

Snail Mail Woes & Self-Care

2011-06-07T22:46:00.012-04:00

Apologies to anyone who sent mail to my old address on Avenue Hébert recently. Although maybe you should ask my ex for an apology instead, and a reimbursement for the money you spent on postage. Rather than collect my mail as agreed, he sent it all back. (I also lost my entire iTunes library. Everyday, it's something else...)

You know how I feel about my snail mail. To know that it is floating in limbo (Did he really send it back? Or did he throw it in the garbage with the rest of my stuff? Will it ever be returned to me?) is incredibly frustrating. I've lost the gift that a friend sent to cheer me up. I've lost the stack of zines that Broken Pencil sent me to review. I've lost a letter from my grandparents, whom I've yet to tell about the breakup because they worry so easily. I've lost bills and receipts that belong in my files.

Though for the record, I have been writing a lot of letters these days.

"You don't want to start setting up another rule book, like: "This is how you're a feminist. And this is the way you dress. And this is the way you act. And this is the way you protest." It's like, some people protest carrying signs. Some people protest by making activist radical music. Sometimes people try to just make it through a day and not kill themselves, and that's their activism for right then, because that's all they have." -Kathleen Hanna

On Tuesday afternoon, I was drinking root beer on my balcony with a new acquaintance, when she spotted my 'feminist' tattoo and asked, "What exactly does it mean to be a feminist?" I may have groaned aloud. I said, "I know we just met and that you are genuinely curious, but to be honest, I am so exhausted with that conversation that I cannot think of a single word to say." And it was true. I have no interest in talking about feminism at the moment. Just because the tattoo is visible does not mean that it's there as a conversation-starter. This is one of many reasons that I've taken a break from Culture Slut - I feel like I've said all that I want to on the topic. Now, I just want to sit back and listen quietly. Though I've been in a fit of getting-rid-of-everything-I-own, so I made sure that she left with a couple of books.

I feel like everyday is a struggle to convince myself that I deserve to be alive, and deserve to be happy. I'm trying to focus on all of the good things that are going on these days; eating dinner at Aux Vivres, spending plenty of time outdoors, wearing cutoff shorts, volunteering at Ste-Émilie, going on dates with fun people, drinking amazing tea, swinging on swingsets, the night that Vincent and I sang along with Alanis Morissette so loudly and enthusiastically that his neighbours joined us in the singalong - we heard them through the windows - the cashier at Rona who exclaimed, « Tes cheveux sont vraiment hot! » as I approached the counter. These things may seem inconsequential, but they are the things that make me smile, that make me forget about the mess, that keep me alive for another day.

I'm amazed at how my behaviour has changed over the past month or so, in ways that I didn't expect. Like, I've had troubles with falling asleep for years. I could lie in bed for hours and hours before sleep came to me, no matter how tired I felt. But these days, I am falling asleep without too much hassle. Then I've been waking up at sunrise and beginning my day. Perhaps it's because I've been more physically active during the day, and I've cut out my afternoon naps. Perhaps it's because I am no longer conflicted about the person I'm sleeping next to. I don't know.

I've also been speaking French a lot more frequently, considering I no longer live with a Francophone. The other night I went out with a friend and we spoke in French for four hours straight. Surely I made grammatical errors, but we had no problems communicating with each other, and it was a bit of a boost for my self-confidence. A few nights before that, I'd exclaimed « Câlice! » in frustration, and although I called myself on my irrational anger, I was pleased when I realized that it was probably the first time that swearing in French came naturally to me.

I've been spending a lot of time doing what I call dull-grown-up-stuff, too. Trying to take care of myself. My days are full of appointments with lawyers, therapists, social workers, employment agents... My phone is getting a hell of a lot more action than it used to. MENTAL HEALTH URGH. I don't generally write about these things, but I've been struggling with depression and anxiety for years and it has finally come to a point where I can either seek out help, or I can just... die.

Also, resisting the urge to contribute to the catalogue of classic breakup zines, as well as the newly-burgeoning genre of hilarious zines about OkCupid. Some of the shit that the dudes on that site say/do is so ridiculous that it ought to be documented.

I will now leave you with a photo of Sebastian and his new friend. I use the term 'friend' very loosely.

I promise I'll get back into zine reviews soon. Things are hectic.

Sexy, Fière et Solidaire

2011-06-02T16:07:00.006-04:00

Last Sunday, Slutwalk Montreal took place; an event that's been cropping up in cities all over the world ever since a Toronto police officer made the unfortunate comment during a talk on sexual assault that, "Women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized." Oops. I'm not going to get into the criticisms of the walk (though they are very valid), nor am I going to get into my own thoughts on the word 'slut' because I've written about it a million times before. But I will say that I was there to march in solidarity with sex workers, queers, survivors, everyone who has ever been called a slut, everyone who has ever been told they were asking for it, and everyone who has ever been the target of street harassment.

There weren't as many people there as I'd expected, and certainly not many familiar faces, which I attribute both to the very real criticism of Slutwalk being a white, middle-class movement, and well, because it was rainy and windy all morning. Though the weather got nicer right on time. I headed to Parc de la Paix alone and listened to speeches by members of various organizations. Soon after I arrived, I spotted Julia, whom you may know from her fantastic fashion blog, à l'allure garçonnière. We had actually never met in person before, but she was spending the afternoon in Montreal on her way home to Quebec City, and it just worked out perfectly that we got to spend some time together.

After numerous speeches, we began our walk, chanting slogans like, "A dress is not a yes!" and "Sexy, fière et solidaire!" I was most impressed by the person who was marching in front of me, wearing a gorilla costume and carrying a yellow sign that read: RAPISTS MAKE ME GO BANANAS! We must have looked like quite the spectacle; a cluster of people sometimes in costumes, sometimes wearing next to nothing, alongside families pushing their strollers. I wore what I would normally wear in the summertime; cutoff shorts and a pair of torn fishnets with a Joan Jett t-shirt, which some may deem as slutty. The march led us to the afterparty, a burlesque show at Le Drugstore, and Julia and I wound up spending the rest of the day outside, enjoying the nice weather and talking and laughing and of course we made a point to take photobooth pictures.

It hasn't quite been a week since I moved into my new place, but I'm settling in alright. I painted my room a beautiful turquoise colour, filled it up with plants, and am in the midst of building a second closet, since mine is entirely too small. I have shiny hardwood floors and a large French window. When I go to bed at night, Sebastian joins me and often dozes off while laying on my tummy. I begin my day as soon as the sun comes up, partly because I'm trying to get into more of a routine, and partly because I've yet to put up curtains, so I don't have much of a choice anyway. Today I checked my mailbox for the first time and found letters from Maranda and Dave Cave, as well as my Pearl Jam tickets. What a nice welcome.

Speaking of shows, I've also managed to score a free weekend pass to the Hillside Festival, so it looks like I'll be spending some time in both Guelph and Toronto toward the end of July. Let's hang out?

I'm getting used to all this alone time, but am still keeping myself very busy. One night, Kit and I went to see a screening of School's Out!, the Degrassi movie, where the writer of the original series, Yan Moore, was present for a Q & A session. That was pretty exciting. Okay, so I've mostly just been hanging out at Parc Mont-Royal with my friends. The other day, a dude on a certain dating website sent me a message that said, "I just saw you eating pizza on Avenue du Parc." That about sums it up.

Vincent and I are rebels with our ice cream cones.

New Mailing Address

2011-05-27T20:11:00.003-04:00

Amber Forrester | Fight Boredom Distro
1402 Blvd. Pie-IX #4
Montréal, Québec
H1V 2C1 Canada

I'm still alive and tumblin'. Moving to my new place tomorrow.

If You Find Your Heart Has Made A Fool Out Of You

2011-05-24T10:16:00.007-04:00

I said I'd spend the month couch-surfing, but I've stayed firmly planted at Vincent Wilde's place on rue de Castelnau. First he built a little bed for me out of stray cushions on the floor, then he moved to a new place on the Plateau. So I'm sleeping in his old bed until the end of the month, and then it's on to the next place. A beautiful apartment in Hochelaga with hardwood floors and the original claw foot bathtub, in case you were wondering.

I need to thank everyone who offered me a place to stay, or even just kind words. I'd made a quick post on Facebook to say, "Heartbroken and living out of a backpack," and within minutes, my phone was vibrating and it didn't stop for a few days. Zinester friends from all over the world offered their thoughts (and sometimes their couches). Some people sent snail mail, and Erin Fae even phoned me all the way from New Zealand. What a sweetheart! I didn't realize how many friends I had. When thinking of places to stay, not a lot of names came to mind, but so many locals came through with offers. Some were people that I'd considered acquaintances and probably wouldn't have had the guts to ask in the first place, so the fact that they cared enough to reach out means a lot to me and I won't forget it. Thank you for making me feel less alone.

If it's not yet clear, David and I broke up after about two and a half years together. I'm not going to post too many details online; suffice it to say that we want different things out of life. I think I'm a better person for having known him, and now it's time to get to know myself. I haven't been single since I was seventeen. My life seems to have two extremes: amazing and pure hell, without much of an in-between. Either I'm happy and I love everyone, or it's the end of the world. Perhaps that's why he keeps calling me a tragic princess.

I won't lie, some parts of the single life are quite nice. I've been spending a lot more time with friends and exploring the city more, too. Yesterday, Vincent, Kit and I climbed all the way to the top of Mont Royal and it was my first time doing so since I moved here. We found a nice shady spot to sit and we made friends with random passersby. Stayed almost until the sun went down, it was lovely. Vincent and I have become much closer after what was essentially a two-week-long slumber party, where our lives consisted of nothing but free movies (Thanks, Netflix!), cat videos, root beer floats, 2am meals of pizza and poutine, shopping and endless conversations. I've also had the freedom to go on dates with girls, which is partly why the breakup happened anyway. There are some pretty lonely times too, but I feel at my best when I'm drinking tea with friends, so I try to do a lot of that (indeed, I am drinking a cup of peppermint tea with a friend as I type this).

I'd attempted to put Fight Boredom Distro on hiatus for the month, but I wasn't sure if people were actually reading the message on the site (or Facebook, or Etsy...) because the orders just kept on comin' in, so I've continued mailing them out, if a little slower than usual. If you've ordered any zines from me this month, they've been posted and I thank you. My apologies for not including nice notes - I simply don't have access to my supplies at the moment, not even note paper.

To the guy in England who mailed me some Polaroids in exchange for Culture Slut #19 and #23: I don't have copies of those issues anymore, but you can order 'em through these distros.

I've only had sporadic access to the internet, so zine reviews haven't exactly been at the top of my list of priorities, but they'll be back soon. I'm still collecting my mail and can tell you that the latest issues of Cheaptoys and Rum Lad are awesome (full disclosure: I contributed a piece to the latest issue of Rum Lad, and a portrait of me drawn by Steve appears as well).

Anyway, if you're in Montreal and you've had a secret crush on me, now would be the perfect time to ask me out on a date.

BRB, Couchsurfing For A Month

2011-05-05T00:47:00.004-04:00

Life changes so suddenly sometimes. I've got a lot of things to deal with this month and won't likely be spending much time online, and certainly won't make it to the post office. Be patient, and I'll be back to regularly updating as soon as possible. Right now is probably not an awesome time to place orders through my Etsy shop or Fight Boredom Distro.

(Yellow snail mail from my sister, illustration by Clara Lipfert).

Passive-Aggressive Status Updates: A Fine Example Of Girl-Hate

2011-04-27T16:00:00.011-04:00

"I don't understand how someone can 'reclaim' the phrase 'mean girl'. How can being mean to people ever be a good thing?"

I would normally not have posted this online, but as the original poster stated, "I would argue that any topic is fine to discuss if one is pensive of it." So I'll play by her rules. And what a fine declaration, that my body modifications are a welcome topic of discussion or debate. Notably, the girl in question is not on my friends list, and therefore posed this question about my knuckle tattoos in a manner that I couldn't even respond to, and in fact misrepresented me by suggesting that I was claiming it's alright to be mean to people, when in fact I am reclaiming a phrase that's used against me when I do things like resist the attention of catcallers, call someone out for saying something offensive, turn down a date, or share my honest opinions on any given topic. I thought it was clear that I was being cheeky. I specifically wrote in my original blog post about how I hoped it would make strangers think twice about touching me – as someone with visible tattoos, I have unknown men literally walk right up to me and grab my arm, twist it around and sometimes even lift up my t-shirt sleeves to see everything. It’s demeaning, angering and embarrassing. Insert critique about women’s bodies being seen as public property, etc etc, which she is complacent in as someone who feels the need to discuss my body online. I don't even know any of the people who commented on the status, besides K, who suggested, "Why don't you just ask her?" Their comment was quickly removed.

"I am interested in how people process their realities, and how others react."

This would be nice if it were actually true, but if it was, she would have probably just asked me about my tattoo herself.

This has happened to me on three recent occasions. I'm well-aware that it sounds like a total cliché to say, "You're just jealous!" but it only occurs after something good has just happened to me. Like, the time that Broken Pencil emailed me and asked if I'd like to review zines for their magazine. I was on the fence about it, but made an update to tell my friends. Some congratulated me, others shared their own opinions on the magazine and encouraged me in whatever direction I chose. Within an hour, someone that I'd considered a friend updated their own status to say something along the lines of "I hate zine reviewers." It was an obvious attack on me, but presented in a classic passive-aggressive manner. I don't like to encourage this kind of behaviour, so I didn't respond and in fact haven't interacted with them since. I simply don't know how to talk to a person like that. (Though I did write about why I write zine reviews here and here). This is someone that I'd been exchanging snail mail with for years and who had even mailed me their own zine. Turns out I didn't know 'em at all.

This most recent occasion of course, I'd just gotten a beautiful tattoo by a fucking badass lady artist - seriously, she free-handed those letters with a Sharpie before tattooing 'em. She does amazing work. And I was real happy and feeling so good and wanted to share this feeling with friends and readers, so I did. I got nothing but support. Not only because it's good work, but I think also because a lot of others can relate to the motivation behind the tattoo - fighting back against sexism, reclaiming insults, questioning ideas of what girls can and can't do, can and can't be - even if they would never tattoo it on themselves, or personally take pride in a term like mean girl. But this one person apparently took it as some sort of a personal insult (perhaps because she had been recently deleted from my Facebook alongside about twenty others - I know some people like to rack up their friends list to the thousands, but I prefer to keep a neat and tidy collection of people who actually correspond with me through the site), decided to twist my words and take it to her friends list to inform them that THIS GIRL IS A BIG MEANIE AND SHE'S BRAGGING ABOUT IT WHAT A JERK.

Do you know what I think is mean? Girl-hate and body-policing. Do my tattoos affect anyone at all, in the entire world, besides myself? Nope.

I had doubts on whether or not I should post this at all, but jealousy and girl-hate are topics that I discuss frequently, on both my blog and in my zines. I try to write about it without citing specific instances, but I'll have to make an exception today because this passive-aggressive status update is a perfect example of the sort of behaviour that I try to resist. This is what girl-hate looks like. My belief is that feelings like jealousy, envy, and a plain old dislike for someone are perfectly natural, but the trick lies in controlling how one responds to those feelings. I think that before someone does something seemingly innocuous like posting online about another person, it would be absolutely imperative to first examine where those bad feelings are coming from. Because once that action is taken, it cannot be changed and it can be destructive not just for the friendship (or pretendship, a term that I recently learned through the partner of a friend) in question, but for the communities that all involved parties belong to. Besides that, it's a downright embarrassing situation to be in. I'd rather deal with it in a productive manner; by talking things out, and preferably not in a public forum, because that's where the drama begins. In instances like this, where someone has chosen to write about me (semi-)publicly without my consent or my knowledge, I feel so powerless. On the one hand, I would like to defend myself (though I shouldn't have to - my body, my choice, you know the deal); on the other hand, in responding, am I not also perpetuating the very actions that I condemn?

At this point, I'm not entirely sure how to call out specific instances of girl-hate. How do I talk about it without contributing to and encouraging petty gossip? I do try to confront these bad feelings in myself and I'm not going to act as if I've never been a participant in girl-hate, because we all have. Normally what I would do is simply send a message explaining my side of things and attempt to talk it out (which I did), but when that person refuses to respond, refuses to either explain themselves or apologize, well, where do I go from there? I've written about this in zines, most notably in issue #5 of Fight Boredom, and I considered that zine only the beginning of the conversation. It's easy to say, "Stop girl-hate," to chant slogans like, "Jealousy kills girl-love," but it is a lot tricker to tackle it at the root and to call it out. I'm tryin'.

A Weekend Alone, Ça Me Fait Du Bien

2011-04-25T21:03:00.003-04:00

Hooray! Everything is awesome again. Somehow, I slept. Maybe I just needed some alone time. David was away playing shows for the weekend, so I had the apartment to myself. I decided to hole up in here and have a work-on-stuff weekend, so I was writing writing writing, planting seeds, organizing my milk crates full of zines, cleaning, and okay I'll admit it, watching Coronation Street online.

Sometimes I let myself get overwhelmed. It's true that I never feel bored, however, there are times when there is so much to do that I just can't make up my mind, so I wind up doing nothing at all. This weekend, I promised myself to banish my lethargy. So I grabbed my neon notepad and began the way I always do: by writing a to-do list. First on the list is always cleaning, because I cannot concentrate on anything in a messy house. I washed the dishes, swept the floors, vacuumed cat hair off the furniture, did the laundry, tidied my table, and at one point even washed some of the walls - seriously can't wait 'til we can afford a couple of cans of paint to redecorate the place. Went grocery shopping, too. Hello ninety-nine cent licorice.

Sunday was sunny and warm, a rare nice day amidst all of this wind and rain, so I went out to the balcony to transplant my beans into a larger container, and planted tomato seeds as well. Soon I'll plant amaranth, kale, peppers and more. If anyone has any seeds that they'd like to trade for zines or more seeds, please leave a comment and we'll work something out. I'm not very good at gardening, but it's another skill that I'm trying to learn.

Later, I worked on a few designs that I'd like to screenprint onto t-shirts and small posters one of these days. Then, I finally got around to writing. Catching up on my snail mail, responding to emails that had been lingering in my inbox for a week or two, writing zine reviews and working on my own zines. Stayed up 'til four in the morning to get things done.

Today was a nice day, pretty much hung out with David all day, alternating between each of our couches. We're doing the Netflix free trial thing, so we watched Confessions Of A Porn Addict, a mockumentary, which wasn't horrible but wasn't very good either. Then came La Domination Masculine (Male Domination), a Québécois film about just that. It was actually very powerful and I'd recommend it to anyone, especially those who believe that feminism is no longer relevant.

Zines That I Acquired In Chicago, As Well As New Additions To Fight Boredom Distro

2011-04-24T21:07:00.017-04:00

All Things Ordinary #4 derekneulandATgmail.com
I love Derek's idea for this zine. It's made up almost entirely of letters that he wrote to family members as Christmas gifts one year when he was particularly broke. Funny and charming, in one letter he even admits that he might be laughed at: "You'll probably make some smartass comment about this letter at some point but I don't care." He shares memories of his first hockey game, his introduction to video games, and a fall from the top bunk. He's lucky to have a family that seems so warm and amicable; and they in turn are lucky to have someone like Derek who's not afraid to express his love.

Brainscan #26.5: Nine Stories 5307 N. Minnesota Ave. / Portland, OR / 97217 USA
Finished on time for the Chicago Zine Fest last month, this is an excellent little zine on love and loss. Alex writes about a meeting with divorce lawyers, walking out of the office to hear her ex say, "You behaved yourself well in there," and finally understanding his backhanded compliments as the insults they really were. Splitting the record collection. The covers are printed on this cool yellow and red graph paper, with the imagery throughout presented in her signature high-contrast style and typed entirely in cursive. Each issue comes individually packaged in a handmade envelope.

Truckface #14 lbj4prezAThotmail.com
Longtime favourite of mine. Normally I hold onto these long, thick zines to savour for a week or so, reading ten pages here and there. But as it happens, this one was in my backpack when I was trapped on a bus in a traffic jam a few weeks back. It took me two and half hours to get home from downtown, when it normally takes just under one hour, so thank goodness I had Truckface to keep me company. LB continues writing about her experience as a Chicago public school teacher, with unique illustrations throughout. I particularly enjoyed the stories about teaching her students about victim-blaming, her hilariously disgusting roommate, and a special kind of drunken state: teacher-drunk. She writes an issue every summer when school is off, and does an awesome job of cramming a whole year into these zines. It's just such good stuff.

This Diary Belongs To: jtwiggATgmail.com
Oh yes, this zine is great. It's made up of journal entries over the span of several years; Jen writes about body image and disordered eating, so consider this your trigger warning. It's a really powerful and personal read, and it's written very well. There is none of that awkwardness or cringing that can happen when reading pieces culled directly from diaries. Jen is a talented writer and was really brave in sharing her stories.

Tuff Town #3 tufftownATyahoo.com
Woe is me, I missed the second issue of this fantastic zine. Will have to hunt it down sometime. In this third issue, Naomi writes all about growing up: "Still punk, but so tired." It's all about confronting those punks that, pardon me for using a cliché but, talk the talk without walking the walk - like a known assaulter handing out stickers that say Consent Is Sexy. It's about growing out of teenage naiveté. It's about living life with honesty and compassion. Typewritten, cut-and-paste, must-read.

Mix Tapers Do It Better #2 mixtapersdoitbetterATriseup.net
I traded for three issues of this zine, and this is the only one I've read so far (seriously, I have a ridiculous to-read pile on my bookshelf). It's this really awesome zine about the joys of mix-taping, including tracklists, helpful hints, book reviews and the requisite iPod versus mixtape debate. I believe Karen creates most of the content, though there are a few contributions from others; I especially enjoyed the last piece, in which a guy named Joe writes about embarrassing songs that he inadvertently fell in love with after hearing them on mixtapes. Can't wait to see what they come up with in the following issues!

Berlin By Bike, or How I Learned To Harden The Fuck Up, Get Back On The Bike & Keep Riding bastian.fox.phelanATgmail.com
This one has actually been available through Fight Boredom for quite a while now, but I've been a bit behind on zine descriptions. Here goes... Berlin By Bike is exactly that; tales of learning how to ride a bike (first in Paris, then in Berlin), exploring the city, and learning life lessons along the way. It's got a real upbeat and positive feel to it. If you've read Bastian's other zine, Adventure Time, you know what I mean.

List #12 everydaypantsATgmail.com
This issue was created shortly after Ramsey left Baltimore and moved to Chicago. She reminisces over the city that she lived in for five years, writing about things like her memories of punk shows, and maintaining a garden, and includes lists of the things she'll be happy to leave behind. There's a panel comic of an average day in her life, a profile of a cat named Stella, and simple illustrations of every house she's ever lived in. Guest lists and found lists are included. It's a super charming issue and you can get this one, as well as couple of others in the series through Fight Boredom Distro.

Don't Leave Your Friends Behind #4 china410AThotmail.com / vikkimLATyahoo.com
Don't Leave Your Friends Behind is an excellent comp zine on children and parenting in radical communities edited by longtime zinesters China Martens and Vikki Law. This issue is nearly eighty half-size pages and includes articles such as Organizing Within An Anarcha-Feminist Childrearing Collective, Tips On How To Support Your Friend During Pregnancy, and Mothers Among Us: The Prison Birth Project, plus pieces on raising children in a queer polyamorous family, supporting a friend who has lost a newborn, a message from Mamas of Color Rising and so much more. Totally packed with content on a topic not often covered in zines. You can get it through Fight Boredom Distro.

So much outgoing mail, I can't even hold onto it all. Dear friends in Canada, the US, Australia, England and Germany - I'm mailing all of this out on Tuesday.

Where To Find Culture Slut & Fight Boredom

2011-04-23T19:54:00.003-04:00

For the first time in a long time, I no longer possess any back issues of my zines. I get a lot of requests for them, so I thought I'd make a quick post to let people know where they can find them. It'll be easier to link back to this than write it out every single time. I don't plan on doing any reprints for a long time, if at all. Culture Slut #24, which came out about a month ago is available through my Etsy shop and will be for a while. Fight Boredom #5 is listed as well, but there are only three copies left. You can also get it through False Start in the US.

Back issues of Culture Slut are available through Click Clack, Gimme Brains!!!, Sweet Candy, Stranger Danger and Things You Say in the US, Marching Stars and Vampire Sushi in the UK and Take Care in Australia. I highly recommend ordering stacks of zines from fine distros everywhere.

I wrote in my most recent zine about taking a break - not from my blog or Fight Boredom Distro, but from zine-making. Funny thing is, I come up with new ideas all the time, and am constantly dreaming of typing and cutting-and-pasting. I've realized that what I really need is actually more specific - a break from Culture Slut. I'm turning it into a yearly zine, and aiming to have the next issue out in early 2012. I'm working toward saving up for a plane ticket and flying to England then, perhaps debuting the issue at the Brighton Zine Fest, if everything works out as planned. I've visited Brighton twice in the past and it is among my favourite cities in the world. I've got more friends there now than ever before, so it just makes sense. In the meantime, I will likely be creating another zine series under a new title, but keeping the print run a lot smaller than that of Culture Slut, and focusing less on feminism and the like. Just telling some stories that don't really belong in Culture Slut. Gotta say, I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes. Wish me luck!

Action Girl Newsletter #5

2011-04-23T18:52:00.008-04:00

After getting an original copy of the Action Girl Newsletter #5 in the mail as a surprise from a friend, I received a few requests for scans. Thought I would share them here for everyone to enjoy.

I do feel the need to note that I felt okay scanning this since it only contains reviews, and because the scan requests came from people that were involved in the zine community long before I was and therefore have more of a connection to the original riot grrrl scene. It's not likely that I would ever scan the full contents of a zine, and if someone was scanning my old zines and posting them online, I'd be pissed. If the original creator wants me to take it down, I will do so.

There are some reviews of note here, like one for the very first issue of Bust, when it was still a full-size photocopied zine. There's no date on the Action Girl Newsletter, but being that US stamps were .29 cents at the time, it would've been between February 3, 1991 and January 1, 1995. A zine that I received at the same time was postmarked September 20th, 1993, so I imagine this one is pretty close. Click for larger images.

Knuckle Tattoos, Insomnia & The Smashing Pumpkins

2011-04-20T18:11:00.012-04:00

There are always strangers who want to touch my tattoos. They approach me in hallways, they sneak up on me at the metro, they shout at me on the street. They grab my arm and pet me like I'm someone's puppy. Sometimes they tell me I'm hot, other times they tell me I'll live to regret it. "What are you going to look like when you're an old lady?" I'm going to be the most badass old lady you've ever met. (I'm just waiting for a time when my hair is naturally grey and I will no longer have to bleach it in order to achieve the perfect shade of pink). I have this little hope inside of me that rather than seeing the scissors on my arm, the little girl playing dress-up near my shoulder, the typewriter on my wrist or anything else, they will first see MEAN GIRL and they will think, "Oh, I better not touch her, I better not fuck with her."

When I call someone out, they call me a mean girl. When I'm not in the mood to party, they call me a mean girl. When I write bad zine reviews, they call me a mean girl. When I share my righteous indignation, they call me a mean girl.

Okay, I'm actually a very nice girl. I'm shy, but friendly. Kind, but brutally honest. When I tell the truth, they call me a mean girl. So, just like I reclaimed cunt so I can say things like, "My cunt is bleeding," or "Put your fingers in my cunt," and just like I reclaimed slut and whore and bitch, well, now I am taking back my mean girl, too. You can't use it against me anymore.

P.S. I got 'em done by Alana Robbie during the Chicago Zine Fest. Amusingly, when she told others about my tattoo, they said, "But she's so nice!" So I'm glad there are people who think of me that way.

What I've Been Up To Lately: I wrote last week about something of a case of insomnia. Well, it's not backing down and I feel just awful about it. Every night, I try to go to bed at a decent time, but I just toss and turn for hours and hours. Eventually, I give up and decide that I may as well get up and do something to pass the time. But I'm just so tired, you see, that nothing really gets done. I don't have the energy to write, to do much at all. I'm so full of thoughts and ideas, my mind is absolutely racing, but at the same time, my eyes are heavy and I can't concentrate on anything at all. I feel stuck. I know that it's just a phase, I only wish I knew when it was going to end.

In the meantime, I'm trying to focus on the good. Today, I wrote letters and drank lotsa chocolate soy milk. I washed the dishes and I sang along with the Smashing Pumpkins all day long; a band that I've loved since childhood, but hadn't really listened to in the past two years. I played their videos on YouTube, I downloaded their albums and I sang real loud because I was home alone. I've been blessed this week with good snail mail and incredible thrift store / clothing swap finds, as well as an afternoon where I got to practice screenprinting t-shirts and became much more comfortable with my skills. Will soon be designing and printing my own. For now, I will leave you with one of the most perfect songs to listen to on a dreary day like this.

Thrifting With Friends in Montreal!

2011-04-17T14:51:00.012-04:00

I'd meant to write about thrifting with my friend Lindsay back in March, but being that she visited me only a week before the Chicago Zine Fest, my plan sort of got lost in the shuffle. But now it's a Sunday afternoon, kinda windy and chilly and I'm just not in the mood to go out, so I will bring you a post about thrift store finds.

Fripe-Prix Renaissance is a small Montreal-based chain of thrift stores, one of my favourites. Everything is well-organized and the prices are pretty decent (especially when you compare them to Value Village and the Salvation Army, whose prices seem to be steadily rising). It's usually my first stop when I've got a bit of cash and wanna go exploring for new (to me) clothes. We stopped by and picked up a few things. I was lucky enough to find two high-waisted houndstooth skirts, a leopard print blazer, the perfect green cardigan and a fully-stocked picnic basket, all for twenty dollars.

Later during her visit, Vincent met up with us and we did a bit of wandering through Old Montreal and the surrounding area, before retiring to his place for beer and... more beer.

Okay, I was going somewhere else when I began writing this post, but perhaps it's best to save it for another day. I've felt a spontaneous burst of inspiration and I'd best not waste this feeling on the internet, at least not for now. I hope that you fine readers are having as lovely a weekend as I am.

Springtime & The Post A Letter Social Activity Club

2011-04-12T18:05:00.008-04:00

What I've Been Up To Lately: Sunday was beautiful. I didn't get out of bed until a little past ten o'clock in the morning. The sun was shining, so the first thing I did was walk over to the sliding doors in the living room to check out the weather. I probably almost squealed. It was so warm out, probably the first day this year that didn't even require a cardigan. I went to the kitchen and made banana-blackberry smoothies for David and I, poured mine into a glass, grabbed my book and went outside to enjoy the spring weather. I love sitting out on the balcony. I don't care about the view, which mainly features garages and factories. There's a church in one of those ugly buildings, and people really wear their Sunday best and sing all afternoon. Trains pass by at the end of the block. Sebastian meows at the bugs and birds. I think that perhaps my winter blues are entirely worth it for the feeling that I get on days like this.

I've been reading Intercourse by Andrea Dworkin, a book that has been with me for nearly six years, yet sat unread the entire time. It's a bit complicated, but I'm glad I waited so long to pick it up. Some of the vocabulary and ideas may have gone right over my head as a teenager. I made an agreement with myself recently to read more challenging books, rather than the ones that spit my own beliefs back at me and make me feel good. Besides that, I wrote some letters and read a few zines. Slipped on a pair of ballet flats to walk to the post office and the grocery store, then spent the evening relaxing indoors and listening to the rain that came later on. I think I had a smile on my face the whole day.

The following days were not quite the same. I'm not sure what happened. I couldn't fall asleep one night, so I felt tired and lethargic the next day. Then I couldn't fall asleep again. It's been continuing all week and I've not managed to find the cure, so I stay up all night drinking tea and reading blogs, too tired to do anything productive, but too jumbled to sleep. Advice?

What I Got In The Mail This Week: Still, the days are nice. I've gotten so much good mail this week. Stacks of zines from Ramsey and Clara to add to the distro catalogue, letters from friends, a bunch of Polaroids from a stranger, and some old riot grrrl catalogues that Derek sent my way after cleaning out his zine collection before moving to a new city. Such a nice surprise, and they're originals, not copies. Riot Grrrl Press (Arlington, VA) is postmarked September 20th, 1993 and the US stamp only cost .29 cents. I wish postage was still that low! I enjoyed reading the reviews in Action Girl Newsletter, and was impressed when I saw a review for the first issue of Bust, when it was still a photocopied full-size zine. Most of the featured zines were American, but there were a few from the UK, two from Toronto and one from Montreal.

Post A Letter Social Activity Club: We've now begun meeting monthly instead of bi-weekly; it just works better with our schedules and is probably easier for others to remember. So please join us on the first Monday of every month at the 2110 Centre for Gender Advocacy. We will have stationery available at cost (just recently had a bunch of new stationery sent from Taiwan and Japan, plus original stationery sets from Etsy), postage stamps available at cost, and all the free tea you can drink. Let's spend an afternoon writing letters together.

New Titles Added To The Fight Boredom Distro Catalogue

2011-04-09T22:54:00.003-04:00

International Girl Gang Underground girlgangundergroundATgmail.com
This is one mighty zine, clocking in at over eighty half-size pages. The idea came about last year when the internet was all abuzz over this supposed riot grrrl revival and it showcases not only people's histories with and love letters to riot grrrl, but also critiques and warnings about repeated history. It's divided into three sections: Beginnings, wherein fans and self-proclaimed riot grrrls write about their discovery of the genre and how it affected their lives; this includes zinesters Hadass of Fallopian Falafel, Osa of Shotgun Seamstress, blogger Jamie of Rock & The Single Girl and more. Part two, titled Histories & Critiques begins with Mimi Thi Nguyen's essay Aesthetics, Access, Intimacy or Race, Riot Grrrl, Bad Feelings originally printed a decade ago in Punk Planet, which leads not only into more analyses of the classism and racism that permeated the original riot grrrl movement, but also a critique of M.I.A.'s Born Free. The largest section is Generations & Reverberations, where contributors write about what they're doing to RESIST PSYCHIC DEATH NOW, whether or not it has a riot grrrl label on it. Included are essays, stories, comics, reviews and an interview with artist Maren, whose work I've admired for quite a while now. I can't say that I agree with every word in this zine, and that's the beauty of it: so many different views are highlighted that it absolutely serves as food for thought... as well as a call for revolution.

Dykes & Their Hair poopytoothpasteATgmail.com
The bulk of this zine features simple illustrations of popular dyke haircuts, meant to make us "...laugh or smirk. Or get angry." Teresa writes about these haircuts that often become signifiers for a person's sexuality. Trouble being that most of these haircuts only work with straight hair, effectively invisible-ising people of colour within the queer community - something that is definitely worthy of examination.

Feeling Words: A Pocket Zine Of Emotions poopytoothpasteATgmail.com
This is a beautiful little 1/8th size full-colour zine about identifying emotions. Teresa (of Dykes & Their Hair) created this during a zine residency at the Roberts Street Social Centre and writes about beginning to see a counselor and realizing that she had no idea what her needs were, primarily because she had trouble naming and understanding her emotions. So we read a bit about these conversations, and then the bulk of the zine is made up of an alphabetical list of nearly one hundred emotions (bitter, carefree, envious, optimistic, territorial...), all typewritten and laid out against interesting colours and patterns of various paper ephemera, and perhaps some vintage fabrics.

Scrappy #2: Radical Crafting ephemeralmailboxATgmail.com
Okay, so this one isn't in stock quite yet, but will be in the next few weeks. This is the latest effort from craft-and-collage-artist-extraordinaire Niku Arbabi. In the first half of the zine, Niku explains "craftivism" and writes briefly about various craftivist groups, from yarn bombers to The Craftivist Collective and Radical Cross Stitch, then goes on to share some crafty tutorials, like bicycle streamers, a pillowcase grocery tote and more. Plus every copy comes with a free iron-on patch!

Your Pretty Face Is Going Straight To Hell #12 tukrulovesyouATgmail.com
Last year, Tukru fell and broke her right arm at roller derby, and this is a zine all about it. Most of it is typed, though there are a few adorable bits written with her still-functioning left hand. She describes the endless phone calls and waiting rooms and x-rays whilst reflecting on her job (and searching for a new one in a beautiful seaside town). Since she's not able to do much physical activity, boredom gets the best of her, which was obviously frustrating and irritating for her to deal with. So she writes about watching Buffy The Vampire Slayer everyday and feeling guilty for not being able to do things like wash the dishes, or even her own hair. Lotsa Buffy screencaps and fun cut-and-paste stuff. I hope it doesn't scare anyone away from derby!

Your Pretty Face Is Going Straight To Hell #14 / Here. In My Head. #7 tukrulovesyouATgmail.com / contactATcatherineelms.co.uk
A split zine! Must be the season for it. I love the way, intentionally or not, split zines often work around a specific theme. In this case, it's about getting bigger and better. Tukru says that 2010 was an absolutely awful year, and has resolved to make 2011 count. She writes about never feeling completely at home in Medway and what she's doing to remedy that - starting a queer-and-girl-friendly club night called Typical Grrls, for one, and returning to roller derby after an injury (written about in a previous issue). Illustrations and cut-and-paste wonder abound. In the seventh issue of Catherine Elms' Here. In My Head., subtitled Change & Improvement, we learn about her current attempts to call herself out on snap judgments and low self-esteem in a realistic manner. She writes about the dueling matters of beauty and feminism, and includes a goodbye letter to her shyness and more. Worth a read for you perzine fans.

All of the zines reviewed above have recently been added to the Fight Boredom Distro catalogue. I'm still working on writing descriptions, but other new additions include three issues of Don't Leave Your Friends Behind, an excellent comp zine on children and parenting in radical communities edited by longtime zinesters China Martens and Vikki Law, as well as back issues of Alex Wrekk's Brainscan. Have a look! The next ten distro orders will receive a free copy of Gendercide #6 by QZAP's Milo Miller. Enjoy!

Dear Imaginary Best Friend

2011-04-09T19:51:00.002-04:00

Originally appeared in Culture Slut #22, August 2010. (Of which one copy remains on Etsy.)

Dear Imaginary Best Friend,

I think about you a whole lot; I am always wondering where you are. I know that I hold my friends to pretty high standards, but I like to think that I give just as much as I take. I'm picky, but maybe you're picky too, and somehow we'll just make sense together.

When I first moved here, I was excited about the seemingly endless possibilities for fun and adventure. This city has countless bars and cafés, it has art galleries and vintage clothing stores. I can go to zine readings, queer dance parties and free outdoor concerts. I was looking forward to making new friends, and maybe even meeting you, my imaginary best friend. You were going to save my life. We haven't run into each other yet, but I haven't lost hope.

Is it strange that I write about you in my journal? Because I do that sometimes. I write down little details about your personality, and all of the fun stuff that we could get up to together.

I already know so much about you. You love dressing up. Not just for dance parties or special events, but even in the middle of the week for no good reason. We'll put on costumes together, then go out for peppermint tea, or a walk in the park, or we'll go window-shopping along St-Laurent - I always love doing that. We'll do ridiculous things to our hair and take a lot of silly pictures. Somehow, you always encourage me to do things that I am often nervous of, like ordering drinks in French, or asking someone to dance, or riding my rickety bicycle through heavy traffic.

We'll go on picnics on nice days, and take turns making food and choosing a nice spot. We're both pretty good about doing little favours for each other.

You'll come to my place all the way in Montréal-Nord without complaining about the distance. I know that I live in an ugly industrial area, but I try to keep it posi - the extra time spent on the bus means that I read a lot more books than I used to. You'll probably do the same. In fact, you love traveling. We'll be able to plan trips together and be Greyhound buddies. Perhaps we'll even make zines about it. And if you're good at drawing, maybe you could teach me? I could teach you how to bake or sew in return.

Someone mentioned to me recently that they once had a partner with whom they would write an adventure to-do list at the beginning of the summer and see what they could accomplish during those months. I thought it was adorable. Of course, I do that too, but always alone. So let's do it together!

I have strong opinions and beliefs, and sometimes struggle to articulate them. But I'm glad to know that you're a feminist too, and that you come from a similar class background as I do. I'm sure we'll disagree from time to time, but I hope that we'll be able to talk it out and have interesting discussions, rather than grow to resent each other. And I know that you'll never complain to me that you're "poor" when really you're just broke, because that bothers me to no end. We'll talk about oppressive language together because it's interesting and important. And if you speak French, we'll practice that together, too. I love that we never get bored.

Do you like cats? I'm sure Sebastian will like you. He gets nervous when there are a lot of people around, but he's generally pretty friendly.

Will you hold my hand? I crave a good hand-holding from time to time; it just feels nice and comforting when you're walking down the street. Maybe we'll make out sometimes, too. Why not?

Seriously, you can come and find me any time now. It's gonna be great.

-Amber

Fight Boredom at the Chicago Zine Fest 2011! Part Three: Some Of The Zines That I Acquired

2011-04-05T19:54:00.011-04:00

(Pictured above: Maranda, myself and Bri enjoying the zine reading at 826CHI. Photo by Emilja Frances, whom I wish would always be around with their camera).

Doris #28 Cindy Crabb / P.O. Box 29 / Athens, OH / 45701 USA
Cindy Crabb did a reading from this zine in Chicago last week and I'm pretty sure half the room was on the verge of tears by the end of it. She read about the suicide of a friend of hers; a trans person and survivor of abuse, someone with whom she'd discussed the pros and cons of killing ones abusers (wouldn't mind being a fly on the wall for that conversation). But that's not all. She writes a lot about living on a farm with her dogs, sheep and miniature horses and the way that living off the land is a lifestyle that you have to slowly work toward. Some people make the mistake of getting chickens right away, she says, and then they can never spend a night in town because someone's got to feed them. So she writes about sharing resources with the neighbours and her dreams for the future. The last half of the zine is about discovering anarchism as a teenager, confronting racism and quitting drinking. It's a really good read, heavy on the text, with her signature drawings throughout. Readers will be pleased to know that a second anthology is set for release in late July. You can write to Cindy at the address above for a copy of the latest zine, or order it through Fight Boredom Distro.

Archiving The Underground #1 sassyfrasscircusATgmail.com / yoursecretaryzineATgmail.com
J Bee and Jami had a really awesome idea when they came up with this one. This half-size zine contains interviews with several people on the ethics of archiving zines and using them as teaching tools and resources in academia. Those featured include Milo Miller of QZAP, Alison Piepmeier, who wrote the excellent book Girl Zines: Making Media, Doing Feminism last year, Jenna Freedman of the Barnard Zine Library and more. I was particularly interested in reading the interview with Fanzines author Teal Triggs, as she refused to respond to any of my messages in the recent past. As expected, she sort of skirted around the issue when questioned about the sneaky way in which she compiled her book (failing to ask permission of many of those whose work she included in the book, plus miscredits, factual errors and misrepresentations), instead referencing other people's essays rather than stating her own opinions, questioning the existence of an "underground", and stating that "the zine's co-option into the mainstream is certainly nothing new," effectively letting herself off the hook for doing something really shitty by asserting that she wasn't the first person to do something really shitty. I find it very interesting that Teal Triggs is willing to grant interviews to other academics, and to "professional" magazines (like the most recent issue of Broken Pencil), whilst refusing to respond to emails from the very zinesters whose work she included in her book. Yet again, it is very telling of what she really thinks of us. Kudos to this zine's editors for asking tough questions, and presumably not punching their computer screens in frustration, as I surely would have.

Lake Effect #2 heysideponytailATgmail.com
A fashion zine! K introduces us to this quarter-size perzine by telling us about her mother's love of fashion; how she once chalked this up to vanity, but later came to see that for many people, clothing is a way of narrating their identities. So many fashions are wrapped up in personal histories and K illustrates this with tales of her own most-worn clothes and accompanying paperdoll-style drawings. There is the Black Flag t-shirt that she's had since the eighth grade. There is the Bright Eyes shirt that she literally sold the (other) shirt off of her back to afford. There is the floral dress that was her first piece of overtly feminine clothing. These stories are told not just with a touch of nostalgia, but with a sense of awareness of the self, as well as to issues like classism. (And it's got me thinking about that Nirvana t-shirt that I bought twelve years ago, which still hangs in my closet in spite of being completely unwearable).

Glossolalia #13 sarahmcontraryATgmail.com
Something of a love and hate letter to New York City; an assertion of the boldness that it takes to live in such a tough city; a testament to patience; a zine that was meant to be written for Sarah's thirtieth birthday but took until her thirty-first. It made me love life and maybe slightly fear New York. You can get it through Stranger Danger Distro, as I did while I was in Chicago.

Dig Deep #2 Heather / P.O. Box 08168 / Chicago, IL / 60608 USA
Okay, so I've only mentioned Heather forty times in my last few blog posts and it might be bordering weird, but check out her zine! The first issue of Dig Deep was one of the most sweet and thoughtful and interesting zines I read all of last year and this second issue does not disappoint. It's slightly smaller than quarter-size (my math skills, or lack thereof, get the best of me in these kindsa descriptions) and she writes about things like an impromptu trip with a friend to England and France (making me relive my own wonderful memories of those countries), and like the zine reviewed above, includes a piece on her oldest t-shirt. Perhaps the most moving and thought-provoking is a piece on street harassment, documenting not only the ways that men have catcalled and even followed her home, but also the way this made her feel and how she changed her habits because of it (which, obviously, we shouldn't have to do). This is countered with an empowering piece on a monthly women-only dance night that happens in Chicago and her experience with attending for the first time. "No boys, no booze, no judgement." This is an all-around excellent perzine and I'm sure many people can get something out of it, be that a lesson, a book recommendation or a reminder of memories past.

Adorn #21 breechumleyATyahoo.com
This zine nearly knocked the wind outta me on my bus ride home from Toronto last week. It's a perzine of the extremely per(sonal) variety, wherein Bree writes about things like drug addiction, rape and suicide attempts. Her ability to be so unabashedly honest is commendable, especially considering that these things took place in the not-so-distant past. One really cool feature of this zine is the lists that are included throughout - Bree balances the rough times and heartache with tales of summertime adventures, the quirky habits of her partner, and her favourite parts of Pittsburgh. Definitely read this one in a safe space.

My Little Friend #5 eryca.senderATgmail.com
I will always remember Eryca as the smiley girl on rollerskates at last year's Chicago Zine Fest. We met up again this year and traded for copies of our latest zines. This issue is about moving back in with her parents for financial reasons and all of the doubts and frustrations that can come along with that, but some of the best pieces are the ones on awkward dudes she's met through OkCupid, and discovering her old high school crush in ads for American Apparel. It's put together cut-and-paste style and she has a cute sense of humour.

Bananarchy Now! miloATqzap.org
This is a half-legal zine with yellow covers that contains nearly thirty vegetarian and vegan recipes, everything from sauces and snacks and breads to entrées and desserts. Not only do all of the recipes sound absolutely mouth-watering, but they're accompanied by all sorts of silly images - like Andy Warhol's banana (from The Velvet Underground & Nico) with the banana soup, or the speech bubble reading, "It's never too early to get sconed!" But it's not just a cookzine, it contains all sorts of stories about food and community and picnics and love. A must-have in every kitchen.

And I came home to all sorts of great snail mail. (There are more Chicago-related zine reviews to come; I've got a ridiculous stack of 'em).

Fight Boredom at the Chicago Zine Fest 2011! Part Two

2011-04-05T13:35:00.014-04:00

In this entry, I will share some more of my experiences in Chicago over the weekend, as well as write about all of the different places we visited.

Lenny & Me Vintage
The link to the official website for this place isn't working, so I've linked to an online article with all the info you need instead. We arrived in Chicago earlier than expected, so after dropping off our stuff and cleaning ourselves up at Heather's place, we decided to check out a few thrift stores in the area of the reading. Lenny & Me Vintage was the first place we visited, after being pulled in by their cute and colourful window display. This place is packed with beautiful vintage clothing, and the dresses are organized by decade. I did find that some of the items were overpiced - for example, the half-slips that I normally buy at the Salvation Army for three dollars were priced at twenty-eight dollars each, and typewriters that didn't even appear to be in working condition were over a hundred dollars. However, a good portion of the dresses were under forty dollars, so on a second visit, I bought two that fit me very nicely, and my sister bought one as well. In the back of the store, they have a small section dedicated to local independent designers, where Heather and I bought matching screenprinted Midwest Is Best t-shirts by Megan Lee Designs. The staff is super-friendly and helpful, and I'm told that they have a second location down the street that focuses on housewares and more contemporary clothing. Will have to check it out during next year's fest!

The Ark Thrift Store
The Ark is also located on Milwaukee Avenue, and is more along the lines of a Salvation Army. Definitely the sort of place where one has to do a bit of digging in order to find anything decent, but I did manage to grab a pink wool skirt from H&M and a neon pink leopard print tank top for two dollars each. Also, while browsing the racks, a girl who was probably under ten years old looked up at me and said, "I really like your outfit." She was adorable. Again, the staff was super-friendly, and I even got a nod from another pink-haired shopper. (In fact, I later spotted her from a distance at the zinefest, but didn't get a chance to go over and say hello. MISSED CONNECTIONS MATERIAL).

826CHI
826CHI is a non-profit writing and tutoring center that, as well as educating students from six to eighteen years old, also hosts a variety events and was one of this year's sponsors of the Chicago Zine Fest. After strolling in and out of a few shops, it was time for the zine reading. A youth zine reading came first, where teens showcased their zinester talents. Maranda and I snuck in quietly as we'd arrived a little late, but luckily managed to find some free seats in the back. The exhibitor reading began at 6:30 and I'm glad to have been there to cheer my sister on, as well as hear readings from Cindy Crabb (who surprised us with a new issue of Doris), and Lara of Checkered Past. This was also a time of running into people that I hadn't seen since last year's fest, so there were lots of hellos and waves and hugs throughout the evening.

Earwax Café
Last year, I had a vegan mint chip milkshake at the Earwax Café and I'd been dreaming about it ever since. Actually, the place had shut down only a few weeks before the fest, but it seems to have been some sort of a bizarre publicity stunt, as it re-opened about a week later, advertising a new menu. I knew that we'd make a stop at some point over the weekend, and we did so in between the zine reading and zinester karaoke. A group of us went in and discovered that the place was packed, so after a bit of debate, we finally decided to just wait the twenty minutes. We were eventually shown to a booth and handed menus. Well, the "new menu" that was advertised only featured a fraction of the meals that were previously available, and was in fact just a photocopied sheet of paper. There were no mint chip milkshakes (it was a St. Patrick's Day treat last year), so we went with vegan espresso milkshakes instead. Yum yum. I ordered a black bean burger, and while it wasn't bad, it wasn't any more special than something I could have made at home anyway. My friends and I all had a good time together, but the restaurant wasn't quite as awesome as I'd remembered. Seems I'm not the only one - click the link above, they've been getting awful reviews left, right and centre.

Quimby's Bookstore
Oh, Quimby's! What other bookstore would stay open 'til two in the morning and allow a bunch of zinesters to drink and sing karaoke on their small stage? We headed to Quimby's after our meal at the Earwax Café and were greeted by so many friendly faces. I was absolutely overwhelmed and tried to say hello to nearly everyone in the room, but of course it was tricky to get into real conversations, what with the loud music and general merriment. Mostly I stood to one side of the room and watched everyone's performances, sometimes sipping on a can of cheap beer (thanks, Heather!) and singing along. As usual, it took me a LONG time to get up the nerve to sign up for a song, but after seeing my sister get up and lead the whole room in a singalong of Alanis Morissette's You Oughta Know, I knew that I had the guts to get up there and do it, too. It wasn't 'til nearly the end of the night that I had my chance, but I did eventually sing the Violent Femmes' Add It Up, and was pleased when the audience joined me. The song selection wasn't quite as comprehensive as I'd hoped for, but it was really cool to see people singing fun hits like Wannabe and No Scrubs. Jen Twigg of tour-zine Jen(ny) Ambular sang Sum41 and all I could think was, "I hope this isn't the song that people think of when I tell them I'm Canadian." (No but seriously, you did an awesome job!)

We made it back to Quimby's a few days later to consign our own zines and pick up some new ones. I grabbed several issues of Brilliant Mistake and Milk Milk Lemonaid, though I've never read either; their looks simply appealed to me, and a zine by Robin Hustle, whose table I'm sad to have missed at the zinefest. That's the way it goes in such a crowded space, it's impossible to see everything. Though I'm sorta kicking myself now for not having paid closer attention to the zinefest map that the organizers painstakingly assembled.

Chicago Zine Fest
Like last year, the zinefest was held at Columbia College's Conaway Student Center, but this time around they had both the first and eighth floors. I wasn't totally into this idea, as this is how Canzine in Toronto operates and, year after year, visitors stick to the main floor, not realizing there is anything else. It seems to have been successful though, from what I heard from friends, and what I saw when I wandered on up there for a bit. I was tabling downstairs, and heard many announcements encouraging visitors to take the elevators upstairs, so hopefully that worked out for them.

I had an all-around good experience at the fest, met lots of wonderful people, sold a lot of zines, and participated in a few trades as well. I thought I'd take the opportunity in this second part of my Chicago roundup to share a few more stories of my day...

Experience #1: I was tabling with Fight Boredom Distro and had something like thirty different zines displayed on my table. One girl picked up a copy of Facts About Menstruation That Everyone Woman Should Know (made by a friend in Halifax, Nova Scotia) and asked if I would trade. I said that, unfortunately, I could not trade another person's zine and tried to explain how a distro works. She flipped through the zine, came across a page about menstrual cups and snapped, OH SO YOU'RE TRYING TO MAKE US FEEL GUILTY ABOUT USING TAMPONS. Then she set it back down and walked away before I could reply. I was shocked, partly because she seemed so hostile, and also because... what other information would one expect to find in a DIY zine about menstruation? Of course, no one is trying to make anyone feel guilty and I would have loved to have a conversation about alternative menstrual products, but she was gone so fast. It was kinda weird and I had to laugh it off, but... really? (Had she been friendly, I may have simply given her the zine, as I did with another girl who was interested in Fight Boredom with Girl Love but could only afford two of the three zines she wanted. These particular zines are about spreading important info, you know?)

Experience #2: So many people had cameras! I think this is really awesome, and it's definitely exciting to go online later and look at the same event as seen through another person's eyes. But sometimes I wouldn't mind if people asked me for permission before taking my picture. Now, I'm not talking about general pictures of the fest, because I'm in some of them and I don't mind. And I'm not talking about my friends, either. I'm talking about strangers who come right up to me and start taking pictures of me and my table without saying a word. I find this really bizarre and rude. I mean, maybe I'm supposed to be flattered that they think I'm "cool enough" for whatever they're doing, and maybe they're going after candid shots and they don't want me posing with that same smile that I use in every picture, so they sneak up when I'm immersed in conversation with a friend (Hi, Miss Nico!), but it makes me really uncomfortable. It happens to me a lot, but I think that this year's fest was the first time that I spoke up about it. I'm not into confrontation, but when I noticed some random middle-aged man was taking numerous pictures of me, I had to stop and ask him who he was and what he was doing. He gave me some speech about "supporting culture and creativity" and when I asked him if his photos were going on a blog or something, he handed me a flier. Now that I look at it, it's a flier advertising some indie music documentary and has absolutely no info as to who this guy is or what he's doing with his photos of me. Great.

Someone who got it right (yes, I will reward good behaviour!) is Theresa Neef, a Chicago-based artist who documented her day at the fest in this post. Not only did she ask for permission to take photos, she also wrote down her info so that I'd be able to find her again later. That's the way to do it!

Actually, I love taking photos as fests, but I'm usually much too shy to do it. I always get a few pictures of my friends, but I do wish that I had the guts to document my experiences more thoroughly. Sometimes I consider getting business cards printed so that I could easily hand them out to people when I ask permission to take their picture. I'd be interested in documenting zine tables, especially the handy ways that people come up with for displaying their zines, and also the amazing fashion that I see at fests. I'm not gonna lie, zinesters are fucking cute and creative and I am always amazed at what they come up with. So I ask: As blog readers, would you be interested in seeing something like this? And you, zinesters and tablers, would you be open to something like this? Or would you think I was a gigantic weirdo? I should note that I'd take down the info of those whose photos I had, so that I could link back to their sites and promote what they're doing. (Okay, so this may be just a dream since I'm usually too overwhelmed at fests anyway, but I'm definitely interested in hearing other people's thoughts on this). Oh yeah, here's a nice picture of me that Bri took:

Experience #3: THE INTERNET IS WEIRD. I saw fashion blogger Tavi channeling Courtney Love with her shimmery skirt and a tiara as she made her way down a row of tables and I wanted to say hello and give her a copy of my zine, but I could see no graceful way of doing so. I figure she is probably bored of people approaching her because of her blog, and not only that, but people probably give her zines and stuff all the time in the hopes that she'll write about it online and make them Tumblr-famous or something, and that's definitely not what I was after. I genuinely think that she would enjoy Culture Slut, and I hoped that she'd eventually spot my table, but no such luck. Um, maybe I should just write to her like a normal person? (And ask her why she hasn't made a post about CZF? We make a good-lookin' crowd).

Speakeasy Custom Tattoo
Maranda and I had previously booked appointments with Alana Robbie, who was doing a guest spot at Speakeasy Tattoo, so that's where we headed after packing up our tables at the fest. It was such a beautiful space. Located on the second floor of a building in Wicker Park, it was an open concept room with hardwood floors, purple walls and a very clean atmosphere. I was so comfortable, I could have fallen asleep on their couch. Maranda got her tattoo first, a 1950s-style Greyhound bus, and I got knuckle tattoos... which I'll show off once they've properly healed. We're both really pleased with the work and would recommend talking to Alana if you're in her area.

In last year's zinefest roundup, I wrote about a generally positive experience at Tatu Tattoo. But now that it's been a year, I can say that while I love the tattoo I got there, it most definitely needs a touch-up (and so does Bri's... we got matching Doris tattoos). The ink did not exactly take and it seems the artist's hands were a little shaky.

Sultan's Market
Okay, so this place had really great falafel. I don't even remember the last time I ate falafel, but it was once a staple in my life. Not only was it delicious, but the boy who made it complimented me on my outfit. And not in a creepy way. Doesn't get much better than that!

Out Of This World Zinester After Party!
I don't know where we were, but I sure did love dancing with zinester friends and checking out everyone's space-tacular outfits. Might've preferred another DJ and some Bikini Kill, but what can ya do?

Skylark
This one is filed under "dive bar" on Yelp, and it seems like my kinda place. I admit, I didn't even sit down for a drink. Maranda, Bri, Heather and I all went in after the after-party to make use of their black-and-white photobooth. I feel like a lucky gal in Montreal because we have photobooths all over the place, but I've yet to find a black-and-white one. Anyway, we took six strips in all (five are pictured above) and I'm sure we annoyed the customers who were seated nearby, but I don't care. Maybe next year we'll actually sit down for a pitcher! (Fun fact, as told by Heather: This bar was used as an Irish pub in the Chicago Code).

The Chicago Cultural Center
Finally, a morning where we were able to sleep in a bit. After downing a glass of orange juice and making a second trip to Wicker Park for zines and vintage dresses, we went to the Chicago Cultural Center to see the Vivian Maier exhibit. Like many, I'd read about Vivian Maier's discovered work online and was pleased to learn not only that it would be showing while I was in town, but also that the exhibit was FREE. There were two rooms showcasing her photography, mostly from the late 1950s - early 1960s, with a few colour shots from the 1970s thrown in. In display cases, we were able to look at her old cameras, undeveloped rolls of film, hats, and an amusing note written by the clerk at her photo shop giving directions on how to develop the film, with an add-on in red ink: The customer is very particular. The exhibit was actually a little smaller than I'd expected, but it was definitely interesting to see, especially since they had several photos taken in Canada on display.

It's too bad the Center's gift shop is closed on Sundays because we'd been hoping to check out some tourist junk and wondered if we'd find any postcards with Maier's photos on 'em. We did explore the building and check out several other exhibits though, most notably, Off The Beaten Path: Violence, Women and Art. My goodness, this one ought to have had a trigger warning on the door! There were some very amazing works on display, but I must admit that it was emotionally draining to walk through the room and examine each and every one.

There was also a vintage poster exhibition happening, but it inexplicably cost fifteen dollars to get in. Too bad.

The Chicago Diner
"Meat free since '83" is their slogan, and this may be one of the best restaurants I've ever dined at. I would love to have vegan gyros, sweet potato fries and a pint of Dark Horse raspberry ale for dinner every night. The staff was the friendliest (and cutest) ever and I just didn't want to leave.

After packing up and getting ready to go, we were reunited with our family, who'd been staying just outside of Chicago for a few days. They loved Heather so much that they gifted her with a teacup when she headed home and we all agreed to be BEST FRIENDS FOREVER.

Thank you to the organizers of the Chicago Zine Fest for all their hard work and dedication - you pulled off something amazing!

Fight Boredom at the Chicago Zine Fest 2011! Part One

2011-03-30T22:24:00.020-04:00

I finally arrived home on Tuesday evening after a few days in Chicago, and many means of transportation: Megabus, car, another car, El Train, car, city bus, Toronto subway, another Megabus, Montreal metro and another city bus. All with a purse across my shoulder, a backpack on my back, a vintage suitcase in one hand, and a Hello Kitty canvas bag in the other. Oh my. Here is our view of Chicago as we were entering the city.

Just like in 2010, the Chicago Zine Fest proved to be one of the best weekends of the year. Maranda and I actually turned it into a family road trip this time around, with our mom and aunt sitting in the front seats of the car, and us in the back with our snacks and stacks of zines. They stayed with other family members, while we were welcomed into the home of Heather, whom you may know as the writer of perzine Dig Deep, and the new owner of Stranger Danger Distro, which was recently passed on to her by LB of Truckface and other great zines. After dropping off our luggage at her place and cleaning ourselves up after something like nine hours on the road (I'd taken a Megabus from Montreal to Toronto the night before, then we all got into the car and headed for Chicago at five o'clock the next morning), we went downtown to do a little bit of thrift-shopping and kill time before the zine reading at 826CHI. Exploring thrift stores in new cities is always exciting for me and I made a few decent scores - a pink wool skirt from H&M and a leopard print tank top for two dollars each, then a pair of jeggings from the Payless across the street. Yeah, I said jeggings. Probably the most comfortable pants in the world. If you can call them pants. Really, I'd gone into Payless to see if the pricing in America was any different from their counterparts in Canada, but it turned out to be the same. Some people have asked me where I find all of my cute shoes, and I will tell you this: the vast majority of my footwear comes from Payless Shoe Source. I will wear cheap ballet flats until the day I die.

Evening came, and it was time for the zine reading at 826CHI. I was excited and nervous for my sister just as if I was the one reading (which I was last year and I think it helped me get over my stage fright and become a tiny bit of a better speaker). After the youth reading, she read a piece about Halifax alongside zinesters Cindy Crabb, Al Burian, Aaron Cometbus, Victoria Akpan, Lara Dendel and more. Cindy Crabb surprised us with a new issue of Doris, an issue that is both sad and wonderful. You can get it for two dollars through Fight Boredom Distro.

After a hearty meal and vegan milkshakes at the Earwax Café with Bri of Motor City Kitty, Elizabeth of Yarntea and her husband, we walked to Quimby's where the zinester karaoke event was being held. I cannot even believe how much fun we had. SOBER FUN. I had no idea I could get up onstage and act like a weirdo after only a beer and a half. What a delightful discovery! I sang Add It Up by the Violent Femmes (days after watching Reality Bites for the ten millionth time) and my sister led the entire bookstore in a singalong with Alanis Morissette's You Oughta Know. Perhaps I could have taken more photos of my friends being awesome, but I think my time was well-spent singing along and catching up with everyone that I hadn't seen since last year. Quimby's stayed open until nearly two in the morning, and yes, I was among the last to leave. At the end, the microphones were moved to the middle of the shop and those remaining sang Love Will Tear Us Apart together. Oh, it was beautiful.

And then, it was time for the zinefest. Heather, Maranda and I took the train together and set up our tables early on. I have to say how much I love tabling with the distro. I've been to many zine events, but usually only with copies of Culture Slut and Fight Boredom. Tabling with the distro allows me to talk up other zines that I love, and relieves the pressure of somehow having to sell myself. I'm also interested in the types of zines that people are drawn to - colourful covers are a safe bet, and there is always a crowd after queer zines, too. One zine I'm always conscious of is Don't Be A Dick, a zine written buy a guy named Paul about sex, consent, rape culture and unlearning the "be a man" kinda lessons that people are taught growing up. I've got no problem selling it online, but in person, no one ever wants to pick it up. My theory is that guys think that picking up the zine is some sort of admission to actually being a dick. So they pretend they never saw it. I was determined to end this, so I put a little neon pink sign on the zine that explained what it was about and added, "No, picking up this zine does not mean that you're a dick!" I even drew little hearts. And it worked! By the end of the day, all ten copies that I'd brought with me had been sold. I really hope that those readers get something useful out of it. (As a sidenote, making a zine with the word slut in the title can be a little tricky too, as there is definitely a certain contingent of men and boys who pick it up seemingly expecting sexy stories or photos... some of them even write bizarre letters to me. Perhaps I'll write more on this in the future).

The above photo was taken by Chicago-based artist Theresa Neef and was featured on this blog post. Thanks for makin' me look good!

Zinefests are always a bit of a mess for me. They're just so overwhelming and I'm not sure I will ever adjust to it. Mostly I hide behind my table all day because the crowds make me anxious, which means that I miss a lot of the great zines on other people's tables. Though I did pick up some pretty excellent stuff, which will surely be reviewed here soon. The best part of traveling for a zinefest is meeting up with so many people that I normally only communicate with through snail mail and online, eating at so many yummy restaurants, exploring new spaces and discovering new zines. The worst parts are never getting enough sleep, and being so on-the-go that it's difficult to get into long, meaningful conversations with people. It's always a quick hello and then on to the next one. Maybe one day I'll figure out a way to remedy this.

Not to play favourites, but check out some of my awesome friends above! Starting from the top left are Milo Miller of QZAP (who gifted me with a Hello Kitty sticker as per our tradition and informed me that my government had just fallen), Emilja Frances of Ship of Fools (whose illustrations are included on the cover of the latest issue of Culture Slut), Karen Heeringa of Mix-Tapers, J Bee of Sassyfrass Circus and Femme à Barbe, Alex Wrekk of Brainscan and Stolen Sharpie Revolution, Heather of Dig Deep and Stranger Danger Distro and Maranda Elizabeth of Telegram Ma'am. Being assigned a table next to Emilja was such a nice surprise. Oddly enough, we'd run into each other on Friday afternoon at some random rest stop in Michigan and were both flabbergasted by the coincidence. I took it as a sign of good things to come.

In Part Two, I'll write about the after-fest fun times and share links to the various places in Chicago that I visited. Don't forget that I've just put out a new issue of Culture Slut, which can be ordered through my Etsy shop. I've got a few back issues listed, but they'll be out of print by the end of the month, so please order 'em now while you can. If you haven't already heard, I'm changing Culture Slut into a yearly zine, though I will likely create a few one-shots in the meantime. This girl needs a tiny break. 'Til next time!

Culture Slut #24 / Motor City Kitty #16

2011-03-22T15:41:00.003-04:00

Issue #24 of Culture Slut is a split with Motor City Kitty #16, a cut-and-paste perzine by my longtime friend, Bri.

In my half, I write about my winter survival strategies, like quitting the birth control pill, learning how to screenprint and dressing fashionably warm. I include a list of New Year's resolutions, a recipe for mulled wine, and I lament the fact that nobody seems to remember Kurt Cobain's feminist politics. (Cover illustration by Emilja Frances, collaged by me.)

Bri writes about sexism in her local music scene and her feelings of empowerment after forming a Bikini Kill cover band as part of a Halloween show. She shares illustrations and a cute comic about her most recent New Year's Eve, as well as thoughts on zinester burnout.

Quarter-size, cut-and-paste, 46 pages.

If you order this zine by 12pm EST on Wednesday, March 23rd, I'll mail it out that day. Any time afterward, and I'll mail it out on March 30th, as I'll be in Chicago for a few days and won't be able to access Etsy.

You can buy this issue for $2.00 plus postage through my Etsy shop, by Paypal to polaroid.panicATgmail.com or by sending well-concealed cash to the address on the left sidebar.

Chicago friends! If you're going to be at the Chicago Zine Fest on March 26th, please pick up a copy there and say hello!

Hey Amber, Why Do You Write Zine Reviews? Part Two

2011-03-20T21:55:00.008-04:00

Okay, let's call this one Why I Don't Write Zine Reviews.

I don't write zine reviews as a means of feeling smug or better than anyone else. I am willing to take constructive criticism of my own zines as well. Likewise, I don't write zine reviews because I feel that my opinion is any more valid or important than anyone else's - I write zine reviews because it's fun, because I like to share zines with others, and because I like to engage in conversations sparked by content included in zines.

I don't write zine reviews as a means of receiving free zines in the mail (I don't turn 'em down, but I don't beg for 'em either, you know?). If I want a zine, I will usually buy it myself or offer a trade. I buy zines through individual zinesters, through Etsy, through various distros, at zinefests and at brick-and-mortar shops when I can find 'em. A lot of people mail me their zines for free, which I think is super nice and I try my best to review them and sometimes mail a zine or a letter in return. On that note, I don't like sending my zines out for free to other bloggers. I'm not sure why some bloggers seem to feel that by being one, they are entitled to free shit. I think that that's really privileged and actually kinda selfish. I'm saying this because I've been asked to mail free zines to bloggers several times in the past, and as recently as a week ago. I participated once, because the zines were then being given away to readers, but most of the time, it looks like the blogger is simply trying to rack up a collection for free. It's even worse when it's someone that I've never had contact with before. So, I've never heard of you or your blog, you've never read my zines, and now you want me to mail them to you, overseas, for free? On the off-chance that you might like them and that one of your readers might decide to order one? No thanks. I'm doing just fine on my own, and I've got better things to spend my hard-earned cash on. Like groceries and bills.

If you do decide to mail me your own zine for review purposes, please please please include a note to tell me who you are and how you found my blog. You don't even know how much I appreciate it. I'm all about the sense of community and the friendships that are formed through zines, so by evading even the simplest of manners, you're cutting out my favourite part. If you wanna know what kinds of zines I'm into, a good place to start would be by reading the reviews already posted on this very blog, and by taking a look at the description of the types of zines that I consider for Fight Boredom Distro. I am not objective. My reviews are based entirely on personal taste, so if you mail me a zine about, say, military history or make-up tips or weed, you're probably engaging the wrong audience. There are two ways to guarantee a BAD review: Mail me a zine with no note at all, or mail me a zine with a form letter that you probably sent out to every mailing address you found on Google. If there's no note at all, I might just recycle it and if there's a form letter, I might quote from it and mock you publicly. I've said this before, so, fair warning.

Seriously, I've received a lot of zinespam this week. Between the 9/11 Flipbook, the THREE promotional messages that I received from a comic artist in ONE NIGHT, and the anonymous queer zinester who accused me of being uptight when I asked them why they emailed me four zine PDFs this morning without so much as a hello, I'm feeling a little annoyed.

I don't review zines for "fame" or recognition. I had a Livejournal for years (yeah, yeah) which I deleted recently, and when I first created this blog, I thought that I would be lucky if the thirty or so friends that I had on LJ followed this one. I didn't think that anyone would read it besides a few of my friends and my sister. Naive maybe, but I really didn't count on anyone paying attention to me. So to those that do, thank you! I appreciate it. You should comment more so that we can talk about zines together.

It's come up in conversations with a few acquaintances that I portray myself as some sort of a happy-go-lucky girl whose life is all sunshine and lollipops and zines and parties. I can promise you that it's not. The thing is, this is a themed blog. It's about zines and it's about fighting boredom. So I write zine reviews, and I write about the little things that I do to fight boredom (What I've Been Up To Lately), but it's not always an accurate reflection of my daily life. I leave out the bad parts. This blog was never meant to be a journal or a document of everything happening in my life and I hope that people don't take it that way. It's very intentionally a zine-specific (and anti-boredom!) blog.

Thanks to a post on Tumblr, I recently found A Blogger's Disclaimer, written in 2003. This part especially struck me:

"Do not assume that you know everything there is to know about a writer simply because you read their weblog on a regular basis. Any judgements you make will be based on the information they have provided you about themselves, which is probably vague, incomplete or embellished."

I have bad days. I sure don't hide it when I'm angry or sad or conflicted, but I have no interest in posting that shit on the internet, you know?

Part One of Hey Amber, Why Do You Write Zine Reviews? is posted here.

One Bizarre Zine & Two Good Ones

2011-03-20T17:58:00.011-04:00

9/11 Flipbook scottATbarcodeart.com
A couple of weeks ago, a bunch of my American zinester friends were posting about this ridiculous zine that they'd received in the mail, obviously as part of a mass mailing. I sighed and wondered when I'd get mine. It's exactly what the title says - a thirty-seven page flipbook that is one inch high and two inches wide, showing a television news image, frame-by-frame, of a plane crashing into the South Tower of the World Trade Center. The general consensus among my friends and various blog posts that I've read seems to be that it's a tasteless ploy for attention by an artist whose name we wouldn't know otherwise. I'm inclined to agree. Although his website and press release state that a portion of the proceeds from sales of the flipbook (which is actually available as a full-sized book with essays for a hefty $35.00) will help support the Twin Towers Orphan Fund, the Fire Department of New York, and the International Red Cross, we are not told what portion, nor do we know if these organizations are even aware of the existence of this flipbook. I feel that the charity bit may have been tacked on as an afterthought so as to make the artist look like a tiny bit less of a jerk. Donations are one thing, and so are essays, but all of that could've been done without the imagery - we all saw the fucking news that day, Scott. Reproducing it in the form of a flipbook simply turns it into a cartoon or a children's toy.

Sadly, there will always be a market for nonsense like this, and I'm sure that Scott is feeling pretty awesome about his idea. But based on what I've read online and gathered from friends, this seems to exist simply as a means of self-promotion. I mean, I can count something like ten acquaintances that received this thing in the mail at the same time, and those are only the people that I happen to know. I love running a distro and writing zine reviews, but one of the irritating parts is that my address gets tacked onto bullshit mailing lists that I couldn't possibly give one less fuck about. If your "zine" comes with a press release, a form letter, or costs THIRTY-FIVE DOLLARS, then don't fucking mail it to me. (I guess I'm totally playing into his self-promotion, but I have a personal rule of posting bad reviews for anyone who sends me a form letter [even better if they describe themselves as a DIY punk within]. I'm not a robot, I'm just a girl with some free time on her hands who enjoys zines - save the form letters for job applications). Now, onto some zines that I actually enjoyed...

Out Of Order: Queer and Trans Youth Resistance! queertransyouthzineATgmail.com
This is a comp zine edited by Sarah Tea-Rex, of Pathologize This! and others. The premise is that queers and trans people are always presented as a tragedy - we are always given statistics on the higher rates of drug abuse, self-harm, depression, bullying, homelessness and suicide - but what about the good parts? This zine is a collection of about ten short essays by queer and trans youth who write about how they discovered love and community, and what they're doing to survive. It's very much a "beginner's guide", with a glossary of terms and a list of Montreal-based resources. Totally handy stuff.

Playing Victim #4 / Your Secretary #7 yoursecretaryzineATgmail.com
Every January, Brittany and Jami create a split zine together in order to reflect upon the past year. Both sides are cut-and-paste but the creators each have their own distinct styles. Brittany's half is a combination of typewritten and handwritten and includes anecdotes about her 2010 firsts - like traveling to Chicago, Seattle and San Francisco with her tattoo artist girlfriend, teaching a class at Wholly Craft and graduating college, all in a very conversational tone. Jami uses blocks of computer-rendered text to write about her past year, which included forming a band for Ladies Rock Camp and getting a job in a library, plus she shares a list of dream date activities. So much fun!

Fanzines, Perzines and Art Zines, Reviewed Especially For You

2011-03-13T11:00:00.000-04:00

Puker Nation #5 & #6 puker.nation@live.com
These zines were mailed to me by Alanna in Ottawa, Ontario and are fanzines dedicated to the teenager's favourite stuff; mostly bands and movies like Le Tigre, Exploding Hearts, Hedwig & The Angry Inch, and Ladies And Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains. I particularly enjoyed her book reviews, which come with accompanying illustrations of the covers. While I can't say that I learned anything new through these pages (the zine actually reminds me a lot of the zine that Maranda and I were making together when we were sixteen, and I'm not saying that in a bad way), I have to say that I absolutely loved the enthusiasm within. You can read 'em online, or hope to run into her at shows in Ottawa where I think she gives them away for free.

Everybody Moon Jump #8 everybodymoonjumpAThotmail.com
It's been a while since I've seen a new zine from Dave Cave, so this was a very welcome surprise in my mailbox. This is a quarter-size cut-and-paste perzine and Dave begins by writing about his current attempts at working out and gaining weight, making note of how the hormones released during exercise counteract anxiety. Much of this issue is comprised of reflections on the mental health issues that have existed within his family, as well as his own hospital stays and various experiences. I like the way he inks new details onto the clippings he uses in the layout, and adds these little sarcastic bits throughout. This is probably the only zine that you could file under both "mental health" and "comedy". He is truly one-of-a-kind.

Shape & Situate: Posters of Inspirational European Women m_k_maddisonAThotmail.com
Inspired by David Lester's Inspired Agitators poster series and the justseeds collective, Melanie compiled this half-size zine full of art representing inspirational European women. Contributors include Isy of Morgenmuffel, Rachael House of 90s comic zine Red Hanky Panky, Jenny Howe, guitarist for Vile Vile Creatures and many other feminist artists, featuring their representations of women like Marie Curie, Maya Evans, Claude Cahun, Anaïs Nin, Claudia Jones and so many more. Every poster is unique in design and includes illustration, collage, comic and digital art. I got my copy through Marching Stars Distro.

Echo! Echo! #4 nerdturdATgmail.com
This issue was written nearly four years ago and I believe the series is now up to seven issues. I just added several of 'em to the Fight Boredom Distro catalogue, so have a look when you get the chance. In this issue, Keet writes about various memorable moments throughout her lifetime, like being inspired by a pre-teen crush to learn guitar, being scared away from swimming lessons, and staring up at the stars with a sibling - complete with a trace-your-own-constellations activity page! Keet has sort of a calm and poetic way of writing, which makes all of her stories seem somewhat profound. As a bonus, the cover is actually a fold-out poster.

Echo! Echo! #5 nerdturdATgmail.com
This is a very text-heavy issue whose stories were culled on long walks and days at school. Very contemplative, with reflections on love, loneliness, awkward moments and public transportation. Keet compares her current surroundings of Toronto with those of her native Philippines. She has a great style that combines typewritten with computer-rendered text, as well as illustrations.

Facts About Menstruation That Every Woman Should Know sevansATriseup.net
Sarah (who does the perzine Root, among others) writes about getting her first period at eleven years old, and all of the things she was taught about the menstrual cycle. At seventeen, a friend wrote her a letter about alternative menstruation products and sent her some cloth pads, and that was when she realized that there was more to the story. She learned a lot through the Blood Sisters of Montreal and shares some of her lessons in this zine, about the menstrual "hygiene" industry, toxic products and their effects on both our bodies and the environment, plus tips like drinking raspberry leaf tea to ease cramps. It's a cut-and-paste zine with vintage ads throughout.

La Tête à Britney samectoplasm.wordpress.com
La Tête à Britney (Britney's Head) is a full-colour French language art zine produced by Sam Ectoplasm, a friend that I met online while she was still living in France, but who now resides in Montreal. The zine features collages and illustrations mainly focusing on women's bodies, and she even uses fabrics and sewing techniques that add an extra dimension of texture to her work, which looks great photocopied. You won't see another zine like this one (described on the cover as fanzine romantico menstruel).

What I've Been Up To Lately: I stayed up late last night to put the finishing touches on Culture Slut #24 and added some new brooches and patches to my Etsy shop. Now I'm just waiting on Bri's half of our split zine to arrive in the mail, then I'll head to the copy shop and have it all ready on time for the Chicago Zine Fest. I also found this really excellent essay on Roseanne and working-class feminism. It's one of very few tv shows that I actually enjoy. My mom jokes that with my twin sister and I, it's like she had two Darlenes. Anyway, I best be off. I'm facilitating a screenprinting workshop at the Ste-Émilie Skillshare today, and I didn't even make it to bed 'til four in the morning. Later on, a friend of mine is visiting from Toronto, so the next few days oughtta be good fun.

P.S. Did anyone catch Saturday Night Live last night? In a (quite boring) sketch about Canada, they referred to the province of Manitoba as a city. Geez.

Hey Amber, Why Do You Write Zine Reviews? Part One

2011-03-04T14:04:00.017-05:00

The first post on this blog dates back to May 31st 2009, nearly two years ago. In fact, I had created the blog something like a year before that, as a means of sharing my crafty projects and my attempts at fighting boredom in a small town, but quickly found myself uninspired and without direction. I was still living in Lindsay then, wrapped up in a minimum-wage job and an unfulfilling relationship, so it's not surprising that I was feeling rather hopeless at the time. Sometimes I look back at that point in my life and I'm not even sure how I did it for so long. I tried really, really hard to be happy, but you couldn't pay me to go back there now for more than a couple of days.

Once I became settled in Montreal and was feeling ready to take on more projects, I felt that it was time to re-start the blog. I deleted the three entries that I'd posted on a whim the year before and started fresh. I wrote about a recent trip to Ottawa for a craft fair and my newly-released Polaroid zine. Then I began writing zine reviews. I had actually been including reviews in my zines for years - the first batch appeared in Culture Slut #4 (November 2005) and I continued in various issues of Culture Slut and Fight Boredom. Zine reviews were how I found new zines when I first got involved in this world. Although my exposure to zines expanded with internet access, it was still a time before social networking sites and Etsy, so I found most zines through reviews in other zines, and fliers that got sent out with orders and exchanged by all sorts of people. By reviewing those zines that I'd found, I was helping to share them with a few more people. My intention with writing reviews on this blog was to continue sharing what I thought to be great finds with other people. It's appropriate that the first zines I reviewed were Motor City Kitty, Queer HOH and Conestoga, as they were all perzines written by people who were articulating their confusing queer identities, and I was just learning how to articulate my own thoughts on the matter.

Although I made note of one or two zines that contained more typos than I could ignore, I generally kept things positive. It was only after a day of tabling at Canzine (which is over-run with books, t-shirts and other pricey non-zines) that I decided to share a few of my less-than-cheerful thoughts in a blog post titled Hello Negative Nancy. I was merely repeating the things I'd said in many conversations with zine-making friends, and opening up a bit of dialogue. Since then, I've scaled way back on the amount of trades that I accept, because the cost of postage keeps going up, and because I just don't have the time to sift through zines that I'm not interested in. Some of the opinions that I expressed have since evolved, as they tend to do.

I've since written a few bad reviews. I wrote one where I called out a zinester for spreading girl-hate and perpetuating internalized sexism. I also wrote one where I critiqued the process that went into making a zine that I felt had pretty racist undertones. I've given bad reviews to the two Brooklyn writers who mailed me their zines with a form letter because their zines were dull and because I'm not a robot and refuse to take anyone seriously if they think that sending me a form letter is okay. I offer constructive criticism from time to time, because I feel that it is valid, and because I appreciate the same in return. It should be noted though: The opinions presented on this blog are mine and mine alone. The reviews are based entirely on personal taste. My opinion is no more important or valid than anyone else's. If I don't like your zine, it doesn't mean that it's a bad zine or that no one else will like it, or even that I don't like you. It just means that I didn't particularly enjoy the zine. No big deal. If I reviewed your zine and you disagree with what I've said, leave a comment. If you want me to pull down the review, tell me. If you wanna talk about the zines that I've reviewed; yours or anyone else's, leave many comments. If you wanna review zines, start a blog. Or another zine.

I'm never entirely happy with my own zines, and there are many back issues in which I've written things not only that I no longer care about, but that I don't even believe in anymore and would be embarrassed to show anyone. For me, zines are a process.

There are those that write only positive zine reviews and I think that's totally cool and awesome and I'm sure that they enjoy it. But I am not here to be anyone's cheerleader and I'm not going to be condescending and tell every zinester in the world that what they're doing is amazing and beautiful and revolutionary when sometimes it is mediocre at best and offensive at worst. If I think that a zine is truly awful, I'm not likely to review it at all, but if I feel hopeful about a zine and have critique to offer, then I see no harm in doing so. I don't believe that my critique is any more valid than anyone else's and I certainly encourage more people to get in on the conversation. I'm also willing to take critique of my own zines - I see many flaws in my zines and I've even linked to bad reviews of my zines on this blog. It's not the end of the world if someone doesn't like it. If someone has something constructive to offer, then I am all ears. In the end, I would love to become a better writer, and getting feedback from various sources is one way of doing so. Sometimes I agree with what they have to say, and I feel better for having heard it. Sometimes I disagree and maybe I feel bad for a few minutes, but then I brush it off. In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't matter. Who cares if people don't like my zine? Who cares if I don't like your zine? I write reviews because it's fun and because I like to share new zines with an interested audience. As soon as it stops being fun, I will stop.

You can read Part Two here.

Sometimes I Go Out Dancing, But Mostly I Stay Home And Read

2011-02-28T17:35:00.013-05:00

Zine World #30 www.undergroundpress.org
You can't ignore a zine with a purple cover. I ordered this issue for the articles on Fanzines by Teal Triggs and Microcosm distribution and I was not disappointed. Alongside pieces on the zine world in general, there are many, many zine reviews included in this publication and it seems like a pretty excellent way of getting in contact with other zinesters and finding out about zines that you may never have heard of otherwise. Plus info on distros and zine events all over the world. Good work!

Paper Doll #4 clara.lipfertATdresden.us
When I was sixteen, I used to read this perzine called Turpentine, and this one reminds me a bit of that, style-wise. It's got a combination of handwritten and typewritten text, with simple illustrations, zine and book reviews and Clara's thoughts on friendship, clouds and political disillusionment. Yes indeed, a nice mix. I thought her writing had the perfect combination of naiveté, thoughtfulness and self-assurance.

Sassyfrass Circus #6 www.sassyfrasscircus.com
Surely you know by now how much I love J Bee's queer comics. In this issue, J Bee grapples with the reality of working a 9-5 job in a cubicle in the very neighbourhood that they'd promised to escape. They also examine the politics of capitalism and heteronormativity, being prompted by a person who insisted that they not consider their relationship when applying for grad school. Always critical and always funny - just have a look at the comic on the Puke-On-Annoying-People Project. It's exactly what it sounds like.

Pamflet #11 www.pamflet.co.uk
This eleventh issue of "post-everything London girl-zine" Pamflet is the last, as they have now moved on to a blog-only format. Sounds like a zinester's nightmare, right? But I think that blogging is much more suited to the content, seeing as it's all about fashion, trends and... other bloggers. The contributors attempt to bring together fashion and feminism, two of my favourite things. This was certainly an entertaining read on the bus, if not a little muddled - I felt that it could have done with a more coherent theme, but apparently they're loved by the likes of Zadie Smith, Time Out and Vogue, so they must be doing something right. There are articles on girl geek life, nuns in pop culture, the influence of No Doubt's Just A Girl and a whole lot more. My interest was particularly piqued by a piece lamenting second wave feminism's rejection of homemaking, leaving generations without the DIY skills to make their own clothing. I'd be interested in reading back issues if I ever came across 'em.

What I've Been Up To Lately: Well, I have about ten thousand projects that I'm working on at once, and usually when that happens, I become confused and overwhelmed and don't really get a lot done. So, I've been doing a lot of hanging around the house and mixing drinks. But I did manage to get a lot of writing done today, including letters to friends and way more zine reviews than usual. In case I forgot to tell you, Broken Pencil recently asked if I'd like to become a reviewer for the magazine. I mulled it over for a few days and decided to do it, so this afternoon was spent reading and reviewing my first batch of zines. I've finally made a list of my current writing projects (a new zine, various blog posts...) and am hoping to cross things off on a steady basis throughout the week.

Last week, I got a chance to see Sheezer, an all-girl Weezer cover band and they were so much fucking fun. They put on a really good show and were pretty fashionable ladies to boot. And speaking of fashionable lady musicians, I also went to see Dum Dum Girls. I find that I'm not much of a night owl anymore and prefer to stay at home, but how can I stay in when I've got Vincent for a dance partner?

What I Got In The Mail This Week: A batch of zines from Broken Pencil, a vintage dress from Etsy, a feminist killjoy t-shirt (to warn those around me), postcards from friends, three new stationery sets and my cell phone bill.

In Other Zine News: Catherine of Here. In My Head and Hannah of Not Lonely have started a UK zine blog called Spill The Zines for reviews and announcements and whatnot. Bookmark it!

P.S. The metro station pictured above is Lionel-Groulx. One of my favourites because the colour scheme makes me feel like I'm on the set of The Price Is Right.

Reading Zines and Writing Letters

2011-02-16T07:59:00.012-05:00

Telegram Ma'am #22 schoolformapsATgmail.com
It's true, my sister's zines are always among my favourites. The cover of this issue is printed on glorious goldenrod paper and features a beautifully collaged background behind an image of the classic 1950s-style Greyhound bus. You may have surmised that this issue is about traveling. Maranda chronicles her travels throughout the year 2010, which include spending two weeks as the zinester-in-residence at Halifax's Roberts Street Social Centre, flying (with me!) to the Portland Zine Symposium, participating in writer's workshops and meeting Joyce Carol Oates in Kingston, and leaving her hometown yet again for a city that she loves. Hello, Guelph! These are not standard travel tales, but rather an exercise in documenting the happy times whilst always taking things like mental health, dis/ability and economic factors into consideration. Oh yeah, and roller derby. It's a text-heavy zine that really showcases Maranda's imagination and her way with words.

Fat Girl #12, 13, 14 fatgirlzine.blogspot.com
I picked up these zines from Marching Stars Distro recently. Nicci writes about being fat and each issue has something of a theme - community, food, et cetera. The text makes for a quick and simple read, but the fun part is all the cute drawings of super fashionable fat girls with pigtails in their hair and stars on their bodies. The zines are quarter-size and handbound using the Japanese stab binding technique, which I think is pretty cool. The only thing that frustrated me while reading was the fact that rather than making double-sided copies, each page is folded over. I can relate, as I was making zines in a similar fashion when I first started and hadn't quite figured out the photocopier tricks, but double-sided copies are important for several reasons: 1. It wastes less paper, 2. it costs less at the copy shop, and 3. the zines will cost less to ship, as they will only weigh half the amount. (Unless the thick zines are in fact mimicking fat bodies, in which case, that is very clever indeed).

Riot Wife #4 communikateATriseup.net
This zine just showed up in my mailbox this morning and features a delightfully hand-coloured cover showing balloons, ice cream and a cat donning a party hat. Kate wrote this zine on her 25th birthday and it's something of a reflection of her past five months living in Montreal. Trigger warning because it deals with mental health and self-harm. This issue jumps back and forth between those days when you just can't force yourself to get out of bed, and others where you fall in love with the metro and the neighbourhood cats. Kate writes about adjusting to a new city and roommates, keeping her anxiety in check and setting goals, and she provides tips on being an ally to those who have depression (inspired in part by Maranda Elizabeth). All in all an excellent cut-and-paste zine - can't wait to send this girl a letter in response!

The Collected Scathings of Ioana Poprowka nineATjinxremoving.org
Collected and edited by Nine of the zines If Destroyed Still True and Sex Industry Apologist, this is something of a best-of collection of writing on transgender issues that was originally printed in The Skinny magazine's LGBT section. Topics covered include transgender portrayals in film (one of those mentioned being Hayley from Coronation Street, prompting me to wonder if there are any Corrie fanzines out there...), trans people's constant dehumanisation in the press (read an example of that here), and Dana International's popularity since Eurovision, as well as more personal pieces. It was a really great read, and you can get your own copy through Marching Stars Distro.

Collector izzykjarvisATgmail.com
Collector is a full-size (8.5" x 11") zine showcasing linocuts and etchings by Izzy Jarvis. The images feature animals and nature as well as portraits, though to be honest, I'm really bad at describing artwork. Can I just say that it's awesome? You can see more here.

What I've Been Up To Lately: I just got off the phone with Alex Wrekk and Derek Neuland after being interviewed for Nobody Cares About Your Stupid Zine Podcast. Portland loves my Canadian accent. They're currently working on an episode/issue about Fanzines by Teal Triggs and the debates that the book has caused within the zine community. I'm really looking forward to having a listen to the contributions of others once it's all put together. Besides that, I've been keeping busy with crafts, screenprinting, paid research studies and issue #24 of Culture Slut. Counting down the days 'til the Chicago Zine Fest...

Post A Letter Social Activity Club: Our first Pal-Sac meeting at the 2110 Centre went really well. We got something like twenty letters written, and people were really excited about the PWYC stationery. Please come out to our next get-together on Monday, February 21st. Note that it's taking place from 6 - 10pm this time around. We may wind up alternating between afternoons and evenings so that everybody has a chance to attend in spite of their busy schedules.

Just Sayin'.

2011-02-08T17:15:00.002-05:00

sta·tion·ar·y
[stey-shuh-ner-ee]
adjective, noun, plural -ar·ies.
–adjective
1. standing still; not moving.
2. having a fixed position; not movable.
3. established in one place; not itinerant or migratory.
4. remaining in the same condition or state; not changing: The market price has remained stationary for a week.

sta·tion·er·y
[stey-shuh-ner-ee]
–noun
1. writing paper.
2. writing materials, as pens, pencils, paper, and envelopes.

Because Zinesters Love Vegan Food and Snail Mail, Right?

2011-02-06T09:27:00.010-05:00

Every Wednesday, I table with Fight Boredom Distro at McGill University's Midnight Kitchen. It's a pay-what-you-can vegan lunch that's served every weekday at 12:30pm 'til the food runs out and it's always delicious. The first time I went, I had the best rice pudding of my life. All you need to remember is to bring your own plate (or in my case, your own Hello Kitty bento box complete with pink cutlery), and some spare change. Most people are obviously there for the cheap / free food, but the organizers are always trying to politicize the lunch with things like their lending library (full of vegan cookbooks and radical literature), occasional film screenings, and the weekly presence of my zine distro. It's an excellent event that I would recommend to anyone in the area - SSMU Building, 3480 McTavish, Montreal.

Speaking of fun stuff to do in Montreal, the Post A Letter Social Activity Club's Montreal chapter is having our first ever get-together tomorrow afternoon from 1 - 5. Please come out to the 2110 Centre at 2110 rue Mackay for hot tea and snail mail goodness. We'll have a selection of stationery (or you can bring your own), as well as stamps available at cost. You don't need to show up on time, or stay for the whole thing, but we would love it if you said hello and wrote a letter. And if you have any suggestions for how to make the event better, things you'd like to see, or workshops you'd like to host, you can let us know in person, or by emailing montreal.2110ATpal-sac.com.

Wanna mail me a letter?

What I Got In The Mail This Week: This past week was a really good one for my mailbox. I got stacks of new zines for my distro, as well as my order from Marching Stars, and a letter from a friend that I hadn't heard from in ages. I mailed out a bunch of zine orders myself, plus letters to my sister, some friends and one of my favourite ladies of the internet.

Fight Boredom Distro News: I've just added Rum Lad #4, Three Days Of My Life I Will Never Get Back, Life, Death, Love & "All of the Above" and Echo! Echo! #4 - #7 to the catalogue. There are a few new titles on their way, and I imagine I'll be picking up some more at the Chicago Zine Fest. On that note, anyone in Chicago got a couch they wanna let me crash on? There are fun times and free zines in it for you.

In Other Zine News: I was recently interviewed by Jem here, as well as by a journalism student for Sheridan College's paper here.

P.S. If I made Fight Boredom t-shirts, would you wear one?

Look At All Of The Excellent Zines I Read This Week

2011-01-26T17:50:00.003-05:00

Cheaptoys #6 xtramediumATlaposte.net
This latest issue of French punk zine Cheaptoys by Gizmo takes us on another tour, this time to the United States of America. He originally flew over in order to intern at (the ever problematic) Microcosm Publishing, a gig that introduced him to the fine radical folk in Bloomington, Indiana, but didn't last too long. Instead, he hopped in a van with Imperial Can and toured from the Midwest to the West Coast, making stops at Berea Fest and more. He eventually stopped in Portland, Oregon, where we had the good fortune of meeting each other (along with many other zinester friends) and bowling together during the weekend of the Portland Zine Symposium. The bulk of the US tour stories are writen in English, with tales of his childhood discovery of punk rock and his life since his return to France written en français. It's entirely typewritten and includes many photos from the road.

Life, Death, Love & "All of the Above" meredith.wallaceATgmail.com
You may know Meredith as proprietor of Los Angeles' False Start Distro. This is her first zine in seven years, and although I hadn't read her work before this, I can assure you that it was absolutely worth the wait. I began reading this issue on the metro, heading for the Midnight Kitchen, and felt completely lost in it. So much so, that when I arrived at my destination and a friend asked how I was, I burst out with an inarticulate, "I'm feeling all sorts of... feelings!" The story begins as Meredith falls in love with a man, a love that is described in a series of vignettes that are at once honest, delightful and sometimes sexy. I particularly liked the way she captured in a short moment the range of both admiration and jealousy that happens between girls. In the second of three parts (titled Before, After and Now), we find out that Meredith's lover has been diagnosed with leukemia, and we follow the two through treatment, worry, and the good times as well. It's a really moving zine that I'd recommend to pretty much anyone who enjoys reading at all. You can contact the author at the address above, or wait a few weeks until it's in stock at Fight Boredom Distro.

Shotgun Seamstress #2 shotgunseamstressATgmail.com
The introduction to this second issue states that "Shotgun Seamstress is a zine by and for Black punks, queers, misfits, feminists, artists, musicians, weirdos and the people who support us. This zine is meant to support Black People who exist within predominantly white subcultures, and to encourage the creation of our own." It features a Portland scene report, pieces on go-go, riot grrrl, and Don Letts, who is credited with bringing reggae to the punk scene in 1970s London, as well as interviews with Magic Johnson and Andrea Rhinestone Eagle, a resource list for women of colour in punk rock and a whole lot more. Great zine.

Your Secretary #5 yoursecretaryzineATgmail.com
The cover of this zine is illustrated by List's Ramsey Beyer and based on the cover of The Truth About Stacey, the Baby-Sitters Club book in which Stacey discusses her diabetes. Yes, I just linked you to Scholastic Canada, the publisher that supplied me with books throughout my childhood. In this issue, Jami writes about her experiences with, you guessed it, diabetes. She explains the way she feels when her blood sugar is too high or too low, and what she does to take care of herself. Also included are explanations for terminology and a bonus page of firsts that happened to her at summer camp, as well as a reminder that her diagnosis does not give you permission to police her food choices. Excellent read.

Girls Get Busy #1 www.girlsgetbusyzine.tumblr.com
This is a feminist compilation zine from the UK, printed on soft pink paper and featuring a cover girl with bare breasts and hairy pits. There are a few illustrations inside that I thought were fantastic, but I can't say that the writing did much for me. There is a piece analyzing the sex advice doled out by Cosmo, which I think we've already established is an extremely heteronormative (and dull at that) publication, as well as a short paragraph on magazines like Nuts, suggesting that the women whose images are contained within will "leave the earth with the knowledge that all you ever really did was walk briefly in and out of the revolving doors of a humongous wank bank." It's a pretty quick read, but they're just starting, and perhaps the content will become fuller and more intriguing in the future. It's something that might be fun to stick inside the pages of Cosmo at the grocery store, but I'm someone who's never had much of an interest in mainstream magazines in the first place, and needs a little more depth with her feminist critiques. (Don't everyone get all, "Oh, you're stifling the feminists!" I think this zine is just peachy-keen for someone who's new to feminism, but that's not me.)

Fight Boredom Distro News: The collage above appears in Culture Slut #23, of which I recently did a second print run. I also added a bunch of new zines to the catalogue, including Cheaptoys #6, Your Secretary #2 / Heaven Street, Your Secretary #4 / There Is No Magnificent Creature, Brainscan #26, Sex Industry Apologist, and Doris #25, #26 and #27.

The Post A Letter Social Activity Club Comes To Montreal!

2011-01-20T21:00:00.011-05:00

Last fall, I began volunteering at the 2110 Centre For Gender Advocacy. We'd been talking about ways we could promote the small zine library that's housed in the space, and events we wanted to host, mostly zine readings and stuff, and one idea that came up was a snail mail club. We began talking about ways that we could promote letter-writing, in both a personal and political sense. We talked about creating an event where people could get together on a regular basis, not only to write letters to their friends and family, but also to learn about things like letter-writing campaigns, prisoner correspondence and writing to your local MP. Jessica, Vincent and I had a bit of a brainstorming session, where we talked about things like acquiring typewriters and stationery for the space, then we went on our merry ways.

A few weeks later, I came across a link to The Post A Letter Social Activity Club on Facebook and realized that the group we'd discussed already existed in a similar form in Toronto, and was quickly catching on in other cities. So I wrote to Angel Chen, the creator of the group (and the artwork above), about starting a Montreal chapter. Coincidentally, she was set to be visiting Montreal only a few days later, so we managed to meet up and discuss our plans in person. Turns out I'm not the only one who had Pal-Sac in mind, so not only will we be hosting events at the 2110 Centre, but a group is soon to come at Drawn & Quarterly as well. Looks like we'll be keeping Canada Post busy!

The first meeting of our Pal-Sac is set to take place from 1 - 5pm on Monday, February 7th. The 2110 Centre For Gender Advocacy is located at 2110 rue Mackay (near metro Guy-Concordia) and is a wheelchair accessible space. There's an event listing here for the curious. While no workshops have been set up yet, we will definitely be holding them sporadically in the future, so if you're in Montreal and have a snail mail themed workshop to propose, please email us at: montreal.2110ATpal-sac.com. We would love to see you there!

Post A Letter Social Activity Club from Chloé Camonis on Vimeo.

Various Pal-Sac groups are in the works for cities all over the world, including Vancouver, London, Copenhagen, Guelph and more. To find out about your local group, or how to create your own, visit www.pal-sac.com.

The One With The Postage Rate Hike and Some Good Canadian Reading Material

2011-01-16T19:04:00.012-05:00

Today is the day that Canada Post's rates are raised. Not by much, but they go up every January and that certainly does add up. Mailing a standard letter within the country now costs .59 cents, and that's all you can do for under a dollar. I examined the new postal prices brochure this morning and adjusted shipping costs for distro orders accordingly. Thank you to everyone who participated in my two-week sale this month - I managed to mail out about fifty packages before the prices went up! In other distro news, Sex Industry Apologist, Brainscan #26, and issues #25 - #27 of Doris have been added to the catalogue.

It's been a while since I've updated about my incoming mail. I'm not sure when I stopped documenting it, or why, but maybe I'll get back into it again. I got a lot of good stuff in the mail last week, including several letters from friends, five zines (not counting the stacks of distro stock), a belated Christmas cheque, a Hello Kitty canvas shopping bag from my mom, a postcard from a stranger, and a big package from a wonderful East Coast friend that included a letter, a stack of handmade greeting cards (featuring typewriters, of course!) and an issue of Canadian Dimension magazine. Apparently it's been around since 1963, yet this is the first I've heard of it. She's penciled in notes for me all throughout, and I can't wait to sit down and give it a good read. Between this one, and some of the zines that I've reviewed below, I'm certainly getting my required daily intake of Canadian Content.

Hand Sum #1 elise.boudreauATgmail.com
Oh yes yes yes! I love this zine. With only a quick flip-through, I noted the fantastic layout and couldn't wait to sit down and give it a good read. And it's Canadian! So much of what I read comes from America or the UK, so those sporadic moments when I recognize a maple leaf on the postage stamp are always exciting. Elise begins by writing about her recent thoughts on mental health and self-care, and wanting to discuss these things with her family but feeling reluctant due to their history of austere behaviour. This leads to recounting an uncomfortable experience with her mother, as well as memories of girl-hate and slut-shaming as a high school student in a small town - and what she's doing to change the attitudes / internalized sexism that encouraged such things. There are some musings on traveling from Halifax to Toronto for the G20 protests last summer, and being involved with the Feminist League for Agitation Propaganda. Always self-aware, critical and thoughtful, Elise has managed to pack some pretty wonderful stuff into this zine - not just writings, but a beautiful cut-and-paste layout, lithographed covers and even a full-colour pullout poster. I'm thumbing through the pages right now and am just so impressed. You can email her at the address above for info on how to get a copy, or if you're feeling patient, wait a few weeks or so 'til I have it in stock at Fight Boredom Distro.

Brainscan #26 www.brainscan.etsy.com
This issue is subtitled, "So, what's the deal with you and Microcosm?" and is based on a blog post of the same name that Alex posted last summer. You see, a few years back, she'd printed Brainscan #21, a zine about surviving an emotionally abusive relationship, and although no names were named at the time, it became apparent that she was referring to Joe Biel and Microcosm Publishing. In this zine, she discusses what has happened since - failed accountability processes, and having to deal with public scrutiny, among things. This zine should be of interest to anyone who wants to know more about why people are boycotting Microcosm, and anyone who wants to learn more about dealing with abuse and accountability in anarchist or otherwise "alternative" communities. Or anyone who might be considering tattooing the chainring heart logo on their body... She includes links to further resources, including many other distros, as well as tales of recent good times, like traveling through the US and the UK on zine tours, playing music and inventing the Winter Sock-stice. You can get it through Alex's Etsy shop and Fight Boredom Distro.

Get A Grip: Travels Through My Mental Health sarahtearexATgmail.com
I met Sarah recently and have been working my way through a stack of her zines, this one being the first that I read. This zine reads very much like a journal, or even just like being in her head and hearing all of her thoughts. Very personal, and very thoughtful. It's somewhat divided into subjects, such as travel, consent, polyamory, unemployment, and surviving abuse. It's a pretty intense read, one that I would pick up and set down, then pick up again wherever I'd left off, over the course of a few weeks. We follow her as she travels between Quebec, England and New Zealand (she uses the Maori word "Aotearoa"), where she studies, job-hunts, and seeks out radical folk. It's a pretty text-heavy read at forty-two half-size pages. Get in touch with her through the email address above, and check out her new blog.

Sex Industry Apologist
You may know Nine from her other zine, If Destroyed Still True. And if you've read that, then you know that she worked at a project for sex workers. In this zine, Nine recounts various arguments that sex industry abolitionists have presented, either through public speaking panels, or newspaper articles, and follows them up with her own arguments, which are backed up with both published studies, and her personal experiences - sometimes sarcastic, always informative. Just make sure you play by Nine's Rule: "Whoso maketh reference to the film Pretty Woman automatically loseth the argument." Also available through Fight Boredom Distro.

The One Where A Stranger Tells Me That My Crafts Are Offensive

2011-01-12T21:00:00.022-05:00

Today I did something that I never have before - I participated in a medical study. I've been applying for a series of studies recently, as a means of keeping a little bit of cash flowing in. This study involved wearing a blindfold and sniffing a variety of scents, then noting things like strength, pleasantness, and familiarity. I also had to fill out a questionnaire that queried my levels of guilt, fear, paranoia and suicidal thoughts. Most of the odors were pretty harmless, ranging from things like rose, lemon, cinnamon, coffee, leather and turpentine. Only one scent really bothered me and I can't seem to place it. But I felt as if it were frozen in my nose. Once I left the medical centre, I had to eat something, not only to rid my mind of this scent, but also because I'd forgotten to eat lunch earlier in the day, in a mad rush to stop by the post office without making myself late for the appointment. I didn't know how to destroy the scent and wound up stopping by a nearby dépanneur to grab a glass bottle of Orangina and a collection of both sweet and salty snacks. Then I hopped on the metro toward Beaubien, where my favourite copy shop and papeterie is located. All three photocopiers gave me a bit of a hassle today (okay, one of them worked fine but I had to wait for a hipster boy in fashion so ironic that I actually thought he was an old man, to finish up his cutting and pasting - at least there was another zinester there?) I reprinted two issues of Culture Slut and one issue of Fight Boredom, then Kate joined me for tea. It was nice to sit and chat.

When I came home, I found a new message in my Etsy Conversations: "Please consider removing this from your site. This is extremely offensive to me." My first reaction was to laugh out loud. Although my old "I ♥ My Cunt" pins were anonymously flagged a few times several years ago (which I remedied with a "mature" tag and banner), no one had ever personally confronted me about my use of that word before. I had a look at her profile, which contained very little info besides a thank you to God for blessing her with a baby. She did have a heart-shaped felt brooch in her favourites though, so mine was clearly one of the results of her search. I wrote her back.

The title of this listing is "Reclaim The Words That People Use To Put You Down". I guess it went over your head.

You know, I've been selling items with the word 'cunt' on them for years, and you're the first person to ever confront me about it (although a pin was flagged about two years ago). Even my mother has gotten used to it. I used to include text explaining the word in every listing, and perhaps I'll go back to that. I'm assuming it's this particular word that you don't like, as I've many items with words like slut, bitch, dyke and whore on them as well, and you made no mention of them. I'm a feminist and I'm all about reclaiming so-called "dirty" words and turning them into a positive - I mean, if I'm wearing a pin that says cunt on it, well not only am I showing pride in my body, but there is no way anyone's going to be able to use that word to insult me. I've taken it back. For too long, words associated with women and their bodies have been used in a derogatory manner. Cunt has a long history and was once a positive word that was even used as a title of respect for women, priestesses and witches. I highly recommend reading the book Cunt: A Declaration Of Independence by Inga Muscio. You might also want to check out this little history lesson. You can even check out issue #20 of my zine Culture Slut, which explains my personal feelings on the word - it's listed in my Etsy shop as well.

If you refuse to understand the point I'm making, and don't want to see the word, I'd recommend using 'mature' tags when you're doing an Etsy search. See, my items are tagged mature. If you want to avoid swear words or things related to sex, you simply need to omit them from your search, ie: "brooch NOT mature". Then you'll be able to look at a plethora of brooches without mine coming up.

She has yet to respond. I do highly recommend the links posted above for all of you fine readers. Matthew Hunt's essay on the word cunt is particularly intriguing. By the way, I'll be offering custom-made brooches in the very near future.

My items have recently been featured in a few Etsy treasuries, including Weekend Getaway, The F Word, Pretty On The Inside, Love, Grrrls Who Don't Need Dates, the oddly titled How To Make The Men In Your Life Extremely Uncomfortable, and All I Want. I don't think I've ever been included in so many treasuries in such a short period of time. Thank you, kind strangers! Maybe I'm only finding them now that Etsy has added the activity feed, which keeps one up to date when people add their items to their list of favourites and such. They've come up with a few improvements in recent times - notably, the ability to use coupon codes. Speaking of, you have until about noon EST on Friday, January 14th to use the WINTERSURVIVAL coupon code at my Etsy shop. Just enter it in at the checkout and you'll save 20% on everything. Alternatively, you could participate in Fight Boredom Distro's Happy New Year Sale, ending at the same time. For every FIVE zines that you order, you will receive ONE for free. Cheers!

Fight Boredom with Wonderful Zines, Mulled Wine and Winter Survival!

2011-01-09T18:52:00.015-05:00

I've Got Strange Powers #1 beelaveryATriseup.net
This is a perzine by Toronto's Clara Bee, who also did the zine series Little Gardens For Invalids. If I'm not mistaken, this is her first attempt at a more text-driven zine, as opposed to her older ones which focus more on illustration. This one is beautifully-written, focusing mostly on her relationship and being love. She outlines a peaceful life of reading together, drawing together, drinking peppermint tea together and preparing for Shabbat together. Together, together, but it does not get too sappy. She includes tales of her experiences with both anxiety and body dysmorphia, referencing that all-too-familiar scene in movies: the man is all dressed and ready to go while the woman is constantly unsatisfied, exchanging one dress for another for another. She asks, "How could anyone possibly make a farce of our pain?" There are some wonderful illustrations throughout. You can contact Clara through the email address above, and the zine will be available through Fight Boredom Distro in the early spring.

Pourquoi Je Suis Féministe (Par Un Gars)
The title of this zine translates in English as Why I Am A Feminist (By A Guy), making the topic at hand pretty clear. The first half is a hand-drawn comic outlining the various ways that gender roles place unrealistic expectations on men to be strong, powerful and almost emotionless. The centrefold asks the question, "What if Spiderman was an anarchist?" Finally, the last section contains a short essay on feminism and the author clearly states that he is a feminist not just in solidarity with women, but because of the way sexism negatively affects men as well. He outlines various terminologies of la langue macho and includes tips on becoming a better listener and resisting notions of male superiority. It's available for free through Fight Boredom Distro, though you may notice that I haven't posted a description yet. That's because I haven't given myself the time to focus on writing one en français, but I will soon.

Lip: Politics & Poetics #3 lipzineATyahoo.ca
Based in Montreal and edited by a collective of creative minds, Lip does successfully what many others have attempted with results that leave something to be desired. This compilation zine combines poetry with politics and fiction with non-fiction in a way that is captivating and bold. The theme of this issue is Shelter, and includes not just poetry and art, but an excellent piece on the corporatization of university campuses, and a short story titled That ghost we had, an absolute must-read. The cardstock cover includes handmade details and there are many photos throughout.

Ship Of Fools #2 kafkaesqueATriseup.net
I've always been a fan of Emilja's work, and I feel that their drawings just keep getting better and better. This is a diary comic that chronicles Emilja's life from April - June 2010, as they learn to care for themself after a breakup. That means accordion-playing, cemetery hangouts, a trek to queer festival Idapalooza and always always lots of coffee, whiskey and cigarettes. And shy flirtations, which are so so wonderful in comic form.

Shotgun Seamstress #5 shotgunseamstressATgmail.com
Of all the zines that I picked up at the 2010 Portland Zine Symposium, this one was one of my favourites, yet has taken the longest for me to review. The short version is that it's one of the best fanzines out there, the writing is engaging and the cut-and-paste layout is fantastic. This issue contains interviews with DJ Soul Sister, Marilyn of Aye Nako, and members of Kicktease, as well as pieces by various writers on body hair, ESG fandom, obscure all-black classic rock band Death, and reviews of a bunch of records and zines by people of colour. Totally awesome read.

What I've Been Up To Lately: My French course officially ended in December, so I guess I've done all I can on that front. I'm continuing to read French novels on a regular basis and attempting to speak it in daily life, though somehow we always revert back to English. I must have a lifetime of studying ahead of me and I can say that I'm looking forward to it. Of course, this means that I've had much more free time on my hands these days, so I've been able to both immerse myself in creative projects and get a decent amount of rest, without fretting over not accomplishing enough or not sleeping enough. It's been great. David and I managed to visit my hometown for a few days toward the end of December, where we celebrated Christmas with my family. (I should note that none of us are particularly religious, but it certainly is a nice excuse to eat yummy food and catch up).

As far as projects go, I've been working away on my winter survival to-do list, which includes learning how to make mulled wine (from a recipe found in Show & Tell), writing lots of letters, reading Anaïs Nin and trying to enjoy what little time I must spend outdoors. I had fun hand-sewing Fight Boredom bunting, which is now hanging in my living room, and soon I will get to work on the next issue of Culture Slut. Oh, and I've been documenting it all on Instagram. I'm going to be honest, when I first started seeing Instagram pictures appearing online, I was slightly annoyed, as someone who adores Polaroids and can't stand seeing fakes. But frankly, it's an easy way to take nice photos on an iPhone and I've come to enjoy them - though I miss my Holga and Polaroid cameras, which generally stay in the closet during this time of grey skies.

I should note that I would really love to get into more talks about zines. I know that a lot of people wind up ordering zines after I've reviewed them, and of course some of you have read them before. If either is the case, please feel free to share your own thoughts in the comments section. Let's have a conversation!

Two-Week Zine Sale at Fight Boredom Distro!

2011-01-02T18:08:00.007-05:00

Seriously, order some zines before Canada Post forces me to raise the cost of shipping.

WWW.HELLO-AMBER.COM

Just Sayin'.

2010-12-24T10:41:00.003-05:00

I wish Microcosm would stop advertising through Gmail so I wouldn't have to see their ad every damn time I check my email.

Fight Boredom with Travel, Zines and New Year's Resolutions!

2010-12-23T11:03:00.001-05:00

What I've Been Up To Lately: It's been a good week. Well, a good month, really. December has been treating me so much better than usual. Firstly, I've been happy. Sounds simple enough, but between the cold weather and the early sunsets, I find it very easy to become sad and lethargic. Somehow I seem to have avoided it, at least for the most part. I'll attribute this to several factors: having prepared myself with lists and winter goals beforehand, actually having a proper coat and boots, and also having quit taking my birth control pills. I think that those pills were doing bad things to my brain. At the advice of some friends, and after a whole lotta thinkin', I finally stopped taking them. Since then, I've found myself in several situations where I normally would have snapped, would have been rude to people or yelled or cried... and now, nothing. I mean, I can acknowledge when I feel annoyed or upset but I'm more able to keep calm and deal with it rationally. I don't know if it really has to do with the pills, but I'm not gonna complain.

Secondly, good things just keep on happening. I've learned how to silkscreen, I had a happy accident that created purple streaks in my pink hair, I've been having great conversations with friends, and I'm in the midst of planning some fun trips. I've booked a table for the Chicago Zine Fest in the hopes that I'll be able to work out a carpool (the 22-hour Greyhound trip - each way - does not tempt me again this year), and I think that I may have finally figured out how to make my way back to England. I've visited twice in the past and would love to go again. Well, I looked up plane tickets online out of curiosity and realized that the cost is cut by more than half if I travel in the winter rather than the summer. So I've made a promise to myself to pay off my debts and save up enough money to travel to the UK and hopefully make it to the Brighton Zine Fest in 2012, a little over a year from now. Brighton is pretty much my favourite city in the world (and Montreal and Paris). I wanna explore some more and meet my zinester friends and hang out with Tukru.

Monday afternoon was spent drinking tea at Casa Del Popolo with Sarah, whom I met through zines recently. She was visiting Montreal for a few days and asked if I might like to exchange zines while she was here. We got to talking as we walked down St-Laurent together and when I said that I'm friends with some of the organizers of the Brighton Zine Fest, she was like, "I'm one of the organizers!" Turns out she lives there. Small world. So we talked a lot about our respective travels and international friends, dropping names to see who we had in common. It was a lot of fun, and now I've got a stack of new zines to read. Here's hoping we'll run into each other again one day!

On Tuesday, David and I went to Laval to do some gift-shopping. I am not normally a mall kinda person, for obvious reasons. Don't like crowds, don't have money, don't wanna support mass production... Besides that, I've worked various jobs in malls and have no desire to return. But we did want to buy a few things for our families and we decided to make a day of it. Went out for breakfast, then began our hunt. We spent a lot of time in Sears examining everything from the As Seen On TV section. My personal favourite was the Booty Pop - "Pop your booty from flat to fab!" Some sort of underwear with implants or something. I mulled over a pack of Bumpits for a bit. In the end, I picked up a few Space Bags, those magical vacuum-sealed bags that you can fill up with blankets and stuff and they'll take up a lot less space. Closet organisation, here I come! I picked up nearly every Hello Kitty item that I found and waved it around in David's face. He was getting pretty annoyed, but at the end of the day, he bought me one of those novelty Hello Kitty house keys, which means that I'll have a big smile on my face every time I unlock our front door. Later, we headed back to our neighbourhood of Montréal-Nord where I picked out a few Christmas presents for myself - I'll open them up in a few days and act surprised. I think it was the most fun I've ever had in a mall, probably because I was with someone I love. Now I will try not to set foot in one for another year.

In Other Zine News: I'm thinking about my resolutions and goals for the New Year. There are some things that I'm going to change on this blog. I want to make it more interactive. Like, if I'm reviewing a zine that you've read before, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. I would absolutely love to talk about 'em! I also want to do more interviews and have some guest bloggers posting every month or so. There is a Fight Boredom t-shirt design contest coming up - so start getting your ideas together! I plan on organizing some more zine readings and fun stuff in Montreal, so if you'd like to participate, get in touch. There will be a new issue of Culture Slut out in a few months and after that I might take a little break from zine-making to focus on some other projects, like crafts and workshops and maybe finding (gasp!) a real job.

As for life in general, my resolutions are to procrastinate less often, to stop interrupting people during conversations and to save up enough money to fly to England. What are yours?

On The Invisible Hierarchy Of The Zine World...

2010-12-22T20:46:00.003-05:00

Jami Sailor of Your Secretary wrote about zine hierarchies on a recent blog post and it's a topic that I would really love to talk about. She was writing about who we choose to idolize and what it means when these people are often straight white men. I want to write about it in a way that highlights my own experiences within the zine community, but I haven't been entirely sure of how to do that. I wanna talk about my experiences across the spectrum of the "hierarchy" - as a new zinester at seventeen years old (eight years ago now), as someone who has likely participated in zinester worship, and as someone who is occasionally the object of that worship. It is the latter that worries me the most, as it may be difficult to write about without coming across as some sort of pompous asshole. I don't like to admit that my zine is popular... whatever that means. So I'll just start from the beginning.

I began making zines as a teenager. If you want the longer story, check out this interview that Hannah conducted with me earlier this month, or the interview with me that was printed in Rough Draft #2. I feel like the zine world has changed a lot in that time, for better and for worse, but that's not really what I'm talking about today. When I first started, I don't recall being aware of any sort of hierarchy. I didn't know who the "popular" zinesters were and I didn't really care. I didn't even know that popular zinesters existed. I was probably making twenty copies of each issue at the time, trading them with other zinesters that I'd met online, and sometimes being lucky enough to receive a couple of US dollar bills in my mailbox - this was back before I had things like credit cards and accounts on Paypal and Etsy. I used to keep all of my zines in a shoebox in my bedroom, and when that shoebox was emptied, that was the end of the print run. As time went on, I began getting more and more requests for my zines. So I started making fifty copies instead of twenty. Then a hundred and then two hundred and then even more.

I've made so many friends through zines. There are girls that I've been exchanging letters with for years and years and we know each other better than anyone else. I've traveled to other countries to hang out with them in person and I will again. But somewhere along the line, the tone of the letters that I receive from readers has shifted. It used to be, "Let's trade zines! Let's be friends!" Now, more often than not, it's, "I wish my life was as exciting as yours," or "Here's my zine, sorry it's not amazing," or, "I hope I'm not bothering you, you're probably really busy," or even, "How can I make my zine as popular as yours?" People have seriously asked me that question. I like to think of all of us zinesters as existing on the same level, but when I get a letter in the mail from someone who has clearly put me up on a pedestal, it suddenly puts a divide between us, making any sort of friendship almost impossible. How do I respond to a letter like that? I mean, here I am sitting in front of my computer dressed in flannel pajamas and sipping from a can of no-name cola - I'm not any better than anyone else.

So this is what I do. When people mention how exciting my life is, I tell them about all of the boring parts. That I watch Coronation Street every evening, that I cook the same meals over and over again, that I'm anxious and don't like to leave the house, that I'm super fucking broke, that every wall in my apartment is painted white. When they apologize for the quality of their zine... well, I addressed that one in a post about a year ago, but the gist of it is NEVER FUCKING APOLOGIZE and if you're not confident, then fake it, and if you can't do that then don't send me the zine. As for suggesting that I might be too busy to read their letters or reply - why on earth would I make zines and include my mailing address if that were the case? The worst worst worst is that last question "How can I make my zine as popular as yours?" If you are writing zines with the intent of becoming popular, you are going to become frustrated and disappointed with the zine community very quickly. Beginning a zine with a print run of twenty to fifty copies is perfectly normal and there is no reason to ever expect anything more. Let me remind you that I've been making zines for eight long years and it's only been within the last few that I've upped my print run. And regardless of the amount of zines I sell, Culture Slut is not any better than anybody else's zine. Please don't put me up on that pedestal. Just do what you do and stop worrying all the time, stop comparing yourself to others.

I joke all of the time about how I don't like reading first zines. I agree with Jami when she says that your first zine is just as important as your one hundred and first zine - but I also know that it takes a while to develop a style and sometimes (not always) when I read someone's first zine, I feel as if I've already read it a hundred times before. I call it the First Zine Jitters. But it's okay, zines are a process. I'm going to quote my sister on this one: "I sometimes feel like I may be contributing to the very way of thinking that I am attempting to eradicate. That is, that some zines are better than others. It’s not true. It’s entirely subjective, and how I feel about one zine need not dictate how anyone else feels about it. I’ve read glowing reviews of zines I didn’t like at all, and terrible reviews of zines I loved. And who cares. The truth is, it doesn’t really matter. But it’s a healthy discussion to have."

In discussing this hierarchy business with Jami, she suggested that we ought to make ourselves more approachable, which is entirely true but is also something easier said than done. I think that being idolized by others actually says a lot more about their possible insecurities than it does about me. I would never try to make anyone feel bad for being insecure as it's totally natural and surely I feel it from time to time myself. But as someone who is recognized as a popular zinester, I can assure you that the view from here is not all that great. Friends have admitted to feeling jealous of me or of my perceived success. The last thing I want to do is make anyone feel jealous or inadequate. People steal ideas from me under the guise of inspiration. Imitation is not the sincerest form of flattery. There is a lot of annoying shit that comes along with perceived popularity. I also want to acknowledge the fact that I have access to certain resources that others may not - internet access and plenty of time to spend online, the ability to pay for many photocopies and / or scam them, the tools to promote my zines... There are many people who are much better writers than I am and have many more interesting things to say, but don't necessarily have the means to do it. Also, the world of perzines is such a tiny place in the grand scheme of things - to be writing this almost feels silly, as there will certainly be readers who have no idea what I'm talking about. But I had to share.

I recently received an email from a girl who was interested in trading zines with me - not her own, but reprints of riot grrrl zines from the 90s. I took ages to respond to her email because I wasn't quite sure what to say, but this is how it went: "To be honest, I'm not particularly interested in reprints of old riot grrrl zines. I'm not entirely comfortable with people who continue to photocopy these things; firstly because I would be angry if people were reprinting my old zines; and secondly, because I feel like by reproducing and selling / trading these zines, it sort of encourages the very hero / idol / celebrity worship that the original riot grrrls were opposing so fiercely in the first place. In general, photocopying other people's zines (or selling them for more than the cost of postage) is looked down upon in the zine community, but people seem to be making exceptions to this rule when zinesters get "famous", which only creates / encourages a hierarchy. It seems like zines such as Bikini Kill and Jigsaw have become something like "collector's items"; that young girls are putting Kathleen Hanna et al up on the pedestal that they've always said they didn't want to be on. I have huge amounts of respect and am inspired by the riot grrrl movement, but I'd rather create zines NOW and support the zines that are being created now than indulge in simple nostalgia for an era that I was too young to be a part of the first time around. I hope I'm not coming across as mean or anything, it's just something that I think about from time to time and I wanted to share it. I think it's worth questioning why these zines are deemed more important than others." Of course, I must also admit that I actually already have the zines she was talking about, and they are obviously reprints. There was a time myself when I must have deemed them Important with a capital I (though oddly enough, I never even finished reading them. They've sat on a shelf for years). I've probably "worshiped" certain zinesters in the past and unwittingly contributed to that invisible hierarchy, but I sure as hell try to avoid doing it now. Do you wanna know how to do it? You just write letters to your favourite zinesters. No bullshit, no fawning, no apologies, just write a letter. They'll usually write back. Maybe you'll even become friends.

(Because my sister and I were talking about our first zines - here I am with the first issue of Culture Slut. Check out her blog post on the topic to see the first issue of Telegram Ma'am).

Fight Boredom with Lies and Death and... Bicycles!

2010-12-19T15:19:00.004-05:00

The Rose And The Peacock #5 www.theroseandthepeacock.com
In this issue, Stephanie begins with a list of goals, like going puddle-jumping in a nice pair of rain boots, testing out mattresses at a certain furniture chain and telling the truth more often. Several pages of this zine are dedicated to the act of lying - the art form of a successful lie, reasons that we lie to each other, lies that were told throughout history and tips on how to detect a liar. It's not something that I read about terribly often, so I was intrigued... and I think that I'm pretty good at detecting a liar. Anyway, this series is kinda strange and magical.

Your Pretty Face Is Going Straight To Hell #13 tukrulovesyouATgmail.com
Sad times, man. This issue was written shortly after someone who was close to Tukru died, so most of the content is about his death and the events surrounding it. It feels like sort of a daily journal documenting the feelings and happenings over the course of a few days. As it happens, he was a huge fan of Queen and collector of memorabilia, so she includes some neat Freddie Mercury cut-and-paste work, among other fun things. A master of layouts, she is. Plus there's some stuff on family and rollerderby and even more recipes. Tukru is great.

Sub Rosa #6 Taryn Hipp / P.O. Box 943 / Doylestown, PA / 18901 USA
Well, the cover of this zine features a Cristy Road illustration of a girl who's crying, so maybe I'm continuing a little on the theme of sadness, but the content itself is totally different. Taryn writes in this imaginative, almost daydream-y kinda way and manages to both create detailed imagery and tell a complicated story in few words. By the end of this zine, which easily fits into one's pocket, you'll feel as if you've been right by her side for these past two years. Two years that have thrown many troubles her way - divorce, alcohol abuse, a move back home. But it ends with a hopeful dance in the rain and you know that things are gonna get better.

Root #3 sevansATriseup.net
Another excellent zine from Sarah Evans. In this issue, she documents her discovery of bike touring and subsequent adventures with forming a team of bicycle enthusiasts and riding all over Nova Scotia together. The pages alternate between black-and-white and full-colour, and the layout is made up of photos from various bike trips, plus vintage clip-art and maps. You can get it through Fight Boredom Distro - but if you're in or around Nova Scotia and wanna check out the bike routes for yourself, email Sarah to request a copy of The Breveteur, a full collection of detailed maps and things. Such an ambitious project!

Clutch #22 / Invincible Summer #19
Every May, Clutch and Nicole keep a daily diary in comic form and create a split zine at the end of the month. I'll be honest, I always look forward to it. There's always a special little detail too, like this one is all printed in dark red ink. Each page shows a day in the life, with Clutch's comic on the left and Nicole's on the right. In this issue, Nicole documents the tail end of the Sister Spit tour, celebrating Mother's Day and teaching zine classes to kids and teenagers, while Clutch illustrates a juice fast, Comic Book Day and a trip to Toronto. Many laughs are to be had! I picked this one up at the Portland Zine Symposium, and you can get it at Nicole's Etsy shop along with a bunch of other fun stuff.

Fight Boredom with Zines, Self-Care and Silkscreening!

2010-12-13T13:55:00.008-05:00

Root #1 sarahjoanneevansATgmail.com
Root is quickly becoming one of my favourite zine series. In this first issue, Sarah writes about her experience spending a summer living and working on an organic farm in rural Nova Scotia. She writes about a past fantasy of living out in the country, growing her own food and playing with barn cats... the perfect rural life. Then learning quickly that it is actually a lot of hard work (as well as the good stuff), plus there is the reality of having to depend on a car to get around. She discusses her thoughts on food politics and agriculture while sharing quotes and recommending her favourite books. Lots of photos are included and there's even a recipe for rhubarb pie! The whole thing is cut-and-paste with a really neat layout that alternates between full-colour and black-and-white copies, with lots of vintage fabrics used as backgrounds. This, and other issues are available through Fight Boredom Distro.

Root #2 sarahjoanneevansATgmail.com
What the hay, I will review two issues of this zine in the same entry. It's really good. This one focuses on two things: school and zines. Studying to become a biologist, while never being certain of the future that education will give to oneself. Researching heritage wheat varieties. Questioning the self-indulgence of zines and what place they have in her life. Stocking zines at work and talking about them at the library. Traveling. The kind of zine that takes you away and makes you reflect. Cut-and-paste with photos throughout.

Yarntea!: The Life And Times Of A Stressypants crochetsrebellionATgmail.com
This is a nice little perzine sent to me by Liz after reading copies of Culture Slut. It was entirely typewritten during a short vacation and is basically a journal of the trip with reflections on where she's at in life. She is a new mother and writes about how having a child has impacted her life - both the positive, like inspiring her to begin nursing school, and the negative, like being forced to move in with the in-laws to save money. There are short lists and simple drawings throughout. She writes a little bit about experiencing panic attacks, and has made a small guide called Attack Panic! that's full of suggestions on how to keep calm while dealing with anxiety and things of that nature. Email her for trades.

Not Lonely #2 not_lonely_zineATyahoo.co.uk
I am loving these guides that people make for self-care. There is a whole section dedicated to self-care in this zine; Hannah shows us how she manages to keep on top of her mental health issues without taking medication, and offers simple tips to keep in mind for daily life, like getting on a regular sleep schedule, keeping organized, and cutting toxic people out of your life, among others. She writes about being someone who does not enjoy going out (as in, to bars and parties) and how this is sometimes looked at as some sort of an anomaly when it comes to twenty-somethings. I myself could relate entirely - I certainly had a good go of it with the getting drunk and staying out late thing but I just don't enjoy it anymore, so it's nice to find comfort in the words of others who feel the same. Cut-and-paste with a few pages written on Hello Kitty stationery. Adorable.

What I've Been Up To Lately: I recently joined the Sidetracks Silkscreening Team at the Ste-Émilie Skillshare, so I've been getting some practice in, first by attending a silkscreening workshop and anti-oppression training, then by helping to print posters for LADYNOISEFEST, and later by making Fight Boredom patches (along with Susan who was making some pretty awesome art right next to me). I've really enjoyed the days I've spent there so far and I've got some more ideas floating about for the near future, which I'm sure I'll eventually share with you fine readers. Besides that, I've been keeping up with my winter survival list, which will likely be documented in zine form in the New Year, having good hangouts with Kate Pinchdog, and writing exams, but mostly being a homebody.

On Having My Work Published Without Permission: A website has been created with the purpose of archiving blog posts and sharing information on the whole Teal Triggs debacle. Check it out and spread the word. A list of every zine included in the book has just been posted to the site - remember, if your work was used, you are entitled to a free contributor's copy of the book. Information on how to get your hands on it is on the website.

In Other Zine News: An interview with me was just posted at Hannah Reads Zines. Also, Marching Stars Distro got a lovely write-up in Diva, Europe's most popular lesbian magazine and Lizzy said some pretty kind words about Culture Slut in it. I don't think the article is available online, but parts of it can be seen here. Finally, don't forget that the winter sale at my Etsy shop is still going on. Just enter coupon code WINTERSURVIVAL to save 20% on everything.

On Having My Work Published Without Permission (Part 3)

2010-12-08T15:40:00.005-05:00

As I've written about on numerous occasions, my zine was recently included in a Thames & Hudson publication called Fanzines, by Teal Triggs. The artwork appeared in the book without my consent and wasn't even credited to the correct name. I soon found out that I was not the only one whom the author "forgot" to contact - many, many zinesters received identical emails from her after the book went to press (including my twin sister, pictured below), all of them ending with the line, "I do hope this is okay." Actually, it's not.

A website has been created in order to archive all of the blog posts and discussions on the matter, as well as inform interested parties and keep everyone involved updated. It was put together in a bit of a haste, but a lot more info is soon to come, including a full list of "contributors", lists of those whose work was used without permission, those who are boycotting the book, factual errors found within the text and further actions to be taken. Feel free to spread the link widely.

It was discovered recently that the book is now available through retail chain Urban Outfitters. This is disappointing, though not surprising considering the chain's well-documented history of ripping off designs from independent artists.

If you would like your name to be included on the list of those whose work was included without permission, those who are boycotting the purchase of the book, or if you've written about this matter on your blog and want the link added to the archives, or if you have any questions or concerns regarding the website or the book, please email: fanzinesbytealtriggs@gmail.com

Fuck off, Teal Triggs!

Fight Boredom with a Winter Survival Sale!

2010-12-04T10:35:00.005-05:00

With the snow beginning to fall, my thoughts turn to winter survival. What better way to beat the wintertime blues than to curl up on the couch and read a bunch of awesome zines? Or maybe you wanna get a unique gift for a special friend? Enter coupon code WINTERSURVIVAL when you check out at my Etsy shop to save 20% on everything. If you've been eyeing up my handmade brooches or my new Polaroid zine, now is the best time to get your hands on 'em. Sale continues throughout the month of December.

Fight Boredom with Cats, Beards and Communication!

2010-11-26T14:56:00.005-05:00

Instead Of Kids, We Have Cats artsvesATgmail.com
This tiny zine is about the size of a matchbook, but there was clearly an incredible amount of effort put into it. It features eight watercolour cat portraits, some with little stories on the back. The premise is that cats often become family members for queers, hence the title, and the size of the zine, mimicking the wallet-size family photos that people often carry around with them. Vellum covers are sewn on and the whole thing folds together like an accordion. So wonderful.

The Rose & The Peacock #4 www.theroseandthepeacock.com
In this issue of Stephanie's perzine, she wonders at all the time she has spent in her life waiting - for doctor's appointments, the bus, Christmastime... She writes about her bizarre facial expressions and the way they get her into trouble, and includes profiles of her favourite punk bands and an overview of the Tiffany glass exhibition that recently came through Montreal (noting that the women who contributed to his designs are finally being credited for their work). Cut-and-paste with some hand-coloured pages, this is another delightful read.

Femme À Barbe #2 www.sassyfrasscircus.com
The much-anticipated second issue of J Bee's Femme À Barbe is finally here! This issue contains contributions of art and writing on the topic of body hair (facial hair to be more specific - the French title translates to Bearded Lady). Sari of perzine You've Got A Friend In Pennsylvania and feminist comp zine Hoax, writes about their history with body hair, from being encouraged to shave as a pre-teen and eventually quitting but always having troubles with facial hair - and their mother's treatment of it. Bastian Fox Phelan writes about the reactions to their first zine on the topic, Ladybeard, and others write about facial hair in relation to transitioning, to racist beauty ideals and to privilege. It's pretty much my favourite comp zine that's out there right now. And you can get it through Fight Boredom Distro.

Shotgun Seamstress #3 shotgunseamstressATgmail.com
Speaking of fucking awesome comp zines. Osa has been putting together this zine "by and for black punks, queers, feminists, artists and musicians" for several years now. This issue's theme is Money, and features pieces on photographer Alvin Baltrop, Gravy Trains!!!'s brief battle over royalties and traveling on the cheap (aka trainhopping), as well as interviews with musicians Kali Boyce (Nastyfacts) and Mick Collins (The Dirtbombs and The Gories), plus a reggae playlist, comics and more, all put together with the sweetest cut-and-paste layout you've ever seen. Newer issues will be reviewed in the near future. I picked this one up from the Ste-Émilie Skillshare at Expozine and traded for the latest issue back in August when I was at the Portland Zine Symposium. In the meantime, read Osa's MRR columns here.

How to Communicate: A Clipart Zine communikateATriseup.net
Kate Pinchdog, who you may know through Riot Wife and other exciting titles, has begun an excellent clipart series, the first of which is How to Communicate. This half-size zine features ten pages of amazing vintage clipart of images such as telephones, televisions, record players, books, and all sorts of good-looking people making use of them. It has the feel of a guide on etiquette, but way cuter and funnier. Featuring advice on making telephone calls, fashioning a tin can telephone and even how to talk to cops. Great stuff! Grab a copy from her Etsy shop, and keep your eyes peeled for future titles like How to Make Money and How to Be a Woman.

Fight Boredom with Gender Theory, Vampires and Go Get 'Em Zines!

2010-11-24T19:48:00.013-05:00

Gender On A Threshold: Studio Portraits of Women & Their Bicycles 1890 - 1900 powpowbearpowATgmail.com
This zine was given to me at Expozine by a lovely person named Heather, after a moment where we had stared at each other and said, "I've seen you before, but I don't know where." Which seems to happen to me a lot these days. (For the record, it was at a zine workshop at Ste-Émilie last spring). She was wearing this hoodie that needs to be noted because it was printed with an intricate floral pattern that was actually teeming with skulls upon closer look. Want. Anyway, as I'm sure you can tell from the title, this is a pretty excellent zine. It's all about women's historical place in the public sphere, and how the bicycle came to change it. Bicycles themselves were seen as for-men-only, with women being relegated to tricycles if they rode at all. Of course this changed, what with the "new woman" and bloomers and all, and this shift is illustrated throughout this half-size 30-page zine. All of the photos included appear to have been taken in Quebec and Ontario, giving the zine a very local feel and presenting history in a very relateable way. The insistence upon all lower-case letting was irritating at times, but overall it was a very original and thought-provoking zine (with a substantial bibliography included).

Vampire Sushi #1 tukrulovesyouATgmail.com
Argh, yes! I love this zine. This was put out as something of a Halloween special by Vampire Sushi Distro (operated out of small-town-UK by zinester couple Tukru and Carl). It's got a horror theme and is pretty much the most unpretentious art zine ever made. Quarter-size and printed entirely on red paper, it features illustrations by Cherry Truant, frl.zucker, Emma Falconer and others, plus short fiction by Clementine Cannibal and a Vampire Sushi mixtape tracklist featuring all of our favourite monster bands - The Cramps, Jack Off Jill, L7, The Knife, The Horrors and a whole lot more. Think vampires, zombies and even a were-pigeon.

The Rose & The Peacock #3 www.theroseandthepeacock.com
Another delightful Expozine find. Stephanie and I traded for a stack of each other's zines. The Rose & The Peacock is very whimsical and sweet, featuring personal prose, poetry and a little bit of history. Although vowing not to let her job define her as a person, she takes a great interest in the work of others, like her mother, television doctors and various "late-bloomer" authors. Work is a recurring theme in this issue, which even features a photo of her mother sat at the typewriter at one of her first secretarial jobs. She discusses her feeling of unease with speaking on the phone, which leads into a short biography of Emma Nutt, the first female telephone operator. Always nostalgic for a time long before her, every page is cut and paste with 1950s-style imagery. It was a nice little read, and I'll likely review more issues in the future.

Dig Deep #1 indicativeATgmail.com
So, there is this genre of zines that really only exists in my head, and I call it "go get 'em zines" - basically, they're kinda zines that are written well, that present a generally positive attitude and that make one feel ready to take on the world. Think Nothing Rhymes, Riot Wife, Fuck Shyness and Adventure Time. Well, now we can add Dig Deep to the list. Heather is a librarian in Chicago (something you can read more about in Into The Grid), and she strikes me as someone who's able to find happiness in the small moments in life. Which is what it's all about, really. She writes about exploring the libraries in every town that she visits, a resolution to do Significant Things in the months leading up to her 30th birthday, impromptu dance parties, and the place that she calls home. Plus funny work tales and a series of ten-word zine reviews. Into The Grid and Dig Deep will be available through Fight Boredom Distro very soon.

What I've Been Up To Lately: While tabling at Expozine on Saturday, Zoë (whom I met through our mutual love of Sassyfrass Circus) came over and asked if I'd like to start tabling at the Midnight Kitchen on a regular basis. From their website: "The Midnight Kitchen is a non-profit, volunteer and worker run food collective dedicated to providing affordable, healthy food to as many people as possible. Based out of McGill University in Montreal, QC we provide free/by donation vegan lunches 5 days a week, Monday through Friday, at 12:30 in the Shatner building on McGill campus." So I've tabled there a couple of times now and it's been a slice. They served me the best rice pudding I've ever had in my life. From now on, Fight Boredom Distro will be tabling at Midnight Kitchen every Wednesday afternoon for an hour or so at lunchtime, occasionally joined by Kate Pinchdog and maybe others. I'm really pleased about this, because I've been wanting to table my distro at various fun stuff besides the requisite zine fairs, and now is my chance. Besides that... Attending the Salon du Livre de Montréal, making brooches, reading lots (zines, and Kamouraska by Anne Hébert), planning some workshops that I'll be hosting in the near future, watching The Notorious Bettie Page, acquiring a new pair of rainboots, catching an interview with Émilie Jouvet and Wendy Delorme of Too Much Pussy: Feminist Sluts in the Queer X Show on Les Francs-tireurs, and perhaps spending a little bit too much time looking at Hello Kitty junk online.

In Other Zine News: Maranda Elizabeth of Telegram Ma'am has reduced all of her zines by 50% for the remainder of the month. Grab 'em while you can; I know that some of those back issues will be out of print soon. Also, Catherine Elms reviewed Fight Boredom #5 on her blog, and my post on zine fair etiquette was linked at Sparkplug.

Fight Boredom with Expozine! And Manners, Please.

2010-11-15T20:19:00.009-05:00

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who has ordered a copy of my new zine so far. I love those first few days of listing a new issue and getting all those lovely notification emails and packing everything up to mail it out. I had a funny experience at the post office the other day. I went in with about thirty packages and thankfully no one else was there. My favourite clerk was working, and she is super sweet and told me that I look nice in my green cardigan. She always speaks with this pleasant tone of voice and is patient with me when I stumble with my French vocabulary. Whenever I have a large amount of mail, I divide the envelopes into countries, putting first those destined elsewhere in Canada on the scale, then America, then England, and so on and so forth. So we have this little routine where she weighs them and clicks around on the computer, and I make an announcement when I've switched to another country. "On change pour Angleterre!" So we were doing this, and I had maybe six envelopes left when an older woman got in line behind me. She quickly became frustrated with my stack of mail and started huffing and puffing in a very noticeable way. I tried to ignore her at first, and continued making my little announcements, on change pour Australie, on change pour Nouvelle-Zélande... This woman began swearing at each envelope that I put onto the scale. I'd set one down and she'd burst out with, "Ostie!" I'd set down the next one and "Tabarnac!" So I turned around and said to her calmly, in the best French I could, "I'm at the post office and I'm mailing letters. Do you have a problem with that?" She rolled her eyes at me, then swore again when I set down the next envelope. I turned to her again. "This is what the post office is for! What do you want me to do with all this mail?" She couldn't think of anything except to ask, "Who are you writing to?! Are these all your friends?!" as if it was any of her business anyway. I said, "I know I have a lot of mail, but that's the way it is sometimes. I'm going to be another two minutes and you'll just have to be patient and wait your turn." This did not shut her up. She swore even louder when my total was announced (nearly fifty dollars), and finally the clerk said, "This woman runs a small business. She comes in every week with lots of mail and it's not a problem." Nice to know she's got my back. I told the old woman to get over herself, and the clerk said, "See you next week!" and I got outta there. What a mean person. No one likes waiting in line, but it's inevitable, especially at the post office. Get the fuck over it, and don't go in there if you're in a rush. Though I'm perplexed as to what else this elderly woman had on her plate on a Sunday afternoon anyway. Those of you in Canada, the States, England, Australia, New Zealand, Finland and Austria - your zines are on their way!

On to Expozine... I had a good enough time. I was not as overwhelmed as usual (though I've never been great in crowds), I sold a lotta zines, I picked up some Halifax zines for Fight Boredom Distro, I grabbed the latest issue of Ghost Pine, and I realized that I know quite a few people in this fine city. A success, for me anyway. But I haven't done enough complaining for the day, so I'm going to continue. First of all, I barely saw any zines, at least the photocopied and stapled version that I so love. I saw a lot of t-shirts, posters, books, cds, dvds and expensive stuff. Some of it was cool shit, but being that the event is called ExpoZINE, I'd sure like to see a lot more zines. And I'm not talking about twelve-dollar art zines.

And people who are there solely to advertise their blogs... COME ON. I don't want to be petty, but I've decided that from here on in, if I see people acting like douchebags at zine events, I'm going to call them out publicly, be it to their faces or through this here blog. That said, some of the people from Spacing Montreal were total douchebags. Yelling at every passerby, "Have you heard of our blog? Have you heard of our blog?" and scaring everyone away from surrounding tables. They had postcards for people to fill out with notes on their favourite places in Montreal, which is a cute idea. Unfortunately, though they had pens and paper, they refused to provide the space for people to write things down, which meant that these people would constantly pile their stuff onto my neighbouring sister's table, hiding her zines and making it impossible for other passersby to see her. Totally ignorant and obnoxious behaviour - though perhaps not too surprising, an organization called Spacing taking up too much space? The guy who was tabling for them earlier on seemed nice enough, but new representatives showed up a few hours later and they were no fun to deal with. My sister quickly became frustrated and I had to ask the tablers to be little more respectful and stick to the tabling guidelines. I said, "If you're going to ask people to write things for you, you must be able to provide that space. My sister paid just as much for her table as you did, and you're overstepping your boundaries and hiding it from everyone." They cleared a small space at the front of their table, but it wasn't ten minutes later that they were sliding their things onto her tablecloth again. Finally, she packed up her zines and came to have a beer with me, because those people were fucking annoying. Note to Spacing: Book two fucking tables if you need the space next year.

Another annoyance: The Hard Sell. There are a few of these jerks at every zine fair, the ones who yell at you from behind their table, or who make you feel guilty for not purchasing anything once you've stopped. One that I've dealt with for two years in a row now is Ballz Zine. Last year, they called me to their table, and I went over in order to be polite, but was not particularly interested. They basically tried to hassle me into buying a mixtape, and every time I said no thanks, they'd come back with a rebuttal. It was like being stuck on the phone with a telemarketer (sometimes I'm too nice to hang up). This year, as my sister and I passed by, a girl stood directly in front of us and burst out with, "Do you like to read?? Do you like words??" Instead of taking the hint when we continued walking on, she simply yelled louder. Um, that's not how you make friends. I'm already uncomfortable enough in crowds without some hyper stranger yelling at me. Just let me browse. If I'm interested in your zine, I'll stop and take a look. Maybe I'll even buy it or trade with you. If not, I'll keep on walking. Deal with it.

I struggle with these thoughts often. I love going to zine fairs, but they are overwhelming. I've tabled at many of them over the past... six years? When was my first one? 2004, Peterborough? As a tabler, I feel like I've found a decent balance between conversing with people, letting them browse, and making them feel comfortable. Sometimes I can sense when a person isn't up for conversation, and that's okay with me. As a shy person, I can understand it, and am happy to sit back and continue reading or sewing, or doing whatever to pass the time. I answer people's questions and I try to smile. Attending a zine fair as a visitor rather than a tabler is a different experience. I personally find it quite awkward, as I feel pressure to spend money, and tend to avoid eye contact in order to discourage The Hard Sell, or whatever else may come up. I prefer to flip through zines on my own, perhaps say a quick hello, and maybe make conversation if I'm truly interested in the tabler's work. But mostly, I'm in my own little world and I'd like to stay there. There is no getting around the fact that zine fairs are crowded places, and are often held in small, even dark venues. They will never be perfect. But as attendees, we must learn to respect people's space as much as we possibly can - that means being friendly but not overbearing, not pressuring people to spend money that they may or may not have (I find it quite classist when a zinester rebuts a no thank you with, "But it's only three dollars!" as if that three dollars is nothing at all, when to many, it may be the difference between buying food later on, or catching the bus home), not overstepping boundaries in terms of table space or what-have-you, and not looking at zines as some sort of money-making venture. Let's try to keep these ideas in mind for the future, hmm? Feel free to add more suggestions and share your own stories in the comments.

Fight Boredom Distro News: I've recently addded Culture Slut #23, Femme À Barbe #2, Jen(ny) Ambular #2 and Telegram Ma'am #19.5 to the catalogue. Root #1-#3, Facts About Menstruation That Every Woman Should Know, Telegram Ma'am #18 and #20 and Dig Deep #1 are soon to come. Beginning this week, I'll be tabling with Fight Boredom Distro at McGill University's Midnight Kitchen (SSMU building 3rd floor, 3480 MacTavish) every Wednesday at lunchtime. Come eat yummy PWYC vegan food and check out some rad zines!

In Other Zine News: Hannah recently reviewed Culture Slut #22 and Fight Boredom #5 on her blog. Also, the zine reading that I mentioned in an earlier entry went really well. It was my first time organizing and hosting an event, and although I was nervous, I couldn't have been happier. The fine people at the 2110 Centre For Gender Advocacy decorated with streamers and lights and the room looked so lovely. We all ate good food, drank wine, read zines and laughed a lot. I'm hoping to throw events like this on a regular basis, so get in touch if you're interested.

Fight Boredom with Handmade Brooches and the Latest Issue of Culture Slut!

2010-11-11T11:43:00.009-05:00

This issue of Culture Slut is slightly different than usual - this time I've printed it in glorious full-colour! It features nearly thirty Polaroids that I've taken over the past year, as well as photobooth strips, collages, crafts and other ephemera. Cut and paste with typewritten text - no computers were used in the making of this issue.

While the focus is mostly on the visual, I do write a little bit about my love of afternoon adventures, the way my grandparents have influenced me, and a recent trip to Portland, Oregon. Special appearances are made by Maranda Elizabeth, Vincent Wilde, Hello Kitty and Lisa Frank.

The price is a little higher this time around, due to the cost of full-colour printing, but I promise you it'll be worth it.

Quarter-size, 46 pages, full-colour. You can order it through my Etsy shop, Paypal to polaroid.panicATgmail.com, or mail well-concealed cash to: Amber Forrester / 10124 Ave. Hébert #8 / Montréal, QC / H1H 3W6 Canada. I'll be updating Fight Boredom Distro with the new issue shortly, as well as other titles, like Femme à Barbe #2 and Jen(ny) Ambular #2.

As if that isn't enough, I've also just listed a whole bunch of hand-embroidered felt brooches. Kate Pinchdog was kind enough to be my model. You know that I’m all about reclaiming the words that people use to put others down, and this is just another part of that. How can anyone insult you by hollering cunt, slut, bitch, dyke, when you’re already wearing the word proudly on your chest?

Fight Boredom with Expozine and the Zinester Show & Tell Party!

2010-11-11T11:31:00.006-05:00

Oh hi! It's been a little while since I've posted an update, so maybe you're wondering what I've been up to? I'll admit that I was feeling down for a little bit there. I had a series of bad happenings, like drinking too much and losing an expensive phone, getting a little deeper into debt than I oughtta be, feeling too icky to go to school... but things are getting better. I've begun volunteering at several different places, and as the weather gets colder, I feel more and more committed to my winter survival plans, which include learning how to make mulled wine, silkscreening, writing a lot and just keeping myself together.

This Saturday, I'll be tabling at Expozine and I just finished a brand new issue of Culture Slut right on time. My sister will be here, so I'm looking forward to spending time with her (and other zinesters) and exploring the city and eating good food.

Tomorrow evening, I'm throwing a zinester show and tell party at the 2110 Centre For Gender Advocacy and I'm really looking forward to it. It's the first event of the sort that I've planned, so here's hoping all goes well. If you're in Montreal, I'd love to see you there!

Fight Boredom with Diary Comics, Perzines and Sexy Zines!

2010-10-26T13:39:00.011-04:00

You Are Found #1 owlbookdreamsATgmail.com
By the creator of Dear Girl and Genderfuck What (both available through Fight Boredom Distro - Second issue of Genderfuck What coming soon!), You Are Found is perhaps part perzine, part art zine, part affirmation. It's a reminder that you were meant to exist in this world, that you are right here and now is the time to live your life. aly writes about working out of town for the summer and the way she'd assumed she would "find herself" only to come home and realize that it it didn't happen. She writes about clutter and panic and girls and dreams and trying to make life make sense. It's a neat little thing with crayon-coloured covers. This sounds nerdy, but I really just think she's a kind girl who wants everyone to be happy.

Bitch Theme #2: The Cunt and Clit Edition charlotteleeukATyahoo.com
I will be perfectly honest and I say that I didn't particularly enjoy this zine, though maybe I would have when I was younger. I can only read so many stories in a row of girls first discovering masturbation, and I'd venture to say that I can only look at so many cunts in one sitting and there are a damn lotta cunts in this zine. Cheers for the diversity though! I do believe that more people oughtta be aware of the history of the word cunt (which you can read up on here) and that women and girls should certainly know how their bodies function and how to dispel slut-shaming myths, which this zine attempts to do. So while I might not be the right audience for it (not because I don't care, but because I already know and have been reading this stuff for ages), there definitely is one. Though as a sidenote - I would not recommend gluing glitter onto a zine cover. It's really annoying to deal with. (Sidenote to the sidenote: Although this zine is not the culprit, my cat recently choked after secretly snacking on a pile of stickers and glitter that fell out of a letter that I'd received in the mail. He vomited all over the apartment and for a moment I actually thought he was dying). Apparently only every other issue of Bitch Theme is a compilation, so maybe I'd be more into the perzine version. I think it's difficult to keep a comp zine relevant, engaging and pleasing to the eye, and I'm speaking as someone who has never been entirely satisfied with the way Fight Boredom turns out (which is why it'll be a long time before I put out another one).

Lickety Split #8: The Work Issue! http://licketysplitzine.blogspot.com/
Lickety Split is a pansexual smut zine published in Montreal on a regular basis and available through Etsy and various zine events throughout Canada and the United States. I think this is my favourite issue yet - and not just because my name mysteriously appeared on the Highly Fuckables list. The theme is "work" and this issue includes interviews with sex workers rights organization Stella, as well as workers in various sex-related occupations running from dominatrix to webcam girl to porn theatre clerk, a round-table discussion with members of the Save the Main Coalition, an exposé on the sometimes bizarre things that bookstore customers do when they think no one is watching, a piece on teaching medical students to give good pelvic exams, thoughts on opening up a relationship and a whole lot more. By a whole lot more, I mean full-colour smutty photos and cheap sex toy ideas.

Invincible Summer #18 www.nicolejgeorges.com
Ah! Invincible Summer always makes me happy. In this issue of Nicole's diary comic, she documents ridding a new house of a slight mouse infestation (in case you're not aware, she draws the most adorable animals in the world), getting a new vehicle (um, I spelled this word wrong several times before realizing that spell-check was underlining it because I was writing it in FRENCH), and tales of various jobs she's held, including teaching zine classes, working at a feminist bookstore and attempting to get a babysitting job as an adult - cute and funny! I'm the worst person in the world at describing comics, but this is one of my favourites. Plus she includes yummy oatmeals recipes. I went a little overboard and got a bunch of Nicole's zines while I was in Portland, only to come home and remember that I had a subscription through Etsy. Now I've got doubles, so some lucky friend will get to have 'em sometime. Be sure to also check out free compilation comic zine Dope Flounder, where Nicole's contribution We Used To Be Awesome At Shoplifting is included (among other good ones and some that didn't really float my boat).

Blue Okoye #1 okehiAThotmail.com
It's not too often that I receive a zine in the mail with a form letter, but it certainly has happened. Wouldn't you know it, I got another one today. Brooklyn, NY must be churning out desperate writers like no tomorrow 'coz it seems that's where all of my form letters have come from. I opened up the envelope and the letter enclosed began, "To whom it may concern..." Ah, fuck. Maybe this is something that all bookstore employees / aspiring writers do, because the last guy used his bookstore job as an excuse and this one writes about working in one, too... When will people learn that books and zines are not the same thing? Anyway, while no outright theme is stated, clearly it is ASS. From tales of bowel movements to a kid with a colostomy bag, to pulling pranks on co-workers in the bathroom and checking out girls' asses on the street... He even asked me to consider stocking it at Fight Boredom Distro. Now why would I bother doing that when he obviously did not even bother reading the description of the types of zines I carry in the first place? Here's a reminder: "Specializing in queer zines, feminist zines, diary comics, tales of small towns, adventures, gardening, community-building, activism, body positivity, and tattoos - written in both English and French."

Fight Boredom with Travel Tales and Comp Zines!

2010-10-25T20:11:00.008-04:00

When Language Runs Dry: A Zine For People With Chronic Pain And Their Allies #3 nevertwiceATyahoo.com
This is one of the best comp zines currently being created and I've got the first two issues, which I devoured. This one features articles by a cyclist who experienced brain damage after being hit by a car and a mother writing about her chronic pain and how this affects the raising of her child, a comic about fibromyalgia and forming a feminist theory around invisible disabilities, a conversation between two generations of women living with chronic pain, and a piece on learning how to say "yes" to activities that are often turned down for fear of exacerbating the pain. A must-read.

Utopia #1 datanodataATgmail.com
This is a pretty neat zine, although I'll admit that I cringed at the beginning when the author sorta romanticized being in a dirty punk house. I can't live like that and I don't think that dirty floors and unwashed dishes are "punk rock", I think they're mostly due to laziness. He does a lot of pontificating about spending time on the West Coast and about the way America does everything BIG, without sounding at all bitter. It was really well-written and I was surprised at the end when I found out that it was a 24-hour zine. Especially considering his other zine, Tall Tales #1, which to me was just a big cliché about hitchhiking and reading Jack Kerouac. But yeah, I liked this one. And it contains a lotta fantastic clip art.

Up The Kids #5 (no contact info?)
I did not like this zine. I thought I might. It's pretty lengthy at nearly fifty half-size pages with small text. I was looking forward to some good stories. It began alright. The author talked about his local railroad and the various towns it runs through and a bit about the tomato and rice plants in his area. I love reading about small towns and it's kind of exciting to discover a place I've never heard of. There was a drawing of a water tower - I love water towers, too. One day when I climb out of this debt, I will get Lindsay's water tower tattooed on my thigh. The next page is about an older black man threatening him on his way to school. He compares him to Ol' Dirty Bastard and then writes about a "young ghetto youth" in the next paragraph. First of all, "young youth" is redundant. Youth would suffice. I'm also not entirely comfortable with the word ghetto being used as an adjective, especially when a white person is doing the writing. Second of all, it seemed like all of the people of colour he wrote about were caricatures. He consistently wrote about people of colour starting fights and committing crimes in something of a tone of disdain, as if he were somehow above all that, yet wrote about Columbine in the same issue and voiced his understanding of their violence due to their outcast status and torture at school. It seemed odd that he was able to reconcile the white murderers' crimes with their troubled pasts, but give absolutely no thought as to why people of colour might also turn to violence. I was already feeling annoyed but continued on, only to find a whole page devoted to whining about being single. And I quote: "These were not the girls that I thought were out of my league, these were females whom (sic) I just wanted to be important to, and I'm not sure why, other than because I knew I wasn't. To these girls, I am the type of sweet guy who the (sic) may look up on MySpace in a few years when all the attractive guys they've let slither around on top of them have left them high and dry. And all the girls who I let slip away in much the same fashion? Well I'm sure they are doing really good (sic) since we stopped talking, so they can all thank me for being a stepping stone to a much better place, person or situation." I've bolded the best parts for your pleasure. I hate it when single guys pull the I'M SO SWEET WHY DON'T GIRLS LIKE ME nonsense. He also manages to include slut-shaming and guilt-tripping in the same paragraph. Charming, right? It reminded me of a certain other zinester who writes whiny zines about singlehood and acts like a douchebag and can't figure out why girls run away from him in droves. I'm not saying this guy is a douchebag, I don't really know him, but I sure wouldn't wanna date someone like that. Anyway. There is some stuff on religion, some more drawings and so many typos and grammatical errors that I almost got out a highlighter to track them for fun. I gave up on the zine at about the halfway point.

Jen(ny) Ambular #2: Our Summer Tour jtwiggATgmail.com
Hell yeah! Jen plays in pop-punk band The Ambulars and writes zines about being in a band and touring, and what these sorts of activities look like for a lady in a mostly-male environment. Some of the predictable behaviours include being written off as "the girlfriend", being looked down upon for using low-end gear, having to put up with sexist jokes and dealing with the physical (and emotional) discomfort of bleeding while on tour. (I'd like to add how much I hate it when I'm lugging gear for a band and they hand me things and say, "Here, this is light, you can handle it.") There is always a fine line between learning how to call these things out, and keeping it inside for fear of being a downer (or "that PC bitch" or whatever terms are being used these days to invalidate women who stand up for themselves). Of course, she also includes tales of awesome venues, meeting fun people in various cities and receiving props for being a talented musician. I could relate to a whole lotta what Jen has to say, and you'll be able to order this zine through Fight Boredom Distro very soon.

Fight Boredom with Perzines, History and Haiku!

2010-10-19T09:01:00.013-04:00

Cinnamon Insanity stibiziATyahoo.co.uk
I believe this is E*phi's first zine effort and I have to say that I like it quite a bit. It's a cut-and-paste zine that includes many fantastic illustrations and a lot of (neatly) hand-rendered text. We both turned twenty-five recently and thus have both written about our quarter-life crises in our latest zines. In E*phi's case, she is dealing with the stress of preparing her thesis, wondering if she is smart enough for a career in chemistry and considering art school. I enjoyed having a chance to read about two different things that I've never experienced - attending university and living in Austria. This may actually be the first Austrian zine I've ever received. Also includes queer musings, banana recipes and fun lists. Reads like a letter from a friend.

Sunday's on the phone to Monday, Tuesday's on the phone to me ivanaforpresidentAThotmail.com
This is a tiny little zine that was put together earlier this year for the 24-Hour Zine Thing. Ivana (who also writes a perzine sereis called Watch Him Bleed), writes about the musicians that influenced her most as she was growing up - The Beatles, The Doors, Tricky and Silverchair. I was reading this zine on the bus and happened to be listening to Silverchair on my headphones at the time, which was such a silly little coincidence. I used to love Silverchair as a kid, and have been having this bout of nostalgia for them recently, so I downloaded Neon Ballroom and have been listening to it pretty frequently. I don't know how they went from being my favourite band to a guilty pleasure... Anyway, she tells the story of the discovery of each of these artists and how they've influenced her, and includes a few photos and lyrics. It's a quick and fun read that will likely have you thinking of your own musical loves.

Adorn #20 breechumleyATyahoo.com
Bree has been creating Adorn for fourteen years now, which is pretty damn impressive. This issue is entirely typewritten and includes a repetition of images that I find quite intriguing. I would include a possible trigger warning with this one, as she begins by writing about a recent suicide attempt and subsequent stay in the hospital. This goes into musings on mental illness and diabetes, getting married (and divorced) at a very young age, and losing a close friend. It is incredibly personal, and I would much rather write a letter than a review, so that's what I'm gonna do.

Hospital Haiku breechumleyATyahoo.com
The premise of this zine is both heartbreaking and intriguing, and I have to admit that I absolutely adore the outcome, yet almost feel guilty given the circumstances. When Bree was in the hospital following a suicide attempt, her mother wrote her a haiku each day that she was there. This zine is a small collection of those poems, typewritten and laid out in a cut-and-paste style that is very pleasing to the eyes.

Les Carnets de Rastapopoulos #7 2-7 Larch Street / Ottawa, Ontario / K1R 6W4 Canada
So, you know how sometimes zinesters write apologies in their intro for taking so long to put out the latest issue? And I'm always thinking, "Just shut up and show me the rest of your zine." Well, this author has the best excuse ever - A VAN CRASHED INTO HIS HOUSE. He had to vacate the place for six months while the mess was cleaned up. I can't say I envy him, but it's a pretty good excuse for being behind on things. I'll be honest, I Googled Rastapopolous to figure out what it meant. He's a character from Tintin, and you may be interested to know that he has his very own Facebook profile. I haven't paid much attention to Tintin since I was a kid, so I guess the name was a little lost on me. Don't let the title fool you - this zine is written entirely in English. I received it in my mailbox last week, folded in half and sealed shut with an Ottawa bus ticket. It's perhaps not the sorta of zine that I would pick up on my own, but I really enjoyed it. He writes about strange pieces of history, like William Topaz McGonagall being declared the worst poet in the world, and The Faroe Islands forming their own FIFA recognized soccer team as a means of declaring independence from Denmark. Apparently FIFA has 29 more members than the United Nations. Interesting.

What I've Been Up To Lately: Going apple-picking in Mont St-Grégoire, making apple sauce, apple muffins, apple crisp and apple oatmeal cookies, touring through Ontario with Infinite Moksha, crafting fourteen brooches whilst in the passenger seat, eating too much pizza, mending clothes, drinking apricot beer (and hoping to find pumpkin ale now that it's autumn), buying beautiful and rare French typewriters whose keys have the accents and everything on them, making great plans with Vincent, volunteering at the 2110 Centre For Gender Advocacy, celebrating my 25th birthday with my Birthday Girl tiara, cupcakes, Hello Kitty and a shiny new guillotine (best present ever - thanks David!), continuing my French studies, writing letters, trimming my hair into a bob, checking out the Otto Dix exhibition at the Musée Des Beaux-Arts, listening to Françoise Hardy and spending a little bit too much time on YouTube watching videos from Saturday Night Live and Insane Clown Posse.

In Other Zine News: My one-dollar-for-one-day-only sale on Etsy was a success! I sold nearly fifty zines, and thanks to Miss Tukru, managed to go right over the 1000 sales mark. Thank you so much to everyone who participated! I'll have a new issue of Culture Slut listed soon, as well as handmade brooches. To keep up to date, you can feel free to click "like" on my Facebook page.

Fight Boredom with ONE DOLLAR ZINES FOR ONE DAY ONLY!

2010-10-16T11:54:00.002-04:00

Today is my 25th birthday!!! I'm celebrating by wearing my tiara, eating yummy food and doing whatever makes me happy. Just decided to throw a one day sale for fun. If you go to my Etsy shop, every issue of Culture Slut and Fight Boredom has been reduced to ONE DOLLAR FOR ONE DAY ONLY. Check it out and please tell your friends! They'll be going back up to their regular prices ($2-$5) tomorrow.

Bonne fête à moi!

An Open Letter To Teal Triggs (Author of Fanzines)

2010-10-07T14:53:00.013-04:00

Dear Teal,

I hope you don't think I've forgotten about you. I am currently reading your biography on the London College of Communication (University of The Arts London) website... And I just have to laugh. You are listed as the Head of Research in the School Of Graphic Design, yet your latest book (Fanzines, Thames & Hudson) is so poorly researched that you did not even contact those artists / writers whose work you were using, and in at least one case, did not even credit the work properly. When called on your shoddy research skills, instead of having the publisher correct your mistakes (by adding an insert, as I suggested back in September), you instead clammed up and decided to no longer respond to my emails, nor those of the many others who wrote to ask you questions like: Why weren't we contacted first? What were your various research sources that you mentioned, yet refuse to name? What are you going to do to correct your mistakes? How are you going to compensate those zinesters who do not want to be a part of your book, yet were not given a choice?

Apparently you are also "co-founder of the Women's Design + Research Unit (WD+RU), an organisation which seeks to raise awareness about women working in visual communication and related areas." Now, come on. You've dedicated yourself to supporting women working in visual communication? Who exactly are you "raising awareness" for? Surely not those women whose work you appropriated in your book? Maybe the keyword in that phrase is "working". Maybe you only have respect for certain female "professionals" like yourself, but when it comes to us zinesters, we are not "professionals" and our work is sold for cheap (or given away for free) and therefore you place less importance on it. You violated various copyrights in your latest book and have made no attempt to explain yourself, or to compensate those who called you on it. I just can't imagine that you would steal the work of your fellow professors, graphic designers or publishers of books. As J Bee said in their recent blog post on the topic, "There is a certain level of responsibility for an academic when dealing with a piece of material culture that is not necessarily copyrighted, that is "ephemeral" and underground, but whose author is both alive, easily contacted, and most likely still struggling economically to engage in their craft. This may not be legally or institutionally required, but it is required by those of us who see in academia (particularly in the humanities) the potential for a radical project. There is a responsibility for academics and archivists to work with, not against or around, underground artists and cultural producers."

Alive: Hi! I'm right here!

Easily contacted: In a Google search of the title of my zine, Culture Slut, six of the first ten results contain my current contact info, including links to my Etsy shop and my WMZ profile, which also link to my website and this very blog. Not to mention, you already had my email address when you began putting your book together, and seemingly made a conscious effort not to tell me you were including my work in your book until it had already been sent to the publisher and was too late for me to say, "No."

Most likely still struggling economically to engage in their craft: Most zine creators are not rich. Me, I'm thousands of dollars in debt and I'm currently unemployed. The only money that I have coming in right now is the small amount that I garner through my Etsy shop and my zine distro. I struggle to pay for my rent and groceries every month and it is a great source of stress. I create zines because it's fun and because it's important to me (to put it simply). Everybody knows that they are not a money-making venture and I know I will certainly never make a living from them. Yet you, as a professor of graphic design, have taken an interest in their appearance and somehow decided that you have the right to use them for your own money-making ventures. That is where one of my major problems with you lies - this is a for-profit book. You are teaching your students about zines and writing books about it for a living, yet we are not entitled to any of the credit, nor any of the profit, even though we unwittingly contributed to your project. Does that seem fair? To me, it seems like a very counter-productive act for someone who claims to be "raising awareness about women working in visual communication". I think that you're only raising awareness when it's convenient for you, or when it falls into what must be very narrow definitions of "working" and "visual communication". As you've certainly deemed zinesters to be a group small enough and unprofessional enough to warrant stealing from, even in the face of copyrights printed right on the zine. Hilariously enough, THE CONTENT OF YOUR BLOG IS COPYRIGHTED.

I have many friends who are both creating zines and writing about zines within academia, and it's professors like you who are making their work and studies more difficult. Because as these things continue to happen, we trust academia a whole lot less. I have given numerous interviews on the topic for both professors and students, and to be perfectly honest, I'm not comfortable doing that anymore.

I must say, I am really tired of paying for other people's mistakes. Because you fucked up, I am now the one who has to spend endless hours writing to you, writing to your publishers, writing blog posts, writing to the zinesters whose work was included in your book, writing to the participants of your launch party, writing book reviews on various websites to make sure that would-be buyers are fully informed, keeping other people up do date when they ask me what's going on, researching copyright law, talking to a lawyer, deciding what further action to pursue... I am a student. I go to school five days a week and I have many more projects on top of that. I don't have the time to deal with someone like you, and yet I am almost forced to. Maybe it's not my duty, but if we let this one slide, then it will happen over and over again and I can't let it happen knowing that I didn't at least try to inform people, try to make a change. I hope that you are sorry, that you're embarrassed and that you will behave more respectfully in the future - and that includes replying to the many emails we've been sending, as well as including an insert in your book that states proper credits for both myself and anyone else who may have been mis-credited. It should also disclose the fact that proper permissions were not secured prior to publishing the book, and some copyrights were flouted. It should explain the reasons for this and include a formal apology. I also believe that those zine creators whose work is published in the book deserve a free copy. The longer you wait, the more difficult you are making things.

Even if we set the copyright and theft issue aside, your behaviour simply shows an extreme lack of respect for us. It is absolutely not in line with the statement you made in regards to your book: "The book is due out in September and I hope this will establish the importance of this form of self-publishing." Shame on you.

Yours in frustration and rage,
-Amber Forrester

Further reading:
We Make Zines - How do ya'll feel about this?
Hello Amber! - On Having My Work Published Without Permission
Zine World - Fanzines book appropriates zine images
Your Secretary - Reprinting zines in for-profit books
Bits Of String - On FANZINES
Sassyfrass Circus - The punk and the curator: On Fanzines

Fight Boredom with Recipes, Interviews and Dance Parties!

2010-10-03T11:08:00.008-04:00

Food Stamp Foodie #1 www.foodstampfoodie.wordpress.com
This is a small collection of vegan recipes made with ingredients that are inexpensive and accessible for most. I haven't tried them yet, but I'm getting hungry just thinking about the sweet potato and black bean chili and the baked tofu. Made by the creator of Milkyboots and The Warehouse On Poplar (both available through Fight Boredom Distro).

Dogs On Doilies nicolejgeorges.com
Yes, this is a collection of dog portraits drawn on doilies. They are wearing adorable wigs. Made by the creator of Invincible Summer.

Your Pretty Face Is Going Straight To Hell #11 tukrulovesyouATgmail.com
This is Tukru's almost-24-hour zine, created this past summer. She writes about getting a little tipsy at a sex toy party (this is why I avoid red wine as well), working for a toyshop, and joining her local rollerderby team in an attempt to both get active and make some new female friends, which immediately resulted in a bruised coccyx ("Yep. My bum bone."). She includes a couple of recipes and really fun clippings, like paperdolls and Moomins and children on rollerskates. Her zines are always lotsa fun, kinda stream-of-consciousness blog-y style writing, makes you feel like the two of you are just hanging out together for a couple of days. And she has really excellent penmanship. Pengirlship?

Rough Draft #2 celebratedsummerAThotmail.co.uk
This zine has something of an old school fanzine feel to it, it's cut-and-paste and all about showcasing artists, feminists, zinesters and the like. This issue features interviews with artist Tom Stanley, zinester Bettie Walker (Anatomical Heart), musician Sheena Ozzella of Lemuria, and... me! Indeed, I first heard of the zine when Jessica asked if I'd like to be interviewed. Now I've got copies of both issues (the first one features Cristy Road, Em Ledger and more), and I can say that they're a pretty fun read. Looking forward to seeing who is featured next time around.

School's Out! #3 alexandra.hendrickATgmail.com
So, somehow I managed to read two different zines this week that mentioned raves. Weird. Anyway, this zine is all about dancing. Alexandra writes about her love of various forms of dance, and shares her experiences with both contact improv dancing and beginning ballet as an adult, plus some research on dancing throughout history. She wonders why people are so self-conscious when they dance, only doing it publicly when they're drunk, for example. As a student of unschooling (she cites The Teenage Liberation Handbook by Grace Llewellyn as a reference), she links this fear and uncreativity partially to the education system, which teaches children from an early age to sit down at their desk, stay still and ignore the natural urge to do things like move around, learn something out of interest and not just because it's required as part of standardized testing, and yes, dance. There are a lot of thoughts and suggestions packed into this thirty-something-page half-size zine, and it's probably one of the most original zines I've read in a little while.

Sugar And Heartstrings #4 aminafoxdyeATgmail.com
This is the other zine that mentioned raves. Amina creates electronic music and considers herself a part of the rave scene, but writes about her conflicting attitude toward it - loving the dancing and making great friends within the scene, but also having to deal with music that uses oppressive language, and people that don't mesh well with her politics of feminism, anti-racism, anti-classism, et cetera. I think that this is an excellent point worth talking about, 'coz hey, not all of us can surround ourselves with peers who believe in the same values, and we have to learn how to deal with it in a healthy and constructive way. That's only one part of the zine though - she also writes about being born into boyhood and documents her experiments with gender presentation, even including photocopies of nine years worth of student id cards and driver's licenses, so we can watch her grow and change. Overall, it was a good perzine read.

Fight Boredom Distro News: The distro's online location has changed! I finally got the energy to buy a domain and build myself a real live website instead of messing around with MySpace and Tumblr. You can now find the Fight Boredom Distro catalogue and more fun stuff at www.hello-amber.com. Add it to your bookmarks and share it with your friends! I will still be adding zines to the catalogue on a regular basis and making changes here and there, so keep checking back. And if you notice any glitches or imperfections, feel free to let me know.

What I've Been Up To Lately: Drinking, dancing, thrift-shopping and making epic plans with Vincent Wilde and writing writing writing.