The new issue of Carrier Pigeon Quarterly is available! This is a guide to new zine and comics releases, organized by Joe Hohman.
I have a zine listed in this issue, and I’m excited to see what other work was included!
Copies are available on Ko-fi for $1 (+$1 postage).
Friendly reminder to write down your ideas, even if you don’t know yet what you’ll do with them.
My newest zine, “My Favorite DVD Designs,” was an idea I came up with two years ago. I didn’t even start working on it until a few months ago.
Here’s the initial sketch.
Fast forward two years, and this is the page I made based on that sketch.
Write down your ideas and also review them over time.
Sometimes you think of something to create, but you don’t feel like making it right away. So keep your notes. 🙂
“My Favorite DVD Designs” is a 16-page zine that collects photos of DVDs with interesting graphics.
This zine celebrates physical media. Pages feature photos of discs with text about how the graphics connect to the TV show or movie.
I have 1 copy available on Etsy (U.S. only).
I also released a PDF version on Ko-fi.
Zine fest is about a month away, so I’ve gotta start folding. 😅
I was practicing carving patterns: a checkerboard and curvy lines.
Trying something new. 🙂 I made this hand-carved stamp on a typical eraser.
I used photo collections in Micro.blog to create a page with my featured zines. Then after the photos, I added links to each zine.
I made a quick page about zine trades. I think so far when people have asked me to trade, it’s been on Instagram. But now I have info in the Fediverse, too. 🙂
Here’s what I do for test printing zines, which is the stage in my zine-making process between text and images are done and everything looks good to go.
I realize I’m done with writing and visuals. I do a little happy dance (in my head) because the hard part is over.
Test prints are tedious. Folding zines can be tedious. But I don’t consider that hard work. The hard work is going from a blank page to a page that’s covered in Stuff, in the ways you wanted to cover the page with Stuff.
I print one copy of the zine on standard copy paper. Plain white, 20lb paper. Nothing fancy. I don’t adjust any settings.
I fold the zine and look at each page. In this step, I’m looking at spacing. Is anything cut off? Anything that needs to be moved a bit? If I have something centered, does it actually look centered on the folded zine?
Next I’ll read through the zine once, front to back. I read out loud so I can hear if a sentence sounds awkward or too long.
I look for spelling and punctuation mistakes.
I mark up edits with a pen, so I know what to adjust when I’m back on my computer.
I should note an important thing: I try not to make edits on paper and on the computer at the same time. I make edits on paper first. Then I go to my computer and make edits to the file.
I make edits on the computer, following the notes I marked on paper.
I print another test copy and fold the zine.
This time I’m looking for anything at all that needs to be tweaked. Wording, spacing, alignment.
I read the zine in reverse, back to front, bottom of each page to the top. It’s a tip I picked up in college to help catch mistakes – read your work sentence by sentence, but in reverse. From the end to the beginning.
I mark up changes in pen.
I repeat step 3 as many times as I need to, until I’m happy with everything in the zine.
Sometimes I decide to rewrite at least half the text at this point. The outcome is better writing, a better zine. But ugh, rewrites can feel tedious. Maybe I have to re-do spacing or re-think images I’m using.
I keep telling myself, this will result in a better zine.
Go back to step 3.
I print one copy of the zine on the paper I want to use for all the copies. For mini zines, that’s usually 24lb paper. Just a little thicker than standard copy paper, so it feels nicer. Sometimes I bump up to 32lb paper. That feels like a special occasion.
I fold the zine and do a final check that everything looks good.
Then I print copies. I usually make 10-15 copies. I give away some copies to friends. I end up trading a few copies. And I put 5 copies in my Etsy shop.
And then I’m done.
Pretty straightforward process, as long as I don’t get caught in too many rewrites.
New zine! “Astronaut Food” is a mini zine about freeze-dried food that astronauts eat in outer space.
The zine includes history about developing food for NASA missions. The back side of the zine (when unfolded) shows vintage Tang ads and a list of sources.
If it’s giving Bill Nye episode, that’s my intent. 😉
I made a collage using space imagery for the background of the zine. All text is typed.
Copies are available in my Etsy shop (U.S. only), and I’m also open to trades.
See below for photos and full text of the zine.
Freeze-dried food was first used in NASA space missions during Project Gemini in the 1960s.
Since freeze-dried foods are shelf- stable, lightweight, and don’t require refrigeration, they’re an excellent choice for taking into space.
Astronauts use on-board water to rehydrate food in its vacuum-sealed package. Then they cut the package open to eat.
Every food package includes some liquid to hold the food together, so small food particles do not float away in zero gravity.
Food quality and options improved during the Apollo missions.
In the 1970s, Skylab, the first U.S. space station, included a galley with a table, trays, and heating elements to warm up food. The station also had a refrigerator for frozen foods, including ice cream. Yes! Regular ice cream is safe to eat in space. Just not on a cone, because crumbs could float away and get into instrumentation or irritate astronauts’ eyes.
Astronauts don’t eat freeze-dried ice cream in space, so why was it made in the first place?
To sell in gift shops!
Freeze-dried ice cream was a way to excite people about space exploration, by giving them a similar food experience to astronauts.
The original and most popular company that makes freeze-dried ice cream is Astronaut Foods.
You can find freeze-dried ice cream treats in museum gift shops, amusement parks, and online.
Tang, a powdered orange drink mix, is usually associated with space missions, but NASA did not invent Tang.
Tang came out in 1957 and was marketed as a breakfast drink full of vitamin C. Since Tang is a powder, it’s shelf-stable, which makes it convenient at home…and also in space.
Tang was first taken into space in 1962, when John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth. After that, Tang became popular as a space-age drink.
Because of zero gravity in space, astronauts can’t mix Tang and water in a glass. Instead, they have a vacuum-sealed pouch containing the powder. They use a needle to squirt water into the pouch. Then they shake the pouch and insert a straw.
Tang is still popular around the world and comes in additional flavors, including pineapple, mango, and lemon.
What Really is Astronaut Food?
Former NASA Astronaut Explains How Food Is Different in Space
The History of the Most Polarizing Novelty Treat of All Time
Freeze-Dried Foods Nourish Adventurers and the Imagination
Vintage Space Fun Fact: Tang in Space
Tang, the retro orange drink mix that astronauts & Florence Henderson liked
I had some slash pages here on Mythical Type and some on kalikambo. Some pages were duplicated between sites and some pages were different.
It was confusing to me, so I made one set of slash pages on kalikambo, and I removed the duplicated slash pages on Mythical Type.
There’s still a navigation link to Slashes at the top of this site. That redirects you to my slash page index on kalikambo.
Spaced Out is now available in a digital format! You can download the zine as a PDF on Ko-fi.
I make zines for fun, and I want zines to be primarily for fun, so I don’t set specific goals each year. Even so, I’m really happy with what I accomplished in the past year!
Here’s a rundown of zine-related things I did in 2024.
I made 10 zines!
Mini zines:
Quater-page zines:
Contributor zines (that I organized):
I contributed pages to these zines:
I joined the zine line of the Smallweb Subway. This is a webring themed after subway systems.
Not a zine, but collaboration with a zine friend. I submitted a short story to a podcast, VLASINDA’s Desolate Library.
I’m looking forward to making more zines and continuing to connect with people in 2025!
One more zine for 2024. 🚀
“Spaced Out” is a quarter-page zine that collects writing and illustrations that are inspired by outer space.
Illustrations were hand-drawn in black and white, and color elements were added with space-themed washi tape. All text is typed.
Details:
Paper copies are available in my Etsy shop (U.S. only), and I’m open to trading (anywhere mail can go).
Spaced Out is also available in a digital format on Ko-fi.
Here are some of the pages:
If you’re interested in how I made the washi tape pieces, I wrote a blog post about my process.
I made holographic stickers to go with this zine! This is an updated design of my “I need some space” stickers. Every physical copy of “Spaced Out” comes with a sticker.
I added a note to the back of my zine about not using AI.
I’ve been seeing some artists clarify that they don’t use AI in their work, and I think it’s an important distinction to make. I already have a webpage about why I don’t use AI. Now I have a note in print, too.
Here’s a collage zine I started at a local zine hangout on Thursday and finished tonight.
I like experimenting during zine-making events, so this style is very different from the zines I usually make.
The images are pretty random. 😂 I was looking more at colors and patterns, with less regard for items in each image. Text is inspired by old card catalog entries (cards were on the tables, among archival materials available to use).
Happy Doctor Who day!
I still have a few copies of Hipster Doctor Who.
It’s available in my Etsy shop, or you can message me if you’re interested in trading. 🙂
I’m working on a new mini zine about astronaut food. For the background, I wanted to collage a bunch of images of stars, the night sky, and related textures.
I collected images out of an issue of Astronomy magazine, and I gathered some illustrations and scrapbook paper I had.
Here’s a photo of some of the images.
Here’s a photo of what the collage looks like.
Next I’ll scan this into my computer, add more images digitally, and then add text (…which I still have to write).
Urban Legends is now available as a digital zine! You can download the PDF on Ko-fi for free (or pay what you want). 👻🎃
I sent a copy of Urban Legends to Sea Green Zines, since she helped get the word out about open submissions.
Check out the video review on Sea Green Zines’ YouTube channel. Urban Legends is about 25 minutes in.
There’s a whole other set of zines in the video before that if you want to check that out, too. 😃
“Left-brained art” is a mini zine that includes tips for how to make art without having to plan all the details up front. Each page includes a tip and brief explanation.
This zine encourages you to work with the materials you already have and not worry about what people will think of the finished work.
I drew the background by hand with markers. Layout and text in Canva.
Copies are available in my Etsy shop (U.S. only). I’m also open to trading! (Message me.)
Left-brained art
If you are a left-brained person (like me!), sometimes making art feels difficult.
You want there to be order. You want to sort out all the details from the start. And if you can’t do that, you feel stuck.
Here are some things I try to remember so I don’t get stuck.
Maybe these will be helpful to you, too.
Simply start
Easier said than done.
Try making something (anything) before you decide on what the end result will be.
One idea might spark another idea..and then another.
What’s “good”?
Don’t get hung up on what’s “good.”
Whatever is trending or popular for the moment doesn’t matter.
Make what interests you.
“Comparison is the thief of joy.” – Theodore Roosevelt
No plan is okay
You don’t have to plan everything. (It feels uncomfortable. I know.)
Figure it out as you go.
You can take it one step at a time.
What you have
In most cases, you don’t need special tools to start a creative project.
You can start with what you already have.
“The best camera is the one you have with you.” – Chase Jarvis
You, first
Make stuff for yourself.
If other people like it, that’s a bonus.
If no one else likes it, you’re still learning and growing.
Either way, you win.