zine

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A zine is a paper self-publication, often about non-mainstream topics, sometimes described as the precursor of personal blogs and IndieWeb. 

Interested in this topic? Want to attend a virtual event about it? There is currently some interest in having a IndieWeb Zinefest as of March 2026. See https://indieweb.org/pop-up

Zines are sometimes the subject of festivals called zinefests and also attract academic attention from institutions and libraries. It is possible to find many collections and interest from institutions via search engines. It is very possible your local library or institutional library has a collection of zines.

The photocopier is sometimes considered a symbol of zines emphasizing the simple DIY techniques to make copies often described as the classic way using simple materials.

Resources & Guides

Articles about zines in relation to the web

  • 2014-09-24 Lillian Karabaic: The Indie Web Is The New Zines (archived)
    • "The method of production may be completely different (photocopiers and direct mail vs web posts and servers) but the goals are almost identical – controlling the way in which your message and identity are displayed, crafted, and stored while avoiding censorship that corporate media might impose."
  • 2017-02-28 Jenna Wortham: Why the Internet Didn't Kill Zines (archived)
    • "[Shakar Mujukian] described zines as the precursor to personal blogs, but personal blogs have been on the decline over the last decade. And zines can’t get replies or hateful remarks in a comments section. Publishing ideas outside the mainstream can make an author incredibly vulnerable; the web is polluted with a culture of toxicity that invites attacks."
    • The "web" of this article might be more the siloed web than the Indie Web.

Authorship and expression in relation to the IndieWeb

Zines are notable in that many of them even in wider circulation have pseudonymous authors or anonymous authors. In this way, zines seem to reflect significant aspects of IndieWeb concepts about names being malleable and upto the author to define.

Some zines held by institutions are held in private or restricted collections if they are considered sensitive or identifiable. These include zines about the topic of gender identity or expression and as such are a significant source of history for many non mainstream identities and marginalized identity groups.

Zine culture and Indieweb event Overlap

Digital Zines

Some projects publish zines in a digital format. The classification as zine then comes from the often collaborative creation process and following the cut and paste designs of many paper zines.

Examples

  • The Yesterweb Zine filled with ideas, creations, and thoughts about the internet. As of 2022-02-27 there are three issues.
  • Multipage Zine is a paid zine with one edition about HTML Headings and is considering future editions

Tools

IndieWeb Examples

See Also

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