Category: zines

  • June Quimby’s Newsletter Out Now!

    Our monthly announcements and all that jazz. Have you subscribed so you get it in your inbox every month yet? Check it out here.

  • Zine Club Chicago Online: How-To Zines Edition, Tues, June 29th

    Zine Club Chicago Online: How-To Zines Edition

    with Special Guest Anna Jo Beck

    7:30 p.m. CT Tuesday, June 29 on Zoom

    Free!

    This month, we’re thrilled to be celebrating a special guest: One of our founding members (and also our incredibly talented designer) Anna Jo Beck! Anna will discuss Broke, Not Broken: Personal Finance for the Creative, Confused, Underpaid, and Overwhelmed, her newly released first book that has its origins in her popular how-to zine about personal finance.

    Everyone is invited to share your favorite how-to zines, as well! Please join us for Zine Club Chicago Online: How-To Zines Edition with Special Guest Anna Jo Beck at 7:30 p.m. CT Tuesday, June 29 on Zoom.

    Broke, Not Broken, a compassionate, friendly, and fun guide to personal finance, is being published in Summer 2021 by Microcosm Publishing. (Snag your copy from ZCC’s sponsor, Quimby’s Bookstore, which you can PRE-ORDER HERE!) Anna also runs a Zine-a-Month subscription through Patreon and publishes Zine Fiend, a free e-newsletter about zine culture. You can find links to Anna’s work here: linktr.ee/annajobeck

    ** Zoom info ** We want to make sure that our online events are a safe space, so we won’t be releasing the Zoom link publicly.

    If you’d like to attend, please email zineclubchicago@gmail.com to RSVP by 9 p.m. CT Monday, June 28 (the day before our event). We’ll email you the Zoom link by 11 p.m. CT that evening.

    Zine newbies and longtime enthusiasts alike are always welcome at Zine Club Chicago, the city’s only book club-style event for people who read zines. This free monthly series is produced by Chicago Zine Fest/Midwest Perzine Fest organizer Cynthia E. Hanifin and sponsored by Quimby’s Bookstore. Anna Jo Beck designs our monthly flyers, created our logo, and made our Zine Club Chicago Shout-Outs site, where folks can peruse and recommend zines we’ve discussed at our events: https://zineclubchicagoshoutouts.spread.name/

    More info at ZCC social media channels: @zineclubchicago

    Facebook event link: https://www.facebook.com/events/590645888507102/

    Links

    Anna’s linktree: https://linktr.ee/annajobeck

    Anna’s portfolio: annajobeck.com

    Buy Anna’s zines: https://annajobeck.storenvy.com/

    Read Anna’s zines online for free: https://issuu.com/annajobeck

    Buy Anna’s book (though Quimby’s will have copies too): https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/artist/anna-jo-beck

    Anna’s Patreon/Zine-a-Month subscription: www.patreon.com/annajobeck

    Zine Fiend: https://tinyletter.com/zinefiend

  • Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Bingo II Edition, May 25th

    A red-and-blue infographic flyer with the cartoon image of people playing bingo and text that reads: “Zine Club Chicago: Zine Bingo II Edition; Online! Free!; Zoom info on quimbys.com; 7:30 p.m. CDT Tuesday, May 25”

    Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Bingo II Edition

    7:30 p.m. CT Tuesday, May 25 on Zoom

    Free!

    We had such a good time playing Zine Bingo last month that we’ve decided to keep the game rolling into our May event! We’ll be covering the squares on our zinecentric bingo board that we didn’t get to during the first round, so plan to bring zines that fit the categories that aren’t already checked off.

    Our twist on the classic game gives everyone an opportunity to go on a scavenger hunt through your own zine collections. Check out our updated bingo card, grab your zines, BYOS(nacks), and join us on Zoom for Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Bingo II Edition at 7:30 p.m. CT Tuesday, May 25!

    Here’s how our version of Zine Bingo works: We’ve created a zinecentric bingo card that you can find in this post and at quimbys.com. (We’ll all be using the same card for the game; feel free to print it out or download it). Each square on the card represents a category of zines that you might have in your collection; for example, a how-to zine or a zine that makes you laugh.

    Before we meet, search your collection and find zines that correspond to the categories in the unchecked squares on the card. (If a square has a check mark on it, that means we’ve already discussed that category during our April event.) The card’s rows are marked with the letters Z-I-N-E-S. Each square also has a number in the corner. Y’all are welcome to bring zines that correspond to as many of the unchecked squares as you like, or to not bring zines at all and join us just to hang out.

    During our event, we’ll randomly pull bingo balls marked with the letter and number of each unchecked square on the bingo card. Folks with a zine that fits the category in the square we’ve called will then tell us about the zine they brought. We’ll keep going until we get a collective full-card bingo! (Everyone is a winner at Zine Club Chicago).

    ** Zoom info ** We want to make sure that our online events are a safe space, so we won’t be releasing the Zoom link publicly.

    If you’d like to attend, please email zineclubchicago@gmail.com to RSVP by 9 p.m. CDT Monday, May 24 (the day before our event). Zine Club will email you the Zoom link by 11 p.m. CDT on 5/24.

    Zine newbies and longtime enthusiasts alike are always welcome at Zine Club Chicago, the city’s only book club-style event for people who read zines. This free monthly series is produced by Chicago Zine Fest/Midwest Perzine Fest organizer Cynthia E. Hanifin and sponsored by Quimby’s Bookstore. Anna Jo Beck designs our monthly flyers, created our logo, and made our Zine Club Chicago Shout-Outs site, where folks can peruse and recommend zines we’ve discussed at our events: https://zineclubchicagoshoutouts.spread.name/

    More info on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @zineclubchicago

    Facebook event here.

    A handmade Zine Bingo board with a description of a different category of zine in each square; some squares are checked off.

  • Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Bingo Edition, April 20th

     

    Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Bingo Edition

    7:30 p.m. CDT Tuesday, April 20 on Zoom

    Free!

    Please note that we will need to receive your RSVP by 9 p.m. Monday, April 19 (the day BEFORE our event).

    This month, we’re shaking up our usual format to play Zine Bingo! Our twist on the classic game will give everyone an opportunity to go on a scavenger hunt through your own zine collections.

    Check out our bingo card, grab your zines, BYOS(nacks) and join us on Zoom for Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Bingo Edition at 7:30 p.m. CDT Tuesday, April 20!

    Here’s how our version of Zine Bingo will work: We’ve created this zine-centric bingo card here! We’ll all be using the same card for the game; feel free to print it out or download it. Each box on the card represents a category of zines that you might have in your collection; for example, a how-to zine or a zine about cats.

    Before we meet, search your collection and find a zine that corresponds to a category in one box from each vertical row on the card. The rows are marked with the letters Z-I-N-E-S. Each box also has a number in the corner. (Y’all are welcome to bring zines that correspond to more or fewer than one box per row, or to not bring zines at all and join us just to hang out.)

    During our event, we’ll randomly pull bingo balls marked with the letter and number of each box on the bingo card. Folks with a zine that fits the category in the box we’ve called will then tell us about the zine they brought. We’ll keep going until we get a collective bingo! (Everyone is a winner at Zine Club Chicago).

    ** Zoom info ** We want to make sure that our online events are a safe space, so we won’t be releasing the Zoom link publicly. Please note that the deadline to RSVP is changing this month!

    If you’d like to attend, please email zineclubchicago@gmail.com to RSVP by 9 p.m. CDT Monday, April 19 (the day before our event). We’ll email you the Zoom link by 11 p.m. CDT on 4/19. While we will do our best to accommodate any RSVPs that come in late, the only way to make sure you’ll get the Zoom link is to email us by the deadline.

    Zine newbies and longtime enthusiasts alike are always welcome at Zine Club Chicago, the city’s only book club-style event for people who read zines. This free monthly series is produced by Chicago Zine Fest/Midwest Perzine Fest organizer Cynthia E. Hanifin and sponsored by Quimby’s Bookstore. Anna Jo Beck designs our monthly flyers, created our logo, and made our Zine Club Chicago Shout-Outs site, where folks can peruse and recommend zines we’ve discussed at our events: https://zineclubchicagoshoutouts.spread.name/

    More info on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @zineclubchicago

    Facebook event here.

    Zine Bingo flyer for Zine Club Chicago on 4/20/21

  • Update about CZF 2021 + Save the Date for CZF 2022

     

    As a sponsor for Chicago Zine Fest, we’re posting this letter from CZF on the QuimBlog here to help get the word out, which we hope is helpful info. CZF writes:

     

    We hope you are doing well and staying safe!

    We are almost one year into the global pandemic. This has been a difficult time for so many people in our community and throughout the world. We miss our in-person connections, but out of an abundance of caution we have decided to postpone Chicago Zine Fest to May 14th, 2022.

    We are thrilled to see that frontline workers, medical personnel, educators, seniors, and many others are now able to receive their COVID-19 vaccinations. When we postponed last year’s zine fest to May 2021, we had hoped that we would be in a better, safer place than we were at the start of 2020. As far as a large in-person festival with more than 3,000 visiting attendees such as ours is concerned, we’re not there yet.

    The good news is that our venue was able to roll over the date for our in-person fest to May 14, 2022, along with our deposit on the rental. We hope that this extension gives exhibitors, attendees, and guests the time they need to get vaccinated, make travel arrangements, and prepare for a large in-person event.

    If you were accepted as an exhibitor for 2020’s Exhibition Day, your acceptance and table fee will carry over for the 2022 fest. We thank you for your understanding and patience, and we hope you’ll be able to join us in 2022. On a practical note: Almost all the funds we received from table fees went into the deposit we’ve already paid for the venue. We have limited cash on hand right now, and not a lot of fundraising opportunities on the horizon. If you need to cancel your spot, we will accommodate a refund, but if you are able to hold your table for 2022, we would appreciate it. If you would like to cancel your table and be refunded your table fee, please email us at chicagozinefest@gmail.com.

    Unlike last year’s fest, we will not be scheduling any digital programming for May 2021. We have decided to reserve our energy to focus on the safety, well-being, and interests of the CZF community for next year’s fest.

    There are still lots of ways to participate in zine culture! Please continue to show your support to independent artists and creators by buying their work directly from the artist, or from one of the many independent bookstores throughout the city (links to local indie bookstores, including those that carry zines, below). You can celebrate artists during this time by sharing their work online and on social media, as well. There’s also a monthly zine club held online by one of our organizers, Cynthia, and Quimby’s Bookstore: More info at at Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @zineclubchicago

    We look forward to the day when we are able to see you again in person, across an exhibitor’s table, at a volunteer meet-up, or at one of our fun afterparties!

    If you have any questions, please email us at chicagozinefest@gmail.com

    We can’t wait to see you in 2022!

    Indie bookstores in Chicago that carry zines:
    Quimby’s Bookstore: https://www.quimbys.com/
    Uncharted Books: https://www.unchartedbooks.com/
    Build Coffee: https://buildcoffee.org/
    Space Oddities: https://spaceoddities.org/
    Women & Children First: https://www.womenandchildrenfirst.com/

    Other indie bookstores in Chicago:
    57th Street Books
    Bookie’s
    Bookends and Beginnings
    Bucket O’Blood Books and Records
    Inga Bookshop
    Madison Street Books
    Myopic Books
    Open Books
    Pilsen Community Books
    Powell’s Books
    Roscoe Books
    Semicolon
    Seminary Co-Op Bookstore
    The Book Cellar
    The Dial Bookshop
    The Wicker Park Secret Agent Supply Co.
    Underground Bookstore
    Volumes

    your Chicago Zine Fest organizers,
    Alex, Anna, Cynthia, Elliott, and Emily

  • Zine Club Chicago Patches!

    Zine Club Chicago now has merch! Check out the new Zine Club Chicago embroidered patches — perfect for embellishing battle vests, denim jackets, and totes bags full of zines! These 2.75-inch round iron-on patches, which were custom-made by Tim Tucker of Uranian Threads and feature the circular ZZC logo designed by Anna Jo Beck, are exclusively available at Quimby’s Bookstore now, while supplies last! There’s only had a handful made, so once they’re here in the store you’ll have to jump on it soon now if you want one!

    Zine Club Chicago will also be giving away a patch for FREE — along with an official ZCC mini cowbell, a copy of our collab zine, and fun mystery snacks — in the first-ever Zine Club Chicago raffle! Here’s how to enter:

    Buy something (anything you like!) in person or online at Quimby’s Bookstore (1854 W. North Ave) between the dates of Feb. 24 and March 15, 2021. (You can peruse the shop’s wares at quimbys.com).

    Email a copy of your Quimby’s receipt to zineclubchicago@gmail.com by 9 p.m. CST Monday, March 15. Please include your name and include any dietary restrictions when it comes to snacks.

    One winner will be randomly selected during the Zine Club Chicago Online: Is It a Zine? Edition Zoom event on Tuesday, March 16. You don’t need to attend the event to win — Zine Club Chicago will get in touch if you can’t make it that evening and your name is pulled. You can arrange to either have your package sent or leave it at Quimby’s for you to pick up.

    More info about Zine Club Chicago at Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @zineclubchicago

    Good luck!

  • Zine Club Chicago Online: Is It A Zine? Edition, March 16th

     

    Zine Club Chicago Online: Is It A Zine? Edition

    7:30 p.m. CST Tuesday, March 16 on Zoom

    Free!

    “Zine” has always been a nebulous term without a universally accepted definition. This month, we’re continuing the decades-long debate over what is a zine and what is not. All are invited to share the publications in our collections that make us go hmmmm… — for example, is a glossy booklet put out by a chart-topping rapper or a denim conglomerate really a zine? What about a one-sheet newsletter published on someone’s home printer? — and discuss where we personally draw the line between zine and not-a-zine.

    Grab your zines, not-zines, and maybe-zines, BYOS(nacks), and join us on Zoom for Zine Club Chicago Online: Is It A Zine? Edition!

    ** Zoom info ** We want to make sure that our online Zine Club events are a safe space, so we won’t be releasing the Zoom link publicly. If you’d like to attend, please email zineclubchicago@gmail.com to RSVP by 5:30 p.m. CST Tuesday, March 16. We’ll email you the Zoom link one hour before the event begins.

    Zine newbies and longtime enthusiasts alike are always welcome at Zine Club Chicago, the city’s only book club-style event for people who read zines. This free monthly series is produced by Chicago Zine Fest/Midwest Perzine Fest organizer Cynthia E. Hanifin and sponsored by Quimby’s Bookstore. Anna Jo Beck designs our monthly flyers, created our logo, and made our Zine Club Chicago Shout-Outs site, where folks can peruse and recommend zines we’ve discussed at our events: https://zineclubchicagoshoutouts.spread.name/

    Thank you to Zine Club members Mariano Muñoz and Michelle Yacht for suggesting this month’s theme!

    More info at quimbys.com and on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @zineclubchicago

    Find the Facebook event here.

     

    P.S. Thank you to everyone who snapped up the first batch of Zine Club Chicago embroidered patches! If you didn’t snag one this time around, we’ll have more restock soon.

    Zine Club Chicago will also be giving away a patch for FREE — along with an official ZCC mini cowbell, a copy of a ZCC collab zine, and fun mystery snacks — in the first-ever Zine Club Chicago raffle! Here’s how to enter:

    1. Buy something (anything you like!) in person at Quimby’s here in Chicago or online between the dates of Feb. 24 and March 15, 2021. (You can peruse the shop’s wares at quimbys.com).
    2. Email a copy of your Quimby’s receipt to zineclubchicago@gmail.com by 9 p.m. CST Monday, March 15. Please include your name and let us know if you have any dietary restrictions when it comes to snacks.

    We’ll randomly select one winner during our Zine Club Chicago Online: Is It a Zine? Edition Zoom event on Tuesday, March 16. You don’t need to attend the event to win — we’ll get in touch if you can’t make it that evening and your name is pulled. We’ll arrange to either send your prize pack by mail or leave it at Quimby’s for you to pick up.

    These 2.75-inch round iron-on patches were custom-made by Tim Tucker of Uranian Threads and feature our circular logo designed by Anna Jo Beck.

    Good luck, y’all!

     

  • Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Crushes Edition, Feb 23rd

    Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Crushes Edition

    7:30 p.m. CT Tues, February 23rd on Zoom

    Free!

    In this month dedicated to passion in its many-splendored incarnations, we’re celebrating our zine crushes! If your heart beats faster for the work of a particular zinemaker, publisher, or collaborative, we want to hear about it. That swell of platonic admiration when you spot a new publication from your forever fave is one of the greatest thrills of belonging to the zine community.

    Grab the zines that make you swoon, BYOC(onversation)H(earts), and join us on Zoom for Zine Club Chicago Online: Zine Crushes Edition!

    ** Zoom info ** We want to make sure that our online Zine Club events are a safe space, so we won’t be releasing the Zoom link publicly. If you’d like to attend, please email zineclubchicago@gmail.com to RSVP by 5:30 p.m. CT Tuesday, Feb. 23. We’ll email you the Zoom link one hour before the event begins.

    Zine newbies and longtime enthusiasts alike are always welcome at Zine Club Chicago, the city’s only book club-style event for people who read zines. This free monthly series is produced by Chicago Zine Fest/Midwest Perzine Fest organizer Cynthia E. Hanifin and sponsored by Quimby’s Bookstore. Anna Jo Beck designs our monthly flyers, created our logo, and made our Zine Club Chicago Shout-Outs site, where folks can peruse and recommend zines we’ve discussed at our events: https://zineclubchicagoshoutouts.spread.name/

    More info at Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @zineclubchicago

    Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/425541685456073

     

  • Zine Club Chicago Online: Show Us Your Stacks Edition, Jan 19th

    7:30 p.m. CST Tuesday, January 19 on Zoom

    Free!

    Some people meticulously catalogue their zines, while others toss them in random piles; for many of us, the ways we keep our zines fall someplace in between. This month, we’ll be discussing how we live with the zines we choose to bring home with us. Some of our favorite collectors will be showing us their stacks, and you’re invited to show off — or just talk about — your personal zine organizing system, too.

    Get your collection in order (or leave it messy), BYOS(nacks), and join us on Zoom for Zine Club Chicago Online: Show Us Your Stacks Edition! 

    ** Zoom info ** We want to make sure that our online Zine Club events are a safe space, so we won’t be releasing the Zoom link publicly. If you’d like to attend, please email zineclubchicago@gmail.com to RSVP by 5:30 p.m. CST Tuesday, Jan. 19. We’ll email you the Zoom link one hour before the event begins.

    Zine newbies and longtime enthusiasts alike are always welcome at Zine Club Chicago, the city’s only book club-style event for people who read zines. This free monthly series is produced by Chicago Zine Fest/Midwest Perzine Fest organizer Cynthia E. Hanifin and sponsored by Quimby’s Bookstore. Anna Jo Beck designs our monthly flyers, created our logo, and made our Zine Club Chicago Shout-Outs site, where folks can peruse and recommend zines we’ve discussed at our events: https://zineclubchicagoshoutouts.spread.name/

    More info at quimbys.com and on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @zineclubchicago

    Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/142135534123424/

    (Photo taken at the Independent Publishing Resource Center in Portland, Ore., 2018 by C.E. Hanifin)

     

  • Zine Club Chicago ONLINE: Our Faves of 2020 Edition on Dec 15th

     

    Zine Club Chicago ONLINE: Our Faves of 2020 Edition

    7:30 p.m. Central Time Tuesday, December 15 on Zoom

    Free!

    What are the best zines you read this year? This month, we’ll be discussing our favorites of 2020 — the zines that delighted us, surprised us, educated us, inspired us, and made us glad that folks all over the globe devote their time and creativity to self-publishing.

    Grab the titles you enjoyed most this year, BYOS(nacks), and join us on Zoom for Zine Club Chicago: Our Faves of 2020 Edition!

    ** Zoom info ** We want to make sure that our online Zine Club events are a safe space, so we won’t be releasing the Zoom link and password publicly. If you’d like to attend, please email zineclubchicago@gmail.com to RSVP by 5:30pm CT on Tuesday, Dec. 15th. We’ll email you the Zoom link and password one hour before the event begins.

    Zine newbies and longtime enthusiasts alike are always welcome at Zine Club Chicago, the city’s only book club-style event for people who read zines. This free monthly series is produced by Chicago Zine Fest/Midwest Perzine Fest organizer Cynthia E. Hanifin and sponsored by Quimby’s Bookstore. Anna Jo Beck designs our monthly flyers, created our logo, and made our Zine Club Chicago Shout-Outs site, where folks can peruse and recommend zines we’ve discussed at our events: https://zineclubchicagoshoutouts.spread.name/

    More info at on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @zineclubchicago

    Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/1330802300590736

    Wanna spread the word about this meeting of ZCC but need flyers in additional formats? Check out these birdies!