By Heather L Nicholson
Their tagline is “Zines (short for magazines) are self-published mini-books and are distributed on a small scale. Come and make some with us (and even learn how)!” Grand Valley Zine Club, or GVZC, was started recently by locals Savannah Ashmore of Savannah Ashmore Art (she does tattoos, too!) and writer and artist Heather L Nicholson. They want to get a thriving zine community going in the Grand Valley, and they think the best way to do that is to start a club that hosts regular collaborative zine parties where everyone contributes pages to a zine, then takes home their own copy containing everyone’s pages. This is a great way to build community while making and sharing art. Additionally, they plan to offer various zine workshops (including an Intro to Zines Workshop for newbies if there is interest) where participants plan and make their own individual zines together, along with zine swaps where people can trade zines they have made and collected. These will all be hosted at local businesses and public libraries.
Their first event is a Winter Solstice Zine Party on Sunday, December 15th. From the Facebook Event page: “Are you SO ready for winter and want to celebrate it? Do you have Feelings about the Winter Solstice? Do you make art–writing, poetry, drawing, collage, painting, photography, anything? Bring 20 copies of your pages… to contribute to the collaborative zine! …Anything winter, solstice, or winter solstice-adjacent (seasons, cold, nature, Christmas, Yule, holidays, etc.) is welcome: art, poetry, fiction, informational, inspirational, etc. We will arrive and set up at 4:00 (when host Candle Kitchen has closed, but come on in!) and start stacking and stapling around 4:15.” Candle Kitchen is donating the use of their space after-hours, and they’re located at 120 North 5th Street in Grand Junction. Parking is free downtown on weekends, but if there aren’t spots close enough, you can park just two blocks away at the Central Library.
GVZC also offers a zine swap at this event. “If you have your own zines you’d like to give away or swap, feel free to bring those too (even if they’re not wintery.” If you’ve been into zines for a while and are itching to see more, this is the club for you!
Below are the guidelines for those who want to make and bring their own pages for the collaborative zine.
***ZINE PAGE SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS***
-The zine will consist of letter-sized (8.5″x11″) printer paper.
-Fold the paper in half, and you get four zine pages: front, inside left, inside right, and back.
-Create anything you want on YOUR four pages; please note that due to varying pagination as pages are added and zines are created (stacked and stapled), your four pages may not appear “in order,” so make sure each of your four pages can stand alone.
-Make 20 copies, front and back (don’t copy the back of it upside down!) to bring to the zine party. -*- If you need help with printing, including a place to print, email hostess Savannah Ashmore at Savannahashmoreart@gmail.com -*-
-At the event, you will pick up one page from each participant, fold and staple your zine, and take it home–your own published work included!
-Any leftover zines will be sold at Candle Kitchen and the tattoo studio of Savannah Ashmore Art to benefit future Grand Valley Zine Club events.
The money made from selling the extra zines will go toward materials for future GVZC events like workshops and collaborative zine parties. If you have questions about this event, Grand Valley Zine Club, or zines in general, or if you have an idea for a zine party/workshop/swap, email Heather at grayscalerainbowzine@gmail.com
The Revolutionist 