A blog post titled Representing More Voices and Connecting Patrons With a Second Zine Collection (Coming Soon) shares info about zines at the Kansas City Public Library. While they currently have a non-circulating collection in the Missouri Valley Special Collections which were collected by donations, the new circulating collection will be purchased from the creator. Anyone in the KCPL area can suggest a purchase just as they would for books by local authors.
A new book on zines in libraries, edited by Lauren DeVoe and Sara Duff, was published this month by ALA Editions. “Zines in Libraries: Selecting, Purchasing, and Processing” includes chapters on circulation, preservation, acquisitions, collection development, and more, including information specifically about zines in school libraries and the Zine Union Catalog. Some chapters have open access copies available; we’re collecting links to institutional repositories.
It’s still COVID Times, so the hands-on, community-building aspects of zine making can be less than ideal. That’s why I love this Chicago Public Library grab and go kit for kids and tweens that talks about how to make a zine at home. The kit comes in a plastic bag and includes pages for collaging, a glue stick, and a copy of “How to Make a One-Page Zine” by Sarah Mirk (get a free copy at Sarah Mirk’s website). Patrons need to supply scissors, paper, and a writing instrument.
Check out the video from zine librarian Alenka Figa sharing different types of zines and giving a tutorial about how to make a one-page zine out of a piece of scrap paper.
If you create zines, would you mind filling out this survey?
Barnard Zine Library is surveying zine makers to find out what their preferences are when it comes to making inter library loan copy requests of their own zines available to patrons.
The survey investigates the possibility of copying all or part of a zine to make available to a patron who can’t make it to the physical location of the library where the zine is located. This could be because the patron lives in another state or because the patron is a prisoner, for example.
The survey also asks some questions specific to how to handle inter library loan copy requests for prisoners. If zines are photocopied for prisoners, Â should some of the contact information of the zine creator be blocked out? Or should it remain?
Librarians need help understanding how to handle inter-library loan copy requests in a way that respects the zine makers!
Thanks for your time! These results could help all zine librarians get a sense of what zine makers want when it comes to inter library loan copy policies.
Thanks to Barnard Zine Library for putting this survey together!
You have until August 28th to fill out the survey. Please spread the word and share with other zine creators!