Zine 001 - Coming Soon.
Project updates.
Earlier this week I posted the above note stating that I’d finally done some work on the zine I’ve promised to subscribers. I know I said back in December that I’d complete it before the end of the year but that was an unrealistic goal mainly because I’ve done little work on the project and I didn’t have the time to devote the entire month to completing it. So this month I’m thinking a lot about stuff I’ve promised to work on or write about but haven’t done so yet. As a result, I found myself working on the zine this week.
I’m still in the early phases of seeing what this zine could be. To clarify, I keep calling it a zine but really I hope to pull together everything that makes up the core of this newsletter - stuff I’ve written about before, stuff that influenced me, and stuff I hope will become a part of your own creative genetic makeup plus some space for writing, journaling and note-taking. I’ve always thought of the project as more of a guidebook/manual than a ‘zine’, because a zine seems to denote a defined topic with a clear beginning and end. This project is more a summation of the entire newsletter with some extra fun stuff thrown in for good measure.
Last year I started making notes on the topics I wanted to include but did little work in making the thing come to life. This week I made some notes and began compiling pages together into a rough draft. I’ve got a manila folder where I started adding notes, photos, writings, sketches, ideas and more. Actual printed materials in the physical realm. The pages I’ve started putting together on just my notes and printed materials on 8.5x11 graph paper. I’m not sure what final form the zine will take - will it be the size of a pocket notebook, an ebook or pdf, or some other form? That’s why I’m excited about this project this week because it involves a little of everything - writing, sketching, design and more.
The table of contents is coming into shape as follows:
essentials
inspiration
writing prompts
handy information
Some sources that have been a big inspiration for this project: Austin Kleon’s books; Van Neistat’s Patreon zines; Tom Sachs’s Astronaut Journal; High-Line Field Guide and Handbook; Field Notes; various sketchbooks, prompt journals, and zines I’ve come across over the years.
Finally I’ve got that spark I needed to take this project to fruition. This will likely be the first ‘book’ I’ve created and that’s exciting. I’m not sure what the end result will look like but I think it’ll be close to being a catch-all for everything Circles In Space. I see more zines coming in the future which could be shorter, more defined and centered on a particular topic.
The main purpose of this zine is to have a manual for Circles In Space, something that defines and informs our community and engages all readers of this newsletter. The zine will be available for free to all subscribers. More updates to follow.
As always if you have a suggestion on what the zine should include, leave me a comment!
Until next time,
Keith.