Grrrl Zines!

Obviously I'm really into feminist and riot grrrl blogs, there are a handful that I read pretty much every morning with my cup of coffee (most of which you can find linked over on the left side of this page). But recently I have wanted to begin reading feminist and riot grrrl zines as well. A zine is a self-published work of minority interest usually reproduced by photocopier. Most zines are produced in editions of less than 100, and profit is not the primary intent of publication. If you are well-read on the riot grrrl movement of the 90's, you are probably aware that it encouraged an explosion of explicit and confrontational zines about women in music and the media, feminism, and gender issues.

The truth is that there are still plenty of girls continuing to make those types of zines today. I find that really awesome because most people think that with the growth of the internet zines became obsolete, but it's cool to see that they still have a decent underground following. Nowadays if someone has something they want to say and others to hear they can just make their own website or blog about it (shit, that's what we did!), but zines have a real sense of dedication and creativity that a webpage can't compete with.

I know for me, when I first decided to start to read zines, I had no idea where to find the kinds I was interested in. I knew there were girls out there making them, but I didn't know where to look to actually find and purchase them. So in case some of you are interested but are going through the same thing, I'm going to use this post to promote and link you guys to a few feminist/riot grrrl zines that I have recently checked out and am totally excited to buy and read as soon as I can (I know they are all super cheap, but give me a break here, I'm currently jobless and beyond broke!). I've talked to a few of these girls online before, and I must say they are some amazing and intelligent women, so I know their zines will not disappoint.

• Zines by Jolie Noggle

• Zines by Ivana Stab

• Zines by Clementine Cannibal

The last lady I linked to, Clementine Cannibal, is looking for submissions for her compilation zine of writings by grrrls called "I knew a motherfucker like you and she said...". You can read all about this zine and what kinds of writings she is looking for here. If you feel inspired and have something to say, you definitely should participate and send a piece her way. I'm pretty sure I'm going to myself, which I have to get started on. All submissions should be sent to: lickingstarsoffceilings@hotmail.com

If you write your own feminist/riot grrrl zine, or just read some awesome ones, please tell us about them and where we can purchase them in the comments!