Make Your Voice Heard- Enter the Washington Zine Contest
Have you ever wanted to share your stories, art, or ideas with the world in your own unique way? Now's your chance. The 11th Annual Washington State Zine Contest is a statewide invitation to make a zine and submit it. Zines must be at least eight pages long and all ages are encouraged to enter. The entry deadline is March 27, 2026. Submission guidelines can be found here and include the various age divisons.
Poster for the 11th Annual Washington State Zine Contest
What is a Zine?
A zine is a self-published booklet that features text, photos, drawings, and really anything creative you want to include. Think of it like a scrapbook that you share with others. It could be all your own musings, or you and your friends could get together to create a collective voice. Zines are usually photocopied and stapled together, but you could also make one on your computer.
Zines have been around for a long time. People created them to share topics not always covered in mainstream media. They have been regarded as underground or counterculture. Past zines have covered fan fiction, civil rights, punk rock, feminism, animal rights, and environmental issues.
How to Make a Zine
Making a zine is easier than you think. Pick a topic you care about and start building pages around it. Your zine could be about comics, ocean life, poetry, online gaming, your pet, a cause you support, or just things that make you laugh.
The best zines usually stick to a clear theme or point of view. But they also aren’t perfect. They can have wonky layouts, doodles, crossed-out lines, or even upside-down text if that speaks to your style.
Materials You Can Use
Paper
Pens and markers
Scissors and glue
Old magazines and photos
A ruler
A stapler
If you have a library card, you can photocopy your zine for free at the Westport library!
Plan the Pages
Sketch a rough draft first. Decide what goes on each page and how it should read from start to finish. Proofread for spelling, page numbers, and missing words. Reading it out loud helps you catch spots that sound off.
Helpful Resources
There is a great video on the Timberland Regional Library webpage on how to make a zine: https://trl.org/zines/
Where Can You See a Zine in Person?
If you want to get inspired before making your own zine, check out these local collections- it does require a field trip!
Timberland Regional Library
The Olympia Timberland Library has more than 1,700 zines. The Lacey Timberland Library also has a smaller collection of 400+ zines. You can search the catalog for zines and request that they be sent to any Timberland library for you to check out.
Olympia Bookstores
In Olympia, both Last Word Books and Orca Books Co-op carry zines:
Seattle Public Library Zine Collection
The Seattle Public Library hosts the Zine Archive and Publishing Project Collection, with over 30,000 zines, mini-comics, and small-press titles. Richard Hugo House donated the collection in 2017. It’s located at the Central Library in Seattle.
You can book an appointment online to view the collection:
From Saturday, January 25th through Saturday, March 14th, the ZAPP Zine Collection will also be open weekly on Saturdays from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.:
https://www.spl.org/books-and-media/unique-collections/zine-collection
Need Help Getting Started?
Want to make a zine, but need some help? If you're a kid or teen in the South Beach area, I would be happy to help (with a parent or guardian's OK). I can help you brainstorm themes, plan pages, make a clean copy, and double-check the contest rules with you. We can meet in a public place like the library to keep it safe and simple.
And if you know any local places around Grays Harbor that have zines, let me know!