How to make a zine

Two ways: fold one out of a single sheet of paper in about ten minutes, or build it on screen and print as many as you like.

What a zine actually is

A zine is a small self-published booklet. There is no minimum quality, no gatekeeper and no format police. The one rule worth keeping is scope: a zine is short, so it should be about one thing.

The one-sheet, eight-page fold

1. Fold the sheet in half the short way, then in half again, then once more. Open it out — eight rectangles.
2. Fold in half the short way again and cut along the centre crease, from the folded edge to the middle.
3. Open the sheet, fold it in half lengthways, and push the two ends towards each other so the slot opens into a diamond.
4. Keep pushing until the four panels meet, then fold the whole thing flat. That is an eight-page booklet.

Planning the pages

Page 1 is the cover. Page 2 is a short intro. Pages 3–6 carry the content, roughly one idea per page. Page 7 is something lighter. Page 8 is the back cover with your name and the date.

Printing it

Ordinary 80–100gsm copier paper folds best. Keep 10mm clear of every edge. Print one and fold it before running fifty.

Making it digitally

Building it on screen keeps the format and fixes the costs of handmade: you get magazine typography, a PDF laid out one page per sheet, and a link you can send. Making it is free; the clean print-quality PDF is a one-off $2.99.

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