Zines at the Browne Popular Culture Library
Fanzines
Fanzines are, simply put, zines created by fans and for fans. They are non-professional, often non-commercial publications created about a unifying topic, genre, or intellectual property, generally created by enthusiasts for an audience of other enthusiasts. Many fanzines are created for (and/or by) fan communities centered around genres of entertainment, like science fiction or fantasy. Other fanzines are dedicated to specific television shows, book series, or movies, like Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, or Star Wars. Still other fanzines concern media in general, like comic books, video games, or board games.
Fanzines vary in content, but many include letters from fans/contributors, reviews, news articles, opinion essays, fan fiction, fan poetry, fan art, and more.
Fanzines comprise perhaps the majority of zines collected by the Browne Popular Culture Library (BPCL). Fanzines for specific genres can also be searched with other subjects like science fiction periodicals, fantasy fiction periodicals, rock music periodicals, etc.
Some of the library's strongest holdings include the following:
Music fanzines are also extremely popular, but most music fanzines at BGSU can be found at the Music Library/Bill Schurk Sound Archives (not at the BPCL). Click here to search for music zines.
Slash Zines 
Some fanzines include "slash", or fan fiction (and fan art) in which canonically heterosexual characters are imagined in a romantic and/or erotic relationship. Slash fiction is named for the "/" character often used when describing the matching of characters imagined in love relationships (like "Kirk/Spock"). Beginning in the 1960s, slash fiction has been particularly popular with Star Trek characters (including but not limited to Kirk/Spock), but slash fiction refers to fiction created about many other characters and intellectual properties.
Click here to browse slash zines at the BPCL.
Review Zines
Some fanzines are dedicated to reviews. To find review zines in the BPCL, use the subject heading reviewzines or search for review zines.
Comics Zines
Comics zines are self-published or small press comics created by one or more artists/writers. Comics have a long history of self-publishing; in the 1960s, the desire to create experimental comics (or "comix") with sensitive or controversial subject matter (like sex, drugs, and violence) drove many comics creators "underground," or to create small-press comics beyond the editorial radar of major comics publishers.
Self-published and small-press comics are still popular today. They vary widely in content and style; some are diary comics, some are non-fiction, some are fiction, and many do not fit neatly into a genre or aesthetic category. Some well-known comics creators have begun their careers by self-publishing comics zines (or "mini-comics") before publishing comics and/or graphic novels with major publishers.
The BPCL has many comics zines (some might be described as "mini-comics"). The BPCL's zine collection also includes many zines that include comics as well as other artwork and/or writing, but the number of zines with such mixed content has not been determined. Click here to browse comics zines.
Dipzines
"Dipzine" is a portmanteau of Diplomacy zines, which concern the military strategy game Diplomacy. Set in pre-World War I Europe, Diplomacy was the first commercially published game to be played by mail via zines (e.g. dipzines) and newsletters.
The BPCL holds over 1,200 dipzine titles -- click here to browse our collection.
The BPCL is also home to the Hoosier Archives Collection of Dipzine Materials (PCL MS 238), an extensive archival collection of Diplomacy fanzines, correspondence, and official material of the International Diplomacy Association, and their Diplomacy convention.
Want to learn more about games in our library? Check out our LibGuide on Games and Ludic Media.
Perzines
"Perzine" is short for "personal zine," or a zine created for personal expression. Perzines might serve as autobiographies, diaries, or other reflections of an individual's thoughts, observations, and experiences. Perzines became popular in the 1980s and 1990s, and their popularity continues today.
Because zines do not have to go through editors, publishers, and/or marketers like traditional books and magazines, they are often considered a safe haven for free self expression. Thus, perzine creators have historically felt free to discuss sensitive or contentious topics that might not be as well-documented in traditional publications, like LGBTQ+ identity, race/ethnicity, religion, anti-capitalism, vegetarianism/veganism, and much more.
Some perzines are comprised entirely of personal essays and other written works. Others include photos, illustration, or collage; others use comics to tell personal stories.
Click here to browse perzines in the BPCL.
Letter Zines
Some zines specialize in or encourage correspondence, especially letters sent to the zine creator or creators on a specific topic. Such zines often print copies of the correspondence. Many letters are personal in nature; these have a lot of crossover with perzines.
Political Zines
Free speech is at the heart of zine production and zine culture; thus, it may not be surprising that zines have been instrumental in many grassroots political movements. Zines have been created to advocate for specific political topics, to protest political events, and/or to educate others about political issues. Political zines began to emerge as part of the Counterculture movement in the 1960s, but they are still being created and disseminated today.
Political zines have been created for many topics and movements, including: anti-war movements; civil rights; drug reform; pro-choice movements; movements related to anti-fascism, anti-genocide, and/or pro-justice in the global south; feminist movements; criticism of specific politicians; and much more.
Political zines at the BPCL can be browsed using the genre heading "zines" and a keyword search for specific political issues. (For example, click here to browse activist zines.) Please contact a librarian for more information.
Punk Zines 
Zines have been entwined with punk music and punk culture since the 1970s. Creating and distributing one's own music, artwork, and writing amongst a local community is often considered a central component of the "punk" ethos, and zines have long been fixtures of punk scenes/communities in the USA, UK, and around the world.
Zines dedicated to punk music began to emerge with the advent of punk music in the early 1970s. These zines reviewed and discussed music that was often dismissed or described derisively by mainstream music publications. Such punk zines also discussed political/social issues that were important to members of local punk scenes. The zines could be found at punk music venues, small shops, and/or around cities where punk music thrived.
A specific "D.I.Y." aesthetic became associated with punk artwork and can be found in many punk zines. This aesthetic often involves cut-and-paste collage, stark black-and-white or harsh colors in graphics, messy handwritten and hand-drawn elements, and/or shocking iconography.
Although most punk zines at BGSU can be found in the Music Library and Bill Schurk Sound Archives (MLBSSA), the Browne Popular Culture Library has many zines that have aligned themselves with punk culture and/or aesthetics. Click here to browse punk zines at the BPCL.
More Zines at the Browne Popular Culture Library
