Giving a Low Hug:
When I hug out with Roman last week, he mentioned he had run into AJ of the Low Hug blog and zine at the Allied Media Conference earlier this month (I’m still kicking myself that I didn’t go but it would have been nuts). I picked up one of AJ’s “Chick Tracts” at Atomic Books the last time I was in Baltimore and loved it, a tiny booklet containing one long essay about representations of young women in 80’s popular cinema.
Never mind I love the subject. Not only was it well written but it contained none of the usual zine garble (“Sorry it took me so long to finish this issue. I broke my toe etc.) and (heaven forfend) it actually had a mailing address and a web site address on the back.
What a concept! I cannot stress to you what a luxury this is for the zine fan, used to falling in love with a publication only to find out the creator leaves no trace of themselves anywhere and relies on chance and fate to cultivate a readership. Maybe they don’t want to a readership. I don’t know. But its mean and stupid to publish something, place it in stores where people can buy it, read it, love it and then reward their interest with silence.
And yes, I understand zines are print publications and don’t need to be duplicated, line for crooked line, on the web. Nor are they professional publications with big fancy subscription departments. How about just an email address then? A mailing list (which can be set up for free in about 15 seconds) to let your readers know when a new issue comes out? It’s not hard, just a little grown up and responsible. Artists have to do it. Unsigned indy bands also. Why not you?
So AJ of Low Hug is my new zine hero. I urge you to check out her catalog, which is clean and well-organized, another small mriacle. I hope she sees this and drops me a note.