phobias zine
An original zine centered around writing and illustrations depicting phobias.
Basic Information
End product
Physical Zine: Title TBA, ~100pgs, A4 [210mm X 297mm (8.25x11.75)], perfect bound
Proceeds: Half profit/charity, with profits from pre-orders going to contributors/mods and the profits from leftovers sales going towards a charity chosen by contributors
Merch: TBA
Stretch Goals: TBA
Charity: National Alliance on Mental Illness
Store: Bigcartel
Contributor Compensation: Funds from preorders will be split evenly between everyone. If funds allow, they will receive a free physical zine or even full bundle. At minimum, digital products will be free, and everything else will be available to purchase at production cost. Contributors have the option to opt-out on any compensations.
CONTENT
Contributors: 5 comic artists, 15 illustrators, 10 writers, 10 poets, 5-10 merch
Rating: PG-13. Please note there will be gore and such, however we will try to keep it as PG-13 as possible.
Not Allowed: "Phobias" such as homophobia, transphobia, and xenophobia, etc will not be permitted in the zine. Additionally, any 'tropes' relating to misogyny, homophobia, and violence against racial and ethnic minorities, etc will not be tolerated.
Schedule:
Interest Check Opens – August 1st
Interest Check Closes – September 1st
Mod Apps Open – September 3rd
Mod Apps Close – September 20th
Mod Result Emails Sent – September 25th
Contributor Apps Open – October 5th
Contributor Apps Close – November 1st
Contributor Result Emails Sent – November 16th
Acceptation deadline - November 22nd
Concept Check In – December 1st
Check In 1 - 25% - January 10th
Check In 2 - 50% - January 31st
Check In 3 – 75% February 28th
Final Submission – March 15th
Pre-Orders Open – April 18th
Pre-Orders Close - May 31st
Production - June
Contributor application requirements
Page Artists
You will need to submit 3 sample pieces as well as a portfolio
All samples should be fully lined and rendered, or up to the standards of a completed piece in your style
At least one of your samples should feature an original character/design
At least one of your samples should feature a full background
The samples featuring an original character and full background can be the same
Traditional pieces are allowed, as long the piece you submit for the zine is clean and scanned to a high resolution
None of the provided pieces in your samples or portfolio should be NSFW. If you are unsure about the rating of the content in your samples/portfolio, please tag the pieces appropriately
For the zine, you will be able to illustrate 1-2 pages
Merch Artists
You will need to submit 3 sample pieces as well as a portfolio
All samples should be fully lined and rendered, or up to the standards of a completed merch piece in your style
It is encouraged that you include a sample(s) with the type of merch that you would like to create for the zine (EX: charm, stickers)
At least one of your samples should feature an original character/design
If you wish to make a print or digital background, one of your samples should feature a full background
The samples featuring an original character and full background can be the same
Traditional pieces are allowed, as long the piece you submit for the zine is clean and scanned to a high resolution
None of the provided pieces in your samples or portfolio should be NSFW. If you are unsure about the rating of the content in your samples/portfolio, please tag the pieces appropriately
For the zine, you will be able to create 1-2 pieces/sets of merch
Comic Artists
You will need to submit 3 sample pieces as well as a portfolio
All samples should be fully lined and rendered, or up to the standards of a completed piece in your style.
At least one of your samples should feature an original character/design
At least one of your samples should feature a comic page
The samples featuring an original character, full background, and comic page can be the same
Traditional pieces are allowed, as long the piece you submit for the zine is clean and scanned to a high resolution
None of the provided pieces in your samples or portfolio should be NSFW. If you are unsure about the rating of the content in your samples/portfolio, please tag the pieces appropriately
For the zine, you will be able to illustrate 2-3 pages
Writers
You will need to submit 3 sample pieces as well as a portfolio
Your 3 provided samples cannot exceed 2,000 words each
At least one sample should feature an original story/writing
Excerpts are allowed, but keep in mind that you will have to write a piece within 2,000 words for the zine
None of the provided pieces in your samples or portfolio should be NSFW. If you are unsure about the rating of the content in your samples/portfolio, please tag the pieces appropriately
For the zine, you will be able to write a 3-4 page piece (about 1.5k-2k words)
Poets
You will need to submit 3 sample pieces as well as a portfolio
Your 3 provided samples should be at least 3-4 lines long and cannot exceed 1,000 words each
At least one sample should feature an original story/writing
None of the provided pieces in your samples or portfolio should be NSFW. If you are unsure about the rating of the content in your samples/portfolio, please tag the pieces appropriately
For the zine, you will be able to write a 1 page poem, or multiple poems that take 1 page in total
FAQ
What is a phobia?
A phobia is an irrational and/or excessive fear of something. People can have phobias of almost anything, from certain objects, to animals, and even certain ideas. Common phobias include arachnophobia (fear of spiders/arachnids) and acrophobia (fear of heights).
Will this zine be physical?
Yes this zine will be physical!
Will this zine be for charity or profit?
This profits from this zine will be split between contributors/mods and a charity.
How many contributors will be accepted?
We will be accepting 15 page artists, 5-7 merch artists, 5 comic artists, 10 writers, and 10 poets.
Is there an age requirement for the zine?
Applicants are required to be at least 13 since information will be communicated via Discord, which requires all users to be at least 13. Additionally, this zine may include horror-type content. Mods who are applying for shipping/finance related positions will have to be at least 18.
How will each phobia be assigned?
After contributors are selected, there will be a concept form for them to fill out once everyone gets situated in the discord server. On the form, contributors will select their top few phobias, and once all forms are turned in, mods will assign contributors one of them. Most phobias will only be assigned to one person; however the more popular ones may have 2-3 per each. Additionally, merch artists will not be limited to just one phobia, so they will have more options to select from.
Can I use an original/previously made character for my piece?
For page artists and writers, using a previously made OC for your piece is fine, however, given the objective of this zine’s content, page artists and writers may find it easier to create a character whose personality and/or design they can easily center the characteristics/effects of the phobia around.
For merch artists, designs made featuring characters will need to be original to the zine.
In addition, as this is an original zine, using characters that belong to or are based on another franchise/series (like MHA or Supernatural) will not be permitted from any of the contributors.
What can I draw as a page artist?
Artists can create illustrations that depict a physical manifestation of a phobia, or how the phobia affects a character(s). For an example of each, using coulrophobia (fear of clowns), an artist can draw a scary clown looking directly at the viewer, or they could draw a character looking into a mirror horrified, with their reflection being a scary/creepy clown.
Keep in mind that those are simple examples, and if an artist feels that they have a different direction that they want to go in or interpretation, we’d love to hear your idea, and it’s very likely that it will be accepted.
What can I make as a merch artist?
Merch artists can create designs/characters that represent a phobia. For example, for arachnophobia (fear of spiders/arachnids), a merch artist could make a sticker sheet filled with various spider designs or a spider-like character making different expressions.
Keep in mind that that is a simple example, and if a merch artist feels that they have a different direction that they want to go in or interpretation, we’d love to hear your idea, and it’s very likely that it will be accepted.
What can I write?
Writers can write short stories that mainly focus on their chosen phobia. For example, for zoophobia (fear of animals), a writer could create a piece about a character getting trapped in a zoo, with the animals all being released from their exhibits.
Keep in mind that that is a simple example, and if a writer feels that they have a different direction that they want to go in or interpretation, we’d love to hear your idea, and it’s very likely that it will be accepted.
Who are the mods?
All the mods can be found here: https://phobias-zine-info.carrd.co/#mods
My question wasn’t answered
Don’t be afraid to drop a question in the ask box! I’m happy to elaborate or answer any new questions.
Questions from the Interest Check
Will mods be able to contribute to the zine?
Mods will be allowed to contribute if they are interested (without taking up contributor slots), however they will have to go through the same judging process as all other applicants, with abstained voting of their own application.
Are happy endings allowed for the written pieces?
Of course! Given that phobias are usually portrayed only showing the negative effects, pieces with happy endings would be a supported change of pace.
Given the themes, it would be reassuring to know that a sensitivity reader will be involved at the mod level.
Sensitivity regarding the topic of phobias is something that I have definitely been keeping in mind throughout the planning of this zine. At the moment, the plan is to recruit mods who will be open to discussion and communication that will ensure that each piece is framed in a conscious light, however if you or someone you know has experience with being a sensitivity reader for projects with similar topics, by all means, feel free to shoot me a message.
What inspired this? What is your goal with this zine?
Since I (Mod Oxy) personally love character and story design, I wanted to focus on creating an original zine that allowed for people’s unique interpretations of a certain theme. Out of the possible themes I considered, phobias were the most interesting to me because I don’t often see them talked about (outside of horror movies, etc), despite most people having one (mine happens to be arachnophobia).
The goal of this zine is to creatively demonstrate how phobias can be interpreted by different people, while opening up discussions of the various ways that they influence modern culture.
Is traditional/monochrome/grayscale work allowed?
Absolutely! As long as it can be scanned to high quality.
Are the mod(s) supportive of trans identities?
120%! This zine will be supportive of all LGBTQA+ identities and will not be discriminating against anyone based on their cultural identity or background. If at any point during the zine you feel that you are at risk or uncomfortable, you can reach out to me on my personal socials. -Mod Oxy
*Additionally, ‘phobias’ such as homophobia, transphobia, and xenophobia, etc will not be permitted in the zine.
The name of the zine is a bit confusing.
I apologize for this, for some reason it completely slipped my mind that there was a series with the same name until after preparations for the interest check launches were complete. On that note, there are plans to rename the zine at a future date, so please keep an eye out for that!
If the zine becomes physical, how would it be free? At production cost?
With the current responses to the interest check, the zine is most likely going to be half profit/charity, so there would be no financial conflicts with a physical production (if pre-orders go well). The free option would only be applicable if a majority of people were interested in the zine being digital only, however producing a physical zine seems to be the more desired path based on the responses.
Will there be a table of contents on social media or the purchase site or something? For those with triggers
Yes, we will be posting a list of the phobias included within the zine as well as other potential triggers as the pre-order date approaches, and before previews are shared.
Although I'm looking forward to a (reasonably) mature-audience zine that's more creepy than campy, I think it would be cool if the content could focus more on universal fears instead of overused horror tropes relating to misogyny, homophobia, violence against racial and ethnic minorities, and so on.
I agree! We will not be requiring that any of the art or writing has to go down the horror route, and will be monitoring the contents of the zine to ensure that none of the pieces included will feature those types of overused tropes.
How long will the writing pieces be?
The length of the writing pieces will be around 1,500-2,000 words. The length of poetry pieces are TBA.
What website will be used for purchases? Where will the physical merch be shipped from?
The answers to both these questions will depend on the finance and shipping/production mods, but the website used will likely be Big Cartel.
In the FAQ, it's mentioned that writers will contribute short stories, but I'd also like to see poetry being included! It's an unappreciated medium and adding poets may be a viable way to allow for more writers to join, if that is still a concern.
Good news, we will be including poetry!
In terms of making the zine physical/ digital I'd recommended deciding based on the mods' experiences with zines overall! Since a lot goes into printing.
Absolutely! Although the interest checks have reflected high interest in a physical + digital zine, the final decision will 100% be decided after the full mod team has been assembled.