This zine will change your life

Litzines are made for the internet, no more stealing paper and toner from work. No more lurking by the photocopier. With digital publishing the notion of the issue dissolves slightly, 3am runs continuously, adding content at whim (great story by Alan McCormick just added), it is perhaps becoming the heavyweight contender with advertising and an editorial team.

Others soldier on as labours of love for as long as unrequited desire permits, Dogmatika is no longer active, a shame, but the printscape is constantly shifting with titles coming and going (Corium Magazine looks promising). The ease of electronic publishing does not however guarantee a satisfying read: the relentlessness of reading submissions, a good eye for a fluid aesthetic layout, the dedication to publish regularly. All of this is required, and wrought just for the love. And the love of literature at that. Not the bar-soaked slutty drug-fueled sticky shallow love that one could choose to pursue instead, to endure those unnoticed unrewarded dark hours of the lonely night. (note to self…)

There are some great litzines and their editor’s love and toil should be reciprocated, but in a strictly fluidless way mind. Ben Tanzer produces This Zine Will Change Your Life. It’s good. What I really like about it is his approach to the issue.

New editions are alerted via RSS or email, consisting of a single page: a story or a few poems; an mp3; and illustrative photography. No need to navigate, a little expresso hit, in-tray manageable. Building into a good body of work if you want to trawl the archives, Chris Killen is in there for example.

So here’s a shout-out for that zine, bookmark or subscribe.