How To | Launch Your Own Tiny Magazine

If you’ve ever flicked through a copy of The Simple Things and thought that we must have a lot of fun making an independent magazine, you’d be absolutely right. Here’s how you can have a slice of the fun yourself by creating a ‘mini’ magazine of your very own.

A ‘zine’ (pronounced ‘zeen’) is a magazine in a very small format that you can unfold to photocopy and then distribute within your community, whether that’s your church, school or a gang of your friends. They began back in the 1930s when people produced their own science fiction fanzines (or ‘zines’, for short) to share with other fans. They’ve had many resurgences over the years, with political zines being published in the 1960s and cultural ones during the punk era of the 80s. Whatever your interest, there will have been a zine for it at some point and if not - you can make your own! Here’s how:

1. Decide on a theme for your zine. It could be for a local community group, it could be self-published poetry, or just something very niche… recipes for brownies? Portraits of your neighbourhood’s cats? An illustration of the life cycle of a hawk moth? It’s all up to you. You’ll want to give it a name, too.

2. Decide whether you need to assemble a team of mates to help or if this is a solo project, and then get people on board or simply stock up on coffee and good biscuits before going it alone. 

3. Make your original zine. There are several formats you can use but the easiest is the eight-page zine. You can search instructions on how to do the folds for an eight-page zine online. There are several on YouTube or try ‘How To Make a Zine’ on Mymodernet.com. Make the folds first and number the pages, then you can flatten it out again to write or draw on each page. You will need to make one snip between pages 3 and 8 or 4 and 7. 

4. Design your cover on page one and your back cover on page eight, then fill the remaining pages with your content. Don’t forget you can stick in photos and blocks of text, use calligraphy or other images. It just needs to be clear enough to read when photocopied.

5. Unfold and flatten out your zine, photocopy as many copies as you need and then fold them all in the same way as you folded and snipped your original. 

6. Sell, give away or foist your indie zine upon friends, family and unsuspecting locals. 

If you’re already feeling inspired, don’t miss our My Living feature in the September issue, which is all about producers of indie mags. And if you’re looking for more indie mags to read yourself, you can always find plenty of them on our sister site Pics & Ink where you can buy mags on every subject imaginable, from adventure and travel to food and drink to film and music. Head to picsandink.com to have a browse.

More from our September issue…

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10 Reasons | To Live on an Island

If, post holidays, you have a yearning to throw it all in and head off to live on island, well, we wouldn’t blame you one bit. Here are just a few reasons why island life is the best life - and a few things to bear in mind before you board the ferry.

1.  You’re never far from a sea view. It might sound obvious but one of the best parts of island life is making the coast part of your everyday routine. Have a run on the beach each morning, walk the dog along the shoreline in the evenings, or make an event of your lunchtime sarnie by enjoying it while listening to the waves. You never get bored of it. 

2. You’ll notice the seasons more. The weather tends to be a little bit ‘extra’ on islands. When the wind gets up you really feel it and a sunny day feels that little bit brighter. 

3. You appreciate the small things on an island. When you understand that nearly everything you buy has made its last journey by boat to your shores, it gives you a greater appreciation for the simple things. Your teabag for your cuppa may have come all the way from Yorkshire but then it made the brave journey across the waves just for you. It’s enough to make you quite emotional.

4. You use local products and services more because everyone likes to support other islanders. Discovering a cheese or gin or chocolate made so close to home is VERY exciting. 

5. You can feel a bit smug about actually understanding the Shipping Forecast on Radio 4. Or at least can point out the names on a map. 

6. You will soon move on to ‘Island Time’. Forget BST and GMT; island time is simply S-L-O-W-E-R and it’s a wonderful way to live. 

7. In times of crisis, you feel just a little bit safer and sheltered, cocooned in your community. 

8. Long commutes are a thing of the past. And the nearest you’ll get to a traffic jam is the queue for the ferry when you visit the mainland. 

9. You’ll get to know your neighbours quickly. Yes, everyone DOES know everyone else’s business, but that usually means everyone is happy to help when needed, too. 

10. In summer, you can bask in the glory of being a Proper Islander rather than Just A Tourist, and in winter you can glorify in knowing that really this is the BEST time of year. The island is quieter, the tourists have gone home and now the fun can really begin. 

And a few things to think about before you take the plunge…

1. You’re always just a bit behind. You might not get to see the latest art exhibitions or films for months after anyone else or have to go to the mainland for them. But the local exhibitions and Friday Film Nights in the village hall go a long way to making up for that. 

2. You can feel isolated at times. You can’t ‘just pop over’ to a friend or relative if they’re on the mainland. You’re at the mercy of ferry timetables, wind speed etc. On the other hand… you can’t be surprised by unexpected visitors either. 

3. Shopping is very much limited. Your days of wandering the shops trying on shoes will be gone. But the internet does at least mean you won’t miss out completely. You just might have to wait for your parcels to arrive by boat. And arguably the wait makes the moment of ripping the box open all the sweeter. 

4. Infrastructure is a bit more… shall we say ‘rustic’? Be prepared for more power outs and black outs than you are used to. But it’s always a good excuse to light a fire and get the candles out. 

If you like the thought of becoming an islander yourself, don’t miss our ‘My Neighbourhood’ feature in our September issue, in which we visit the Isle of Wight, as pictured above by Holly Joliffe.

More from our September issue…

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Tipple | Hedgerow Fizz

Nothing signals the season like a pile of foraged hedgerow finds. Dilute with sparkling wine or fizzy water, delicious either way.

Makes around 500ml

200g sloes
200g blackberries
200g elderberries
200g damsons
250g granulated sugar
Sparkling wine or sparkling water

1 Leave any foraged berries outside for an hour to give bugs the chance to escape, then soak them in cold water for a couple of minutes. Drain, transfer to a pan and add enough water to just about cover them. Bring to the boil then simmer for 5 mins, or until soft.

2 Using a potato masher, crush the berries in the pan and then push the mixture through a sieve or leave to drip through a muslin into a bowl. Pour the resulting liquid into a clean pan and add the sugar.

3 Bring to an almost boil before reducing the heat and giving the occasional stir. The sugar needs to dissolve and thicken the juice, but you’re not making jam so it should only take 10 mins or so.

4 Pour the liquid into a clean, sterilised glass bottle. When ready, pour around 20ml into a glass then top up with sparkling wine or water and serve. Bartender’s note: This can be stored in the fridge for up to a week. Or, you can freeze in an ice cube tray. This recipe is adaptable – if you can’t find elderberries or sloes, then increase the amounts of the other fruits or berries.

The recipe for Hedgerow Fizz, above, is just one of the ideas from our September issue’s ‘gathering’ feature, a menu for an early autumn supper that we’ve called ‘Merry Michaelmas’. You’ll also find recipes for Rosemary Roasted Nuts, Roast Carrot & Lentil Salad, Michaelmas Roast Duck Salad with Sticky Damson Sauce and Parsnip Chips and an Apple, Pear & Ginger Cobbler with Cardamom Custard. The recipes are all by Lucy Brazier with photography by Jonathan Cherry.

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Outings | Days out for You and Your Dog

Fancy a grand day out with your four-legged friend? Here are a few ideas that go beyond a simple ‘walkies’.

Park

Dogs that love to run but don’t have great recall will thrive in Wrenbury Hall’s enclosed woodland in Nantwich, Cheshire. Totally secure with fencing around 1.5 metres high, it’s a totally safe space to let your dog off-lead to explore on its own. unleashedwrenbury.co.uk

Cinema

Ducie Street Warehouse in Manchester is a brilliant dog-friendly dining and drinking space with its own pet-friendly cinema. Check the run-times to find out which screenings are letting dogs in, pick up your popcorn and head in to enjoy a dog-friendly film on the big screen. duciestreet.com. Curzon cinemas in London, Canterbury, Knutsford and Sheffield also run Dog Day Afternoons, where you can bring your pet. The volume is lower, and there are also treats for dogs (and people). curzon.com

Café

There are dog-friendly cafés, and then there’s Love My Human Townhouse in London. Less dog-friendly and more dog-first, this pet-obsessed café is built for dogs. Anything goes here, with dogs encouraged to sit at the tables and on sofas, plus a full dog menu, because surely your pet deserves a brunch of scrambled eggs or a hearty lunch of beef Wellington with pumpkin purée? lovemyhuman.co.uk

Sport

Dog Masters Festival, in Bournemouth, is all about four-legged surfers. The UK dog surfing championships is held every July on Branksome Dene Beach, a soft, yellow-sand stretch, and features live music, street food and, of course, surfing dogs. shakasurf.co.uk

Festival

If you can imagine Glastonbury, but instead of bands, it’s dog experts, and instead of people, it’s dogs, then you’re picturing DogFest, the UK’s biggest and most chaotic dog-friendly festival, held at various stately homes around the UK. This two-day extravaganza, features fun dog shows, an obedience ring, expert speakers and fun dog displays, plus interactive activities such as hay-bale racing and agility, and is a riot for humans and dogs alike. dogfest.co.uk

These ideas are taken from Dog Days Out: 365 Things To Do With Your Dog In The UK And Ireland by Lottie Gross (Conway). You can read a longer extract in our September issue.

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Think | Blackberries and Poetry

Blackberry season is such a memorable and brief time of the year, perhaps it’s no wonder writers and poets love a good blackberry metaphor…

Imbued with myth and symbolic meaning, the humble blackberry crops up frequently in both prose and poetry, as heavy with metaphor as the thorny branches are heavy with fruit. (See? It’s impossible to avoid!) The roots of blackberry symbolism go back to the Bible and beyond. The mortal who tried to ride Pegasus to Olympus in Greek myth falls into a thorny bush and is blinded. Similarly, Satan himself was said to have fallen into a blackberry bush when he was cast out of heaven. Christ’s crown of thorns is also said in some cultures to have been woven of blackberry branches. It’s easy to see why the blackberry has become linked with ideas of sin, or pursuing pleasure and of ultimate downfall. If you want to taste those sweet and juicy berries, you have to prepare to be scratched or, worse, find that when you get them home they’ve gone over and taste sour. Sad times. If you enjoy a blackberry metaphor as much as we do, here are a few thorny verses you might like to have a read of…

If you like the idea of blackberries as a dark, menacing presence try…

Blackberrying by Sylvia Plath

“Nobody in the lane and nothing, nothing but blackberries. Blackberries on either side…” she begins, and you can imagine the dark berries, glowing… growing and watching the narrator with their beady blackberry eyes. She describes them as “big as the ball of my thumb and dumb as eyes”, having clearly underestimated their malevolent genius as they reel her in. “Fat with blood red juices. These they squander on my fingers. I had not asked for such a blood sisterhood. They must love me.” Run, Sylvia!! Run from the blackberries, we scream silently. 

If you enjoy blackberries as a metaphor for the fragility of life try…

Blackberry Picking by Seamus Heaney

“Late August, given heavy rain and sun for a full week, the blackberries would ripen” and Heaney and his family would gleefully collect them, their palms “sticky as Bluebeard’s”. You can almost feel the disappointment coming, can’t you?... “Once off the bush the fruit fermented, the sweet flesh would turn sour. I always felt like crying. It wasn’t fair that all the lovely canfuls smelt of rot. Each year I hoped they’d keep, knew they would not.” Ah… that’s life for you, Seamus, and especially the fleeting life of blackberries. 

If blackberries for you are a symbol of sensory overload and greed try…

August by Mary Oliver

Oliver describes spending “all day among the high branches, reaching my ripped arms, thinking of nothing, cramming the black honey of summer into my mouth.” You go for it, Mary. Don’t wait to take them home for crumble; blackberries are best scoffed greedily enjoyed in the moment. 

If you like to dance with the devil when blackberrying, you might like…

Blackberry Eating by Galway Kinnell

Kinnell gives the distinct impression of entering a pact with Satan as he makes his way among the brambles: “the stalks very prickly, a penalty they earn for knowing the black art of blackberry-making.” And like others before him (well, mainly like Eve in the Garden of Eden) he loses his innocence to the lure of fruit. “The ripest berries” he insists “fall almost unbidden to my tongue.” Yeah, you keep telling yourself that, Galway. That’s what all Satan’s Blackberry Minions say.  

If blackberries symbolise deep and real love for you, try…

The Heart Under Your Heart by Craig Arnold

Blackberries here represent the very real, unswerving sort of love that exists when you know someone completely, with all their thorns and foibles. Arnold tells us “The heart under your heart is not the one you share so readily so full of pleasantry & tenderness. it is a single blackberry at the heart of a bramble.” We’ll raise a jug of custard to that. 

You’ll find more blackberrying nostalgia in our feature ‘Down Memory Lanes’ in our September issue, which is on sale now.

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Recipes | Get a Cob On

Fresh corn cobs are one of late summer’s simple pleasures. And while they’re delicious in themselves, they’re also a great vehicle for flavour. Here are a few ideas for things to put on your corn cobs to make them taste amazing

Every Herb Green Sauce

Corn on the cob, in their husks 

Big bunch of green herbs (parsley, mint, basil, chervil, sorrel, tarragon), leaves picked 

50g tin anchovies in oil 

1 tbsp capers 

2 tsp apple cider vinegar 

2 fat garlic cloves 75ml(ish) extra virgin olive oil 

1 Once your barbecue is stable, place the cobs at the edge of the fire. (If you are cooking the venison as well, then the corn will do its thing at the side while you prepare the fire to cook the meat.) Leave to cook for 10-15 mins, allowing the husks to blacken and the kernels inside to steam safely. 

2 Meanwhile, make the green sauce by whizzing the rest of the ingredients in a food processor. Adjust the seasoning as needed – adding more salt, vinegar and/or oil to balance it all out and create a thick, just-pourable sauce that is both sweet, tart and salty in equal measure. 

3 Remove the corn from the heat and, very carefully, peel back the burnt husk to reveal the kernels within. Return the cobs to the fire and cook for a further 2–3 mins over a direct flame, turning regularly until gently charred. Transfer to a plate, spoon over the sauce and serve. 

Vietnamese Spring Onion Oil

Corn on the cob, husks removed

Bunch of spring onions

100ml vegetable oil

1 tsp granulated sugar

1 tsp fish sauce

1 Thinly slice the spring onions.

2 Heat the oil in a small pan and add the onions once hot. Stir continuously for 30 seconds until they start to frizzle.

3 Remove from heat and stir in the sugar and fish sauce until dissolved.

4 Cook your corn cobs and once cooked, drizzle over the spring onion oil.

Basil Butter

Corn on the cob, husks removed

Bunch of basil or whatever herb you prefer

A pack of butter

Black pepper

1 Finely chop your herbs.

2 Chop your butter into cubes, sprinkle in the herbs and a good grinding of black pepper then mix and mash it into the butter until evenly distributed. Roll your butter back into a log, wrap in cling film and refrigerate. 

3 When your cobs are cooked, remove the herb butter, cut into discs and place a disc to melt on top of each cob.

Mediterranean Yogurt and Feta

Corn on the cob, husks removed

Greek yogurt

Feta cheese

Fresh oregano and basil

Olive oil to drizzle

1 Chop the fresh herbs.

2 Crumble the feta into the yogurt - use as much as you like to taste and depending on how many cobs you’re serving (if you have leftovers it makes a great dip).

3 Slather the yogurt and feta mix over the cooked cobs, sprinkle with herbs and then drizzle with olive oil.

Easy Elotes (Mexican street corn)

Corn on the cob, husks removed

Cumin

Chilli powder

Sour cream

Crumbled Feta

Grated parmesan

Coriander

Lime wedges

Fresh red chilli

1 Mix the sour cream with a little cumin and chilli powder (amounts will depend on how powerful you want the punch) and crumble in the feta.

2 Spoon the creamy mix over hot corn cobs.

3 Sprinkle over the grated parmesan and chopped coriander.

4 Serve each loaded cob with a lime wedge on the side and fresh chopped red chillis if liked.

The recipe for Every Herb Green Sauce, above, is by Kathy Slack and is one of the recipes from her Tales From the Veg Patch feature in our September issue. It also includes recipes for Venison with Blackberries and Raw Kale Salad, Smoky Tomato Harissa and Damson, Thyme and Cobnut Cake.

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Playlist | My patch

Whether it’s your house or your neighbourhood, our latest playlist celebrates your patch. It’s taken from our September PATCH issue (see what we did there?) in shops from 28 August 24.

Take a listen on Spotify here
Have a browse of all our playlists here

Nature studies | How spiral shells are made

We’ve all picked up a spiralled shell on the beach and marvelled at how nature can produce something so intricate and mathematically beautiful, but how are they actually formed?

The shape of spiral shells, such as nautilus shells, are known by mathematicians as ‘logarithmic spirals’. These are shapes that follow the Fibonacci sequence and there are many examples in nature, from sunflower hearts to entire galaxies: for any rotation angle in these shapes, the distance from the origin of the spiral increases by a fixed amount. 

In nautilus shells like the Necklace Shell, above, there are many chambers, which the mollusc inside inhabits. As the creature grows, it needs bigger and bigger chambers to live in, so it creates these via a process called biomineralisation. 

During biomineralisation, the mollusc’s mantle (a soft organ that secretes a substance high in calcium carbonate) gets to work, making a deposit at the opening of the shell, following the ‘expand, rotate, twist’ rule to create the spiral. Here’s how that works:

1. Expand: it must deposit more material than it did when creating the previous part of the spiral.

2. Rotate: by depositing more material on one side of the opening, it creates a full rotation of the aperture, making a doughnut shape.

3. Twist: It rotates the point of deposition each time. The twist part is what gives a helicospiral shell, rather than a planospiral shell like that of the nautilus. So it’s not always necessary but it’s rather cool and clever, so we’ve included it here. 

Nearly all shells rotate to the right and are known as dextral shells. It’s very rare to see a sinistral shell, where the spirals rotate to the left. But what’s fascinating is that the fossil record shows this was not always the case and the direction of spiral shells changes over the centuries. Why? Nobody really knows. Perhaps, as a species, they got giddy…

The shell images used here are taken from The Shell Spotter’s Guide by Helen Scales with illustrations by Ella Sienna (National Trust Books). We have an extract and a short guide to shell spotting in our August issue, which is on sale now.
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Augur shell by Ella Sienna

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Recipe | Sunflower Heart Tarte Tatin

Sunflowers, when prepared properly, have a texture like aubergine and taste like a perfumed artichoke heart, making for a tasty seasonal tart.

Ingredients

Serves 4

10g butter
6 shallots, finely sliced
4 small or 2 large sunflower heads, with petals
1 glass of white wine
2 tsp oregano leaves
2 tsp thyme leaves
320g puff pastry
25g mature cheddar, grated

To make

1 Heat a splash of olive oil and the butter in a pan over a medium low heat. Add the shallots and a pinch of salt and sweat for about 10 mins, or until golden. Set aside.

2 To prepare your sunflower hearts, remove any petals (set aside) and pull off the seeds (if they don’t push out easily, lever out with a spoon). Next, use a knife to scrape the paper cases from the spongy base, discard, and trim away the green parts of the flower head, including the leaves and where the stem joins underneath. You should be left with a round, white, slightly spongy base of the flower head.

3 Slice the spongy bases into long strips and place in a bowl along with the wine and half of the oregano and thyme. Submerge the strips under the wine, ensuring 128 that they’re covered, otherwise they’ll oxidise and will go brown.

4 Return the pan of shallots to the hob, adding the sunflower strips, the wine and the remaining oregano and thyme leaves. Heat until the wine evaporates and the sunflower strips start to soften.

5 Line a round 32cm dish with baking paper. Spoon the sunflower and shallot mixture into the middle of the dish and leave to cool.

6 Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/Gas 4. When the filling is cool, roll out the puff pastry to the same size as the dish. Sprinkle the cheese over the filling and carefully place the pastry disc on top, ensuring all the ingredients are tucked inside. Press down the pastry and tuck in the edges. Prick a couple of holes in the centre to allow steam to escape. Bake for 35–40 mins, or until golden.

7 Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before turning out onto a serving platter. Discard the baking paper and scatter over the reserved sunflower petals to serve.

Taken from Buds & Blossoms by Liz Knight (Hardie Grant). Photography: Kim Lightbody

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