About the project
“Zines are diy publications, needing no experience and few resources. They can be a chance to tell personal stories, explore passions or spread information. Zines have the radical potential to share voices and ideas left out by mainstream publishing.”
Message in a Bottle is a collaborative zine making project organised by Queer Zine Library and Queer Newham celebrating LGBTQIA+ communities and creativity of The Royal Docks, Newham, and across the UK.
From September - December 2020 we hosted a series of online zine making workshops and sent 50 free zine making kits to participants across the UK.
Taking the Royal Docks as our initial point of inspiration we prioritised LGBTQIA+ residents of Newham using zines as a way to document daily lives, experiences, and communities across the Royal Docks and East London.
As the project grew, we invited participants across the UK to respond to the wider themes of a message in a bottle, using zines, art, words, and photography to share secrets, send messages, and create connections. During lockdown those themes of connection, community, and belonging took on new meanings, shaping the project in ways we hadn’t anticipated.
“Getting the zine-making kit in the post was like getting a real life message in a bottle! I felt like I was part of something and during those lockdown days it gave me something to focus on.”
We sent out 50 free zine making kits. Each kit contained a variety of paper, glue sticks, pens, tape, rubber stamps, ephemera, and a step by step guide to zine making (below). No software, internet connection, or artistic skills were needed to take part. Anyone could use the zine making kit to make along at home with no pressure to share their finished work with us.
The Workshops
We worked with 3 incredible artists to facilitate a series of free online zine making workshops which took place throughout October 2020.
Jael de la Luz
Jael prompted us to make maps, document our surroundings, and imagine futures together. Jael worked with LGBTQIA+ residents of Newham and beyond, encouraging discussions around community, relationships, and home.
Jael de la Luz (she/her) is a writer, editor, book lover and craft maker activist (Fanzines and Collages). Her approach from intersectional feminism, anti racist practices and non binary knowledge, nourishes her work and workshops. She is part to the Spanish Reading Book Club in The Feminist Library and she writes “Militancias” on Feminopraxis, a Mexican online magazine for migrant, binary and women of colour from de global south
Seleena Daye
Seleena provided a pre-recorded zine making workshop which could be viewed anytime, anyplace, for those unable to attend our fixed programme of workshops. In the recorded session, Seleena introduced us to different types of zines from A5 booklets, to mini zines made with folds.
Seleena Laverne Daye is a textile artist, zine maker and retail worker, who loves to make and chat about all things class, race, queer, 90s pop culture and crisp related.
She has been making zines for over 20 years and loves to be able to help share stories told by marginalised folk and believes zines are a brilliant way to do this. Creativity, skill sharing and taking up space is at the heart of everything she does.
Rachel Littlewood
Rachel provided a family friendly workshop and took aspects of the game Animal Crossing as a starting point to cherish how meaningful messages from a faraway friend can feel.
Rachel Littlewood is a London based risographer & designer. She has been working in the risograph printing community for over 5 years and runs Riso Working Group UK; an informal network of UK based Riso artists, technicians & operators. Currently she works as a Print Finishing technician, helping university students bind books and finish their printed projects. Rachel also creates notebooks, prints, & zines which she distributes online and at fairs.
Who are we?
Message in a Bottle project is a collaborative zine making project organised by Queer Zine Library and Queer Newham with funding from the Royal Docks.
Queer Newham
Queer Newham is a local initiative to raise awareness on gender equality and support the well-being of the LGBTQA+ community in Newham (east London).
Queer Zine Library
Queer Zine Library is a UK based diy mobile library celebrating radical LGBTQIA+ self-publishing. While Covid has restricted access to over 800 queer zines in our collections , behind the scenes our wonderful volunteer collective are working hard to make our zines accessible in new ways.