Overview

Increasingly, as we come to terms with what a cesspit the internet really is, there has been a revival of interest in various artefacts once thought obsolete: vinyl records, analogue photography … and zines. With some zines from the punk era now selling for hundreds of pounds on eBay, and the study of zines a burgeoning field of academic interest, We Peaked at Paper appears at a propitious time. The book consists of twenty interviews with current and former editors of zines. Authors Hogg and Ironside travelled across Britain to carry out the interviews face to face over a period of five years. They sought to examine the widest possible range of publications, from the science fiction zines of the 1930s to a zine begun by a ten-year-old editor during the Covid pandemic. This is a volume that celebrates amateurism, and will be cherished by those who favour the local over the global, the home-made over the mass-produced, and Melody Dog over Taylor Swift. After achieving a cult following on its hardback publication in 2022, it is now available in paperback for the first time. In the words of Peter Doherty: ‘A great read – it had me reaching for my Stanley knife and glue!’

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9781911052111

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Reviews

‘A great read – it had me reaching for my Stanley knife and glue!’ – Peter Doherty ‘A rich, detailed and charmingly besotted account of the golden age of fanzines and the felt-pen-and-Letraset pioneers who wrote and lashed them together. I loved this nostalgic and affectionate tribute.’ – Mark Ellen ‘A tender, loving celebration of DIY dreamers, and the magical worlds they made.’ – Jude Rogers ‘A must-have companion to any library of do-it-yourself independent publications.’ – Teal Triggs ‘The book is essential reading for those, like me, who see fanzines as important historical traces of youthful ingenuity. But it is also brilliantly evocative for others who followed similar paths and spread the teenage news.’ – Matthew Worley

Author Information

Gavin Hogg was born in 1970 and bought his first zine (Perturbed) in 1987. He went on to produce two issues of his own zine, Bag of Tricks and Candy Sticks, in the early nineties. A former contributor to The Word, Gavin now maintains a blog about the much-missed magazine, as well as co-hosting the Giddy Carousel of Pop podcast. He owns every album the Fall ever made. Hamish Ironside was born in Reading in 1971. He works as a freelance editor, and runs Boatwhistle Books as a labour of love. He produced five issues of his Saudade fanzine in the nineties, and has recently published three more issues of it, including one printed on a rusty old Gestetner, just to see if it could be done. He owns every album the Thrills ever made.

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