The OC Zine Fest was hosted at the Anaheim Central Library and included almost a full day of zine vendors and workshops. Spanning two floors of the library with almost 100 zine artists, this was such a fun experience for zine lovers and anyone who loves art.  Below is my review of the event, a list of all the zines I bought, and my tips for anyone going to the OC Zine Fest next year.

The event

The Anaheim Library is no stranger to zines: they have their own collection of zines that you can check out from their collection and have been hosting the fest for a few years, so overall it felt very organized. Almost 100 zine vendors were split between the ground floor and the basement.

There were four workshops and speakers occurring each hour, discussing topics like teaching zines to students for teachers or panels on the zine-making process.

My boyfriend and I arrived about an hour after they opened, and after struggling to find parking, we were delighted to see the library was packed. It was such an inviting and exciting atmosphere, with so much to look at. All of the vendors were so nice and excited to talk about their work.

What I loved the most was seeing all the different art styles and the ways you could use the medium. From graphic design to hand-drawn illustration, and political zines to personal experiences, no two artists were the same.

All the zines I bought

• “You are Here” zine by Elisebee

  • Right when we walked in the door, we were greeted by a library staff member who offered us a map of the festival and a free zine. This is definitely the smallest zine I have ever held and I cannot wait to make my own mini mini-zine!

• “International Dog of Mystery: Snoopy in Japan and America” zine by Sam Nakahira

  • A personal zine exploring the artist’s childhood growing up with Snoopy, as well as a short history of the popularity of Snoopy in America and Japan, all with the artist’s adorable illustrations.

• “So, You Want to Be a Great Artist” zine by Raven Bennett-Burns

  • A short, illustrated zine about the risks and rewards of turning life into art.

• “Easily Digestible Facts – Strawberry” and “Easily Digestible Facts – Garlic” by Celine Tran

  • One of the cutest zines I got! These mini zines, shaped as the food they discuss, fold out accordion style, with one side discussing facts about the food, and the other listing fun recipes.

• “HOT” zine by Laura Tran Johnson

  • A hilarious zine documenting the trials and tribulations of modern online dating.

• “March Movie Madness” and “Ew, David” zines by Miquela Davis

  • These two zines were included in a mystery zine and sticker pack bag. And I even got a zine business card, which is such a rad idea for any zine artist/graphic designer/anyone who wants to have fun.

• “Modest Meeple: Issue #1” by Stan Wang and illustrated by Viet Vu

  • A text-heavy zine about the author’s experience with board games, complete with the coolest illustrations.

• “Hardcover Spinal Fluid: A zine obsession and worry” by Sammy Merabet

  • A heartfelt poetry zine with four deeply personal poems and writings included.

• “Huevo Nuevo” by Daily Egg

  • Saving the best for last is “Huevo Nuevo” by Daily Egg, a zine/literary art collective I don’t even know how to describe. This is such a niche aesthetic that I have no idea how to describe it, but I am infatuated with art that is offbeat and Omega-Mart-esqe. It gives me a very uncanny valley/parody-type aesthetic.

  • As I did my first lap around, I swear I could sense the weirdness like a bloodhound. I only saw a corner of one of the zines but knew it would be right up my alley, and I was not disappointed. Funny, quirky, deadpan, just every adjective you can think of rolled into one zine.

Tips for next time!

• Bring a large plastic Ziplock bag to hold all of your zines and prints so you don’t lose them/they get squished in a tote bag

• Go early! The library’s parking lot is relatively small, so plan on arriving early to get a spot or finding parking off-site and walking.

• Bring cash. Most vendors used Cashapp, Paypal, or Venmo, but all took cash. Cash was the quickest and easiest way to purchase zines, and helped me manage how much I was spending.

• Take laps! With so many zine artists, it is easy to get overwhelmed. What my boyfriend and I did for each floor was to take a lap saying hello to each vendor and looking at their zines. Then, we would find a quiet place to regroup, talk about the cool zines we wanted to revisit, and then head back out to buy.

• Did you miss an artist? Most of the zine artists donate their works to be added to the Anaheim Library zine collection. I saw a staff member walking around the event with a box that many of the vendors added their own zines to. So if you couldn’t buy every zine you wanted, they might have included their zine in the permanent collection.