A preview section of the interview I gave to Eye magazine for their Monotype special edition, number 84:
Month: November 2012
Pencilled, Pixelated
Since I started working full-time at Monotype, and especially since I took over as UK Type Director last Spring, work has consumed a larger and larger part of my life. This would be bad if I didn’t love this job more than any other I’ve ever had, and if I didn’t feel like I was contributing to what happens at Monotype. My attempts to keep up with this site, always a tricky endeavor at the best of times, may have fallen slack, but I’ve hardly been slacking off elsewhere.
The last two weeks have been the culmination of a frantic couple of months of preparation for a giant exhibition of work from Monotype’s past and its present, and hopefully a look at its future. Pencil to Pixel, masterminded by my extraordinarily talented colleague James Fooks-Bale, designed by SEA, partially curated (and with guided tours) by me, and pulled off thanks to the efforts of many more, was huge success by all measures, and hopefully one of many more endeavors to come.
The best review of Punk Mince yet
“I loved reading your zine. Of all the material I collected, yours was among the sharpest, most-cohesive and had a genuine voice (sharp and unpretentious and honest and hip at the same time). You did something that obviously took work, but kind of has this effortless air to it which is, I suppose, how things are deemed hip. In any case, I liked reading it and wanted to tell you I’m really glad you didn’t write about painting your nails and wanting to kill yourself, because, incidentally, a lot of people did.”
An Interview with Queer Zine Fest London’s Organiser
I interviewed Charlotte Richardson Andrews, organiser of London’s first ever Queer Zine Fest that’s taking place in December – Beth Siveyer
What was your main motivation/inspiration for hosting a queer zine fest?
I got sick of trawling through stacks of heteronormative zines at all the usual fests (as great as they are) in search of zines that reflected my experiences. I thought if I felt like, it was possible that others might feel like that too. I decided a festival organised by queers, for queers, in a queer-friendly space seemed like the most obvious, productive and exciting response to this. Queers have been a bold presence in the zine world, shaping the culture and innovating it, so I felt like it was time we had our own fest. I want QZFL to be a space where queer stuff is central and celebrated, rather than an incidental presence. QZFL was also about feeling more personally connected with fellow queer zinesters and overcoming isolation. I’m a freelance writer/journalist by profession and a lot of the work/writing I do is solitary, labouring over a laptop, muttering to myself, walking around in pajamas, obsessing on the internet. Writing, collaborating and contributing to zines is my favourite incentive outta the hermit work bubble. I heart the life-affirming community that zine scenes affords, the cultural validation and the friends I’ve forged through it.
How many/what kind of stalls are confirmed so far?
TONS! (Check out Facebook and Tumblr for full lists) We have distros from London, Leeds, Manchester, solitary zinesters, first time tablees, old hands, imported zines from as far a field as New Zealand and a number of previously out-of-print stuff getting a special reprint just for the fest (mainly courtesy of the Old zines For Old People table being run by Bill Savage and the Unskinny Bop peeps). I’m also super proud to say we’ll have material by queercore legend Larry-bob Roberts (of Holy Titclamps and Queer Zine Explosion) at the fest, along with wares from QZAP.com (Queer zine Archive Project), one of the most indispensable queer zine resources on the net. Bookmark them!