Interview with JTAY

INTERVIEW WITH JUST TO ANNOY YOU

· How and why did you start the zine?

Amy: I am very passionate about art, and wanted to get involved in the zine community. At the age of 14, I discovered the zine store Sticky and started buying zines there all the time. At 16, I actually decided to do one myself. I ended up receiving positive feedback and a lot of interest. A few months down the track I was getting emails from emerging artists, kids at my high school and even a couple of art galleries approached me about having my zine there. From there it just grew and the reason the zine is still going is because now we have our own little art community. One thing I love about the zine is that if ever I’m struggling with my art or writing I can always turn to the theme of the zine and have something to work towards. Having a different theme for each issue makes me think in ways that I wouldn’t usually and I love a challenge.

· How do you commission contributors?

Because our zine is more about garnering exposure for emerging artists than making money, our contributors tend to be very passionate about their projects. This often manifests itself through lots of 'word of mouth' advertising and social networking- most people find out about us either through friends or through sites like facebook and blogspot. While we don't 'pay' our contributors in the strictest sense, we offer exposure to their work, create a small art community that allows people to be involved in something collaborative.

· What is a typical print run and sales?

We generally print approximately 70-100 copies at a time of one issue, which are then sold over a period of several months, usually 3-4.

· Who is your audience?

Because our zine is all about being part of a community, we find that a lot of our audience are contributors, and vice-versa. It's got this great interactive vibe going on- someone might read our zine one month, like what they see, and contribute the next. We try and make our zine as inclusive as possible, and the open nature of the internet really facilitates this.

· How many people do you send to?

We send free copies to all contributors , usually 15-20 per edition. Retails at all major zine stores in Melbourne, mostly Sticky and Polyester Books, and at some art galleries in the Fitzroy and Brunswick area. In addition, we have some interstate distribution in Newcastle, NSW, plus our online store generates a small amount of international interest.

We also get involved in art festivals such as the Melbourne Zine Fair, art markets, and this creates more 'word of mouth' advertising amongst the art community.

· How many people work there? Is it all volunteer work?

Any profit generated goes back into zine production. This covers the costs of printing, paper, stamps, envelopes etc., so we're not for profit.

We have a team manager that performs organisational duties, and then a creative team of four that edit, create content, and decide the theme for each issue. 

Anyone is welcome to come and share ideas with us.

· How/Where do you produce the zine?

Our contributors are left to their own devices, and then send their contributions by email. We then print at Sticky Institute and it is handmade into the final product.

· Do you run the zine out of pure love or do you aim to make a profit?

Well, if we’re doing it for profit we're not doing a very good job.

I think that part of the zine aesthetic is the underground culture surrounding it, and I think that huge success would taint that. It’s like being part of a secret that only a few people are in on. A certain amount of financial success would be nice, but if we started printing a glossy colour publication it would lose some of the grittiness, and alienate people in the process.

We’ve been told by someone that they like our zine because it’s not pretty, and I think that speaks volumes about our zine and what we're aiming for. We're not trying to move huge numbers of units, we're trying create an intimate and honest publication.