by Delta Taylor, staff writer

Pikes Peak Zine Club (PPZC) resurrects the old art of underground press challenging authority. Zines formerly promoted punk rock shows and were popularized by science fiction groups in the 1930s.

As far as the purpose of the club itself is concerned, the PPZC Constitution states, “This club seeks to spread knowledge, ideas, art, and conversation from participants and community members in a high-accessibility, low-structure format. As a result, participants will gain a better understanding of simple publishing and editorial skills.” This statement is a good example of what benefits writers in college could receive from participating in a club as such.

Faculty advisor Andrew Hincapie says, “All students at Pikes Peak State College are welcome to participate. Our publications are generally anonymous, meaning we do not sign individual names to each issue, and each one is a collaborative effort of many voices and perspectives.” This anonymity ties the group together, in the sense of the final product belonging to them as a collective.

Over the summer, radio station KRCC reached out to the PPZC for a collaboration on a zine promoting “719 Day.” Hincapie says, “We were invited to create a design for the cover of a special summer zine to promote ‘719 Day’ in Southern Colorado. The radio station also welcomed submissions from across El Paso County, and the inside pages are the product of this shared community effort.” This distinctly shows how the community building can go farther than just within the college.

Zine Club also provides an opportunity for students to grow as writers, artists, etc. by allowing them to express themselves on the pages. The club offers a chance to branch out in the community, not just in the form of sharing anonymous work, but also in the form of sharing knowledge and ideas. The club itself was founded by students and sponsored by Sarah McMahon, whose office holds the meetings (PPSC Downtown Campus room S234). The club has a server on the app/website Discord in which they discuss meeting times, and if not accessible, the club meetings are also discussed in person.