Zotapine

Mission Statement

To make a zine that we like, that other people might like as well.

Does this sound unenthusiastic? That's not the case. Why dress up our purpose in empty ornamentation? We're tired and behind schedule, and starting lose faith in ourselves, however hard it is to admit. If you're reading this, and you like it, then we're glad; if not, we might be upset. But we aren't the point.

Creating art for yourself is the most useless action possible, and also one of the most rewarding. It does not matter whether or not you can make a living from it (and if you can, by the way, I salute your good fortune), as you have something original to say.

What do you have to say? I don't know, maybe you don't either. Is what you have to say relevant to us? We'll decide that, but our decision isn't a reflection on you, just our needs at this point in time. There's no dishonor in rejection, only in inaction. Take it from us: we're amateurs.

Zotapine started on a whim, a collaboration between two friends. It would be easy, we thought, to put something so small as a literary zine together. It wasn't. The submissions didn't come pouring in, a couple people backed out, and buzz didn't happen the way it does in the movies. What few submissions we had, dwindled. Life crowded in; practical, useful things had to be done. We began to lose hope, until we remembered something crucial:

Nobody cares.

Does that sound terrible? It doesn't to us. If nobody cares, then what do we have to lose? When doing something for yourself, no matter how useless it is, the only person who cares is you. If other people start caring, then we will be happy to listen to them. But if they don't? Well, we'll keep doing what we're doing, cheating death with art, as shut-ins have done since the dawn of civilization. Won't you join us?

&mdash PM & EB
October 2006