Let's fold a 16 page zine (how to)

Always vital to know how to make handy little books of information or art to share with others!

For this tutorial, I’m using a tabloid size 11” x 17” paper for my 16 page zine.

This is my Perseverance zine, based on a Connecticut hardcore band’s song lyrics and my thoughts about it all.

It's important to note the structure of the page. The numbers are a guide for you to figure out where the title page is, & the end cover, and the flow of your content in between.

Some rows have been flipped opposite, to follow the flow of the zine when it's been printed and folded. Leading to a cohesive reading experience.

You will be making multiple folds and 3 cuts.

*Fold in half from top to bottom, and then in half again. Unfold.

* Fold in half from side to side, and then in half again. Unfold.

Now for the cuts! . The 3 purple lines on the diagram are where you will be making the cuts. Top row and bottom row: Cut in 3 squares from the left along the fold lines, then cut the center fold line 3 squares in from the right.

Let’s start folding! Start folding page one over two, two over three in an accordion style.

Page five will fold up under page 4. Repeat the folding.

Looking very accordion-like.

The final fold back.

So for this zine, I include a little book cover.

After printing out the design, I scor all the lines and fold it up, ready to serve as a jacket on the zine. Feels and looks a little more “finished” the way I like it.

And there you have it. A less than bare bones guide to folding a 16 page zine. YouTube and tiktock offer video tutorials. I prefer to learn through visual instructions like these.

Now go forth and make some funky zines to share with the world!

Hmu if you want to do a zine trade! 🦇