Shards of Magic, a Tutorial for a Six Spread Zine
Free Canva Template Included
This zine format is based on the popular one-page mini zine format. However, it utilizes both sides of the paper to create a unique six-spread layout. The spreads include: three horizontal 2-page spreads, two vertical 2-page spreads, and one rectangular 2x2 page spread. I’ve provided alternative templates so you can decide whether to divide the spreads into separate photos or not.
I'm sharing below my attempt at a tutorial for this convoluted little zine. Please keep in mind I’m new to zine creation, and I fully admit that this is a weird one.
Create your zine using this Canva template*.
I recommend printing out the reference pages first so you can get familiar with the layout and plan your spreads. The template is in A4 format, but it can easily be printed on standard 8.5” x 11” paper by using your printer's size-to-fit option. You should print using the double-sided option with the short-edge option enabled.
Reference pages: use these to visualize your layout and plan your spreads Trim the excess white space on the four sides of your printout.
Despite numerous attempts, my printer will not print to the edge, so there’s always a small amount of white space to trim. I cut right up to the edge of the image. In the case that your pictures have outer white space, I’ve added guidelines to the templates to make it easy to trim off any excess.
Fold in the standard 8-page zine format.
Though this zine will be assembled differently, it uses the standard 8-page folding technique as a base. First, fold the page in half lengthwise. Then, unfold it and fold it in half widthwise. Unfold the page and fold each short edge towards the center. This will divide the page into eight rectangles.
Cut along the folds using the guide below.
Be sure to stop cutting where the guidelines end, so that the page stays intact for folding.
Fold your printout into a zine.
This part is tricky, so if you’re a visual learner like me, just skip to the video below.
With the Front and Back Covers facing upwards, first fold the vertical spreads in half by folding the top edge down to the bottom. This will expose the “Second Spread Left Side” and the “Third Second Right Side” fold each of these pages towards the center. Flip the sheet over, and fold the “Center Spread” in half by folding the top edge down to the bottom, exposing the Front and Back Covers. Flip over and fold in half again, with the covers facing out.Once folded, the zine should look like this:
I hope you enjoyed this tutorial for the six-spread zine. Nothing happens in a vacuum, so I will always do my best to cite my sources of inspiration. Inspiration for this zine format came from this silly little paper trick I saw on insta. Inspiration for the contents of this zine came from The Friendship Book of Anne Wagner and Servant of Earth by Sarah Hawley.
That said, if you’d like to support my art and writing, you can do so via my Ko-fi account. Thank you for being here and please consider tagging me in any zine creations this inspired. I’d love to see what you make!
Just printed and folding the reference pages! Wow, I love this formatting already :D I hate wasting paper space with zines (hence my bass grrrl series using both sides of an accordion zine), so this is perfection!
This is phenomenal! Thank you for your gnerosity in sharing the template!