Subzine
Subzine refers to a fanzine available only or primarily by subscription. By the 1970s, there were very few subzines, most faneds disliking the commitment to regular publishing that accepting money for a set number number of future issues demanded, and preferring the interaction of the usual. Subscribers usually did not contribute in other ways.
Many zines still accepted a few subs, but fans who preferred to part with cash rather than take the time to loc or otherwise contribute needed to be philosophical about the risk that the fanzine would cease publication before their subscription ran out..
In Chapter 13 of The Enchanted Duplicator, the Subrs are described as uncommunicative natives of the Country of Fandom who live at the edge of the Desert of Indifference. When Jophan tries to enlist them as porters to help him cross the desert, a Subr tells him,
'Many Neofen come,' he grunted. 'Many seek help. Many leave us in desert, our help wasted,'" and requires him to exhibit his strength and stamina before agreeing to accompany him. In crossing the desert, "the Subrs preserved their unnatural silence, uttering no word either of praise or condemnation of Jophan's behaviour, whatever it might be, they showed their feelings clearly enough by their actions. Twice when Jophan, unnerved by the hardships of the desert, spoke tactlessly to them or made some error of judgement, some of them quietly left the expedition and were never seen again, but, on the other hand, whenever he exhibited his better qualities, reinforcements appeared to arrive from nowhere.
Today, the term subzine is rarely used, and in any case applies almost entirely to semiprozines.
| From Fancyclopedia 2, ca. 1959 |
| The type of general interest fanzine that is usually offered for sale, as distinguished from exchanges like FAPAzines, news-sheets, leaflets, one-shots, and other specialized types. Most subscription fanzines have articles, stories, departments, a reader's lettercolumn, art work, and all the other fixings. Club Official Organs are often of the nature of a subzine. Sometimes people actually pay for them, but the fanzine that breaks even is a very rare specimen, and it is customary to send out many copies as samples, send them to pro editors and exchange gratis, and carry other subscribers a long time in spite of non-response to expiration notices. Of course, there are crimes by the editor, too; Reader and Collector for March '41 utters these words of worth: "If you are unable to carry on for a period of at least one volume (8-12 issues) with very few subscriptions -- if you don't have the necessary equipment to turn out a legible and easily-read mag -- if you don't have the time or ability to properly edit a magazine and reduce the typographical errors to a minimum -- if you don't have enough interesting material to enable you to run the magazine for a reasonable subscription period with very little additional assistance -- if you are unable to maintain a definite publication date -- THEN FOR GAWD'S SAKE DON'T START A SUBSCRIPTION FANZINE!" |
| From Fancyclopedia 1, ca. 1944 |
| The type of general interest fanzine which is usually offered for sale, as distinguished from exchanges like FAPAzines, newsheets, all-fiction, and other specialized types. The subscription fanzine has articles, stories, departments, a readers' section, art work, and all the other fixings. Sometimes people actually pay for them, but the fanzine which breaks even is a very rare specimen, and it is customary to send out many copies as samples, send them regularly to pro editors gratis, exchange, and carry other subscribers a long time in spite of nonresponse to expiration notices. |
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