Scrapbooks and Zines Journal

Scrapbooking and Zines making are alternative ways to create pieces of everyday writing. Katriel and Farrell discuss the “genre of self” and how different kinds of scrapbooks have different audiences. The “genre of self” describes the way in which the people who create scrapbooks make each of them independent, individual pieces of everyday writing. They also describe how scrapbooking is different than any other kind of everyday writing because it is so informal, specific, and personal. Due to the fact that there are so few words used while scrapbooking, the creators must rely on “aesthetic organization” to distinguish themselves. Katriel and Farrell show that not all pieces of writing need to be formal to express yourself and that everyday writing can be a way of exemplifying different aspects of culture. This is a complete different way of looking at everyday writing because scrapbooks are an innovative form of self-expression. With that said, scrapbooks and zines are definitely examples of everyday writing because they both have different purposes. Zines are very creative responses to a certain kind of exigence. Whether it is an advertisement or a form of protest, zines appeal to a defined audience and try to change something in society. Scrapbooks are more personal but they still are a form of everyday writing. Scrapbooks are very personal but have the purpose of showing an audience a piece of cultural or personal life. They are organized displays of anything that the creator feels they need to show. Scrapbooks and zines are very easy ways of people to participate in everyday writing because they include little actual text and allow people to have a lot of creative freedom.

- Brittney Smith