Due to safety precautions surrounding COVID-19, KC Zine Con #6 will be a completely virtual event!  This is keeping to our commitment to being a Safer Space. This year’s festivities will take place over Labor Day weekend, September 5th and 6th.

Starting on Monday, July 6th, we will be opening virtual table applications and proposals for zine-centric workshops, presentations, panels, skill-shares, and performances of any type. Anyone can apply, regardless of location! We’re currently planning to host events via Zoom and/or Facebook Live, depending on the needs of the presentation, but we’re also open to any kind of socially-distanced programming that our awesome community can dream up! Workshop proposals will be accepted from 7/06 until 7/30.

Virtual table applications will be open from 7/06 until 7/17 until 9/1! (deadline extended!) We will be prioritizing applications from BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color), neurodivergent and youth (folks under the age of 17) zinesters, and will be featuring these applicants. And while applications are open worldwide, we will also be prioritizing zinesters from the Kansas City-area.

You might be wondering what a virtual table is. Each accepted zinester will get a space on our website to display info about and an image of their zines, as well as links to their social media accounts, email and payment info. The tables can be sorted by category — that way folks can find zines on topics they’re interested in. Check out this animation that shows the map in action:

 

Zine Con is our favorite day of the year, and we know that not having an in-person event is a huge loss for so many of you. This decision did not come lightly, and your KCZC Organizers (some veteran, some new!) want to be transparent about our decision and reasoning:

1. If we were to plan a traditional, in-person conference, there’s a high chance it would get cancelled due to the need for social distancing. That would stink! If we pivot to hosting a virtual conference, we know it’ll happen no matter what.
2. We can still gather to make zines virtually! The Virtual Zine Club events that we’ve hosted over the past few months have been great, and we want to bring that same energy to our Virtual Fest.
3. In the meantime, we can focus on finding a physical location for an in-person KC Zine Con 7 in 2021! If you have any tips on a great, affordable and accessible location, please e-mail us at kczinecon@gmail.com!
4. We want to be responsible, and we have to think ahead to future zine cons. We don’t want to spend the little resources we have—and the hard work of our volunteer organizers—on a zine fest that might not happen. We know we can spend good, quality time on a virtual Zine Con 6 that will definitely happen, and it will hopefully be a bright spot to look forward to in your future.