From the Desk of T. Tharkay: An Introduction
Hello, Temeraire fans, and welcome to the introductory post for a new Temeraire fanzine! I'm your host Mod Manda (also known as @revolutionarygold) and I'll be answering some questions to bring us all up to speed.
A fanzine is a form of collaborative fanwork that combines art, the written word, graphic design, and more to create a unified collection around a central theme. Some fanzines are intimate and made on printer paper, while some are professionally printed and are indistinguishable from official art books! It all depends on what the contributors of the zine are intending to do!
"Oh, what kind of zine will this be?"
A not-for-profit one, that's for sure! Other than that- that's where you come in! The scope of the zine depends on the scope that contributors are willing to commit to.
"You said it was centered on a theme? What's this one's theme?"
I'm so glad you asked; we're really excited about this. Picture this: John Granby and Tenzing Tharkay compile their notes on the dragons and environs and people they've come in contact with over the course of their many adventures and campaigns, with an emphasis on the dragons of the world.
"Well, I love the idea of this, but I'm a writer, I don't know if I..."
Let me stop you right there- you didn't think we would leave out all the beautiful writers of the Temeraire fandom, would you? How could I betray my own people like that?! Writers will be more than welcome to apply and join the project as a scene writer to accompany dragon illustrations, as a prop writer to accompany in-universe items and equipment, as an epistolary writer to highlight diegetic pieces of writing (think Laurence's inexplicable captain's logs or Jane Roland's many exasperated letters) or even as a science writer to accompany the dragon designs themselves! While this zine will err more on the side of gen-fic rather than ship-fic, there is plenty of space for writers of all stripes to apply if you're interested!
"Okay, well, what about fan dragon designs?"
The world of Temeraire is as vast and complex as the one we live in right now. While we love the dragons that the series highlights, we also love to imagine the dragons which may exist juuust off screen from Temeraire and company. While we aren't sure exactly what role noncanonical dragon designs have in this zine yet, far be it from us to keep them away from a project that is obviously interested in the worldbuilding!
"So you keep saying we..."
Oh, where are my manners! I could hardly do this alone, could I? I'm referring, of course, to my co-moderator @skywardsylphina, Mod Skyward! Skyward (they/them) is a ceramicist, illustrator, and artist of every stripe. While neither of us have run a zine before, Skyward has plenty of zine contributor experience under their belt. You can find them in the Scarland Art Book, the HermitPost Zine, and Memory of Family. Skyward is also the artist behind the logo and banner art on this blog!
"What kind of timeline are we looking at?"
With the understanding that this schedule is dependent on what the final scope ends up being, we're intending on delivering on the finished zine by Fall 2026. This zine will be freely available for digital download through either Gumroad or KoFi, and have a print-on-demand edition available for the cost of printing through Magcloud.
"Yeah, okay, you've got me. I'm interested in knowing more."
Fantastic. Tell us so in our Interest check form! Whether it's as an artist, a writer, a layout designer, or as an audience member (hey, we need those, too!) we'd love to hear from you to make sure that this is something the fandom is interested in supporting and contributing to. The interest check will be open for the first week of March (March 1 to March 7), so make sure to let us know by then!
"Wait, I had another question!"
It's a good thing the ask box is open, then, isn't it? ;)
All lies well, aviators, so until next time, I've been
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