Local Zine Thrives In Second Year

Connectic*nt, a bimonthly zine that has created a space for artists and writers from across the state to experiment with words and visuals — as well as an ever-growing community that thrives on sharing with and uplifting each other — turns two years old this month. The anniversary issue, the zine’s 11th, will be released this Saturday, July 29, complete with celebratory events including a DJ-centric dance party (now famously known as Club C*nt) at Diesel Lounge on Friday night and a zine fair at Bradley Street Bike Co-op on Sunday. 

Under the helm of current coeditors Zoe Jensen and Mar Pelaez, the publication has come a long way from Jensen’s original plan of publishing a single zine that included the art and writing of friends who had been distanced from each other during Covid shutdowns. The public demand for more, and the fun being had by everyone involved, was too much to not let it become a regular and permanent part of the new normal.

“Within our friend group alone, we just met so many really cool artists at UCONN, and I just wanted to commemorate it and just have something to connect everyone during the pandemic when I couldn’t really see my friends all the time,” said Jensen, who graduated from the school in 2020 and moved to New Haven in 2021. ​“I wanted to create something that would encapsulate all of my friends and what we were doing and working on.”

Jensen started an Instagram page for the project thinking it would be ​“a one-off sort of thing.” She was all set to print up a few copies on her home printer and then received 50 preorders. 

“I was printing it on my printer and I ran out of ink halfway through, and Iyanna” — Iyanna Crockett, who was coeditor with Jensen before Pelaez — ​“and I were freaking out,” she said. They were able to send it to Best Printing USA in Norwalk to get it printed using the money they had made from the preorders. ​“Ever since then it’s kept going only because people want it to keep going,” she added. ​“That’s kind of the main thing.” 

The artistic relationship and friendship between Jensen and Pelaez, who graduated in 2021, began at UCONN when both were working on the WHUS Zine, though each of them have a history of creative pursuits that led them there. 

“I was always into making little publications,’ said Jensen who noted that she made a newspaper in third grade for her class as well as a zine in high school. 

Pelaez, who has been writing poetry ​“since I can remember,” started a zine at the UCONN Women’s Center where she worked, and was part of another UCONN-based zine called Free Press. The two connected when one of Pelaez’s poems inspired Jensen to make a piece of visual art to go with it for the radio station zine. They continued to co-create, including many pieces that ended up in Connectic*nt as it grew.

According to Jensen that growth was ​“really rapid.” Trying to fit everything into 52 pages each time became a challenge, as they have received up to 300 submissions for one issue. And as the interest grows, the zine and the community follow. 

“I’d say one big thing that’s changed is the network, like people we don’t know submit now, which is really really cool,” said Pelaez. ​“I’d say the other big thing that’s changed is we do a lot more events to kind of go with it, so other things to like just nurture the creative community.” Those events include craft fairs, zine workshops, zine fairs, and Club C*nt.

“Anything to feed that creative community, we do it, whether it’s a collaboration or whether it’s us hosting,” she added.

Visual art featured in the zine has also been the focus of two arts shows, the first one last summer at the Ely Center and another this past May at Koffee? where they celebrated with a closing event that packed the house. 

“That was so cool because we weren’t expecting anyone to come out, and it was bustling,” said Jensen.

“That was one of our more family-friendly events, so it was nice,” added Pelaez. ​“My parents came through, and it was cute to share that moment with everybody.”

And what about that name, which more often than not brings a smile to the faces of those who hear or read it, but includes a word that has a difficult history? Jensen said that although it started as a play on words with a high LOL factor, it has also morphed and changed along with the community it represents. She noted that the word c*nt has been ​“very, very weaponized against femmes for so long,” but in recent years has been embraced more by the queer community as well as showing up more in pop culture as a term associated with looking and feeling good. 

“That’s something positive,” she noted.

The two hope to spread positivity with the inclusive and welcoming nature of the zine’s content, which has included everything from poems, essays, and interviews to crossword puzzles, playlists, and a wide variety of visual art. The latest issue features a report on the last three days of The State House, an interview with the band Qween Kong, and a wealth of poetry and poetic visuals. Just about anything goes at Connectc*nt, which has also had themed issue such as ​“lucky” and ​“metamorphosis,” but the one constant is the uplifting of local artists that want to be a part of the zine and its vibe.

“It’s a community of people who want to celebrate you and your artwork,” said Jensen. ​“I feel like one of our greatest joys is seeing what people submit.… It’s just people who want to celebrate and be around each other and celebrate all of our work. It’s not a singular thing. It’s not like this is Mar and my thing.” 

“Exactly,” added Pelaez. ​“It’s about the collective.”

“Everyone is a part of it that submits,” said Jensen. 

And ​“even if you didn’t make it into the magazine, you’re still a part of our community,” said Pelaez. ​“Any person that’s come to even one event, you’re part of the community.” 

Those events keep growing and becoming more popular. The last Club C*nt at Diesel Lounge at the beginning of June was ​“madness, and only the second time they had held one. The first one happened in April 2023 and was promoted only on Instagram. 

“It was slammed,” said Jensen. Both shouted out not only Martin Riggione, the owner of Diesel Lounge, and the bartenders and staff, but also the regulars of the State Street mainstay who all welcomed them (and danced with them until two in the morning). 

The third is scheduled for this weekend not only to celebrate the zine’s second anniversary issue, but also to bring the community together and showcase a variety of DJs. One of those is Jensen herself, who has been spinning under the name DJ QT for the past five years.

“It’s cool to know that there are still other places that can have music, especially in East Rock, because there isn’t really a club in East Rock,” said Jensen. 

“I feel like we’re really lucky that the Connectic*nt community is just very welcoming. It’s very queer, mostly femmes, and super supportive and positive.”

“And down for whatever,” added Pelaez.

Another celebratory event scheduled for this weekend is the zine fair at the Bradley Street Bicycle Co-op. ​“The more of this that pops up, the better for our community overall,” said Pelaez. ​“Come join our zine fair. I don’t care that it’s your first zine, just come. The workshops too, it’s just getting out that information, getting out those resources.”

“It’s just really cool seeing more people making their first zines and making cool stuff,” said Jensen. ​“I think that’s such a key component of art … to have a community of people who are all supporting each other in that same way.”

Collaborations with other zines makers and creatives have been an important part of the zine’s growth process, and Jensen and Pelaez work to extend that to other makers whenever possible. Jensen noted that one of the highlights over the past two years has been the ​“sense of euphoria” after each zine fair.

“I get such a sense of bliss because it’s completely packed, people are pushing their way through and we always put our table in the back,” she said. ​“By the time people get to us, they always say ​‘I’ve already spent so much money on zines.’ It’s really cool to see how many people show up for zine events and zine fairs, and how much people really want to support it.” To ​“have it be packed is such a beautiful thing.”

One of the highlights for Pelaez has been the creative outlet and the wealth of experiences it has brought her. 

“I think this is the case for a lot of people, too. After college, I didn’t have really an outlet,” she said. Having a deadline motivates her to write, and through the zine she has also explored art mediums new to her, like a recent photo shoot she did with an interviewee when no other photographers were available.

“You are not just giving other people opportunities, but you’re giving yourselves opportunities,” she added.

Collaborations with other zine makers and creatives ​“really guides a lot of what we do,” noted Jensen. ​“It’s fun having that sort of web of cool people.” For example, an 11:11 necklace (a meaningful number to the two, since it is an angel number and the 11th issue) by zine supporter and ​“virtual buddy” Lunascence was worn by Pelaez, who was shot by Jensen for the cover of the new issue. 

The two have also created Connectic*nt merch, the most popular items being the bedazzled lighters and screen-printed shirts made using thrifted clothing, all decorated by hand with help from family and friends. They work to keep the merch and the zine affordable and accessible, which is why they keep the prices of their items around $5 to $10 and why they use a sliding scale for pricing the zine.

Add in the videos that have been created, the podcast that they are hoping to restart again soon, and the dream of one day having their own physical space where they can print up not only the Connectic*nt zine but zines for others, and there appears to be little stopping these two and the community they have helped build. Their gratitude is obvious, and their joy is contagious.

“It’s super fun and with your best friend, like what else could you ask for?” said Pelaez with a big smile. 

“Literally heaven,” said Jensen, smiling back.

The new issue will be available at this weekend’s events or via the zine’s website. More information about those events can also be found on the website or on their Instagram page.