Fanzines were massive in the 70’s when the punk movement really took off they were influential in it’s growth. To me, fanzines have always been an interest because I’m a fan of print media. So when I discovered the Everton fanzine, TERN, it immediately enticed me. One reason of course was being an Evertonian but it was also the style and content of the zine that really drew me in.
We spoke to Darren Rimmer, Creative Editor of TERN, to find out how the zine was founded, the design and content of TERN and what we can expect from future issues.
Liverpool Noise: How did TERN come about?
TERN: I think the original idea was floated after (quite) a few pints of Erdinger in the Ship & Mitre. Myself and Michael De Asha (now our Editor) were discussing the Everton fanzine scene and both saw a TERN shaped gap in the market. That gap being a quarterly fanzine that not only looked nice, but felt current no matter when you picked it up. Be that after a great result or as is usually the the case with Everton, a disastrous one. We also wanted to provide a wider range of content than your usual football fanzine, focusing on photography, music and design etc.
Liverpool Noise: How can fans get hold of a copy of TERN? The first two issues sold out really quickly. Would you consider re-prints of these issues so that fans can get their hands on the whole collection?
TERN:We mainly sell online at www.ternzine.com. We do occasionally sell our issues at the match too, but realise not everyone wants to carry an A4 zine around the pubs with them. We have been absolutely blown away with the response so far, when we printed Issue Two we also reprinted a small batch of Issue One so people could buy both issues as a bundle and catch up. As we aim for our issues to be relevant no matter what time you pick them up, I think we will definitely continue printing old issues as we go.
Liverpool Noise: What’s been your favourite article or feature so far?
TERN: Our friend Aaron Durand in Portland, Oregon, wrote a wonderful piece in Issue One all about an Everton pub in Portland called The Toffee Club which is run by two Brothers who moved over from the Wirral. Aaron is also a fantastic photographer so he managed to get some brilliant photos that really brought the piece to life. We’re desperate to get over there for a pint now.
Liverpool Noise: The design and content is spot on! Who do you work with to produce an issue?
TERN: Thank you, that means a lot. With regards to the design, that is my job, as a full-time graphic designer and creative editor of TERN, I try to make each article as individual as I can. When they all come together I think it works really well. When it comes to the words, that is all down to our Editor, Michael and our team of contributors. As we go forward, people have been getting in touch asking if they can write things for us which is great, the more different voices we can have in an issue the better!
Liverpool Noise: You’ve also produced the ‘Everton Against Tories’ sticker packs. Are there plans for any other products like this?
TERN: We definitely want to produce more of this kind of stuff for sure. The stickers went down really well, we did get the odd ‘don’t mix politics with football’ response, but we don’t want to be afraid to tackle issues that effect Everton fans away from football. It was something we believed in strongly and we weren’t surprised that the vast majority of Evertonian’s felt the same.
Liverpool Noise: What are your future plans for TERN? Where do you see yourselves in a years time?
TERN: Without wanting to sound like Sam Allardyce/Tony Pulis, we just hope to carry on improving with every issue we produce, in a years time we should be another four issues in and hopefully have plenty of other exciting stuff happening alongside.
Liverpool Noise: Most importantly, where do you see Everton FC in 5 years time?
TERN: It would be great if we could be stood outside our new stadium on the docks selling Issue 23 of TERN. Watching a team that has won a big silver trophy or two along the way would be lovely too!
For more information visit https://www.ternzine.com/
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