The Guide About Other Roles in Zines

Art, writing, other mod roles

Many other mod roles have emerged in the current zine space. The following list is an example and non-exhaustive:

• Art mod: Typically manages a group of artists. A bit of a combination of Organisation + assisting (or doing) parts of Formatting or Production. If an experienced artist, can give feedback to artists. May manage collabs. Occasionally may be involved in art direction.

• Writing mod: Typically manages a group of writers. Can be a combination of Organisation + assisting Formatting + generation of writing materials for Marketing. May manage collabs. Might be beta readers or editors. Varies depends on the needs of the zine.

• Discord mod: Can set up the server. Monitors the server and manages contributors overall. Being chatty, welcoming contributors, is able to assist contributors in finding answers to questions.

Cosplay mod, chef mod, tarot adviser, lead artist, etc, these are all similar roles which exist to fulfill a certain niche and to distribute the work. A zine can also function without any of these mods. A main reason people might have these roles is because they are missing something. Consider the needs of your project and what skills, if any, might be desired.

As these positions can mostly be about managing contributors, a good mod in one of these roles is someone who is aware of the current status of the project. Additionally, they are aware of how the contributors are doing and integral to the contributor’s positive experience.

For the rest of the mod team, having a mod in one of these positions can mean having a person dedicated to representing a group of contributors should any such discussions arise in the project.

They can be standalone positions, but if your project has more management overhead than usual (e.g. a huge number of contributors, a huge number of collabs), then it’s recommended.

Additional material

Section: Contributor Management

Recommended to review the section ‘Organisation’.

In the current zine space, experienced mods in these positions are very systemised, and can impart immense value beyond being “another organiser”. Should you be one, reading this guide, please consider writing up your experience in some format and sending in a link~