Heya this is Lara, the current editor and founder of AVRA ZINE. As part of Aspirants Magazine a few zine-makers in the network are sharing our story of how we came about. It's a story I've told countless of times in podcasts, on radio and conversations in bougie-looking cafes in Brighton. So I suppose this time I'll make it a bit more personal and reflective.
For a very long time I've wanted to be a part of the media or creative industries and throughout that yearning desire I also heard many horror stories of the kind of place it could be. However there was this gradual uprise of zines and independent magazines voicing opinions for the lesser shared stories. They'd create amazing content as an antithesis to every beauty standard we'd ever been taught, every racial and physical barrier we've ever come face to face with. I was in awe of this idea yet when it came to it I was getting rejected by this new wave of zines. It was slightly disheartening but without facing all of this rejection I wouldn't have created AVRA.
This is something I think God played a massive part in because even before I became a Christian, He was looking out for me guiding me in a direction that would’ve helped me in later years.
The first call for submissions happened on the way back from a school trip in college. I felt so inspired to take the step to send out the post on Facebook calling friends to join in with what seemed like a revolution. I took the term ‘Antivist: A person who is fed up with how society’s definition of life is played out’ from a tumblr post (yes I was that kid) and ran with it. On the theme of social norms, I was able to reconnect and build community from school friends, mutual friends and people I’d met through youth programmes.
Ever since, we’ve been creating online content with odd off-chance print edition that was only possible when we self-funded or just got lucky. AVRA has been and continues to be a space where young people can voice their feelings, showcase their art and express themselves to inspire others. Although the future is uncertain, I’m excited for what it could be and how many more amazing people there are to meet and showcase their work. Whether this is a sustainable thing to do (or not), whether there comes a point where I need to make some difficult decisions, I will carry this on for as long as it takes. As long as it feels right and as long as it's healthy.
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