Zine5 is an online magazine whose mission is to promote both reading and writing, both on and offline. This we hope to accomplish by doing two things - providing a wealth of reading material on Zine5 and offering a platform where new writers can showcase their talents.

How It All Began

Zine5 was started in the summer of 2001 as a showcase for the work of a group of five people who wrote occasionally. The basic premise on Zine5 was that anything was acceptable so long as it was not overtly hateful, obscene, pornographic or carnographic. Initially, each person wrote on a particular day and Zine5 was updated every weekday. Slowly, we grew in popularity and we had a few more writers joining us. The growth is still happening and we would like to welcome you to be part of a movement that will seek to provide a platform for even the most occasional of writers to showcase their work.

Redefining Creative Expression

"Creative work and creativity are for none to define. They are for none to govern. They remain, evolve and die, for each one of us, especially and individually."

This is the credo that drives Zine5, and we have tried to live up to this in everything we do. We have attempted to redefine creative expression by first undefining it. In a sense, we have tried not to impose any kind of restrictions, in terms of style, content or genre, on any of our writers. We have no 'minimum number of words,' though we do recommend serialization of longer piece to retain readers' interest. We have no recommended genres or forms, and the only kind of modifications we suggest and do are those that have to do with grammar. Bad grammar is perhaps the only thing that we frown upon!

Zine5 does not claim any copyright over works published on it, electronic or otherwise. The copyright for every work rests solely with the author of that piece, and we respect the author's right to have the work published elsewhere and in other fora.

Most writers on Zine5 write for the sheer joy of writing, and we believe the works should be read for the sheer joy of reading. So, thanks for showing an interest in knowing more about the Zine5 phenomenon, and hope you enjoy the ride!