Pencil Revolution Volume II: Singles

This listing is for SINGLE issues. Buy the whole Volume and save.

These are 1/2 sheet (about A5 or 8.5 x 5.5 inches) zines, written and laid-out in 2021.

***Covers subject to availability***

PENCIL REVOLUTION #13 - Big Pencilin: The Wide Pencil Issue
Pencil Revolution Volume II begins with issue #13: BIG PENCILIN'. We begin talking about wide pencils and sort of dive into a very personal exploration of elementary school pencil associations via Sister Teresa Mary and the Catholic school I attended in the 1980s. We close with some take-aways for raising FEARLESSLY CREATIVE KIDS. This issue in particular, has much more of a "perzine" or personal zine flavor than the largely informational issues of Volume I. Writing about wide pencils and learning handwriting brings up a lot of memories, the way that pencils in general often do.


PENCIL REVOLUTION #14 - Pencil Obituaries: Dead Pencils
Dead pencils are amazing pencils which are no longer in production. In this issue, we pay homage to greats like the Venus Velvet, the Eberhard Faber Mongol, the original Blackwing, and more. Color images of many of the pencils to which we sing praises are included with the text. We conclude with a call to make good use of your out of production pencils, since pencils we still use to create can never truly be dead. With a hand-drawn cover and bevy of text, this issue is a labor of love just in time to treat yourself for Valentine's Day.

PENCIL REVOLUTION #15 - Solvitur Ambulando: The Walking Issue
"It is solved by walking." Walking and writing go together like wood and graphite, and pencils are the perfect partner for pedestrian adventures. In this issue, we talk about BULLET PENCILS as an ideal companion for walking, and we explore the benefits of walking for thinking and writing. Our first DIY project interrupts the explorations, with instructions for making your own Walking Books out of supplies you have already at home and can re-purpose. We close with a reading list of works about walking, in this cut-and-paste zine full of maps and heart.

PENCIL REVOLUTION #16 - Reduce, Reuse, Revolution: The Eco Issue
We have all seen completely greenwashed products, even pencils. In this issue, we explore what to consider in selecting eco pencils and also take a semi-detailed look at the individual pencils that we had on hand at Pencil Revolution HQ. We talk about how the environment is not a "political" or partisan issue, how we ALL need to make better choices all the time before some governmental agency or corporation will fix anything, and how the wasted pencil is the biggest Planet Killer of them all.


PENCIL REVOLUTION #17 - Cram It: The Stash Issue
After research, reflection, and reader feedback, we have switched things up a little. While the zine looks the same from the outside, we are trying out regular "columns" to go along with a "special section" that will be a different theme for each issue. This month: STASHES. We all have them. What about those huge piles of writing and art supplies? What are you gonna do with that stuff? Also featuring: My Year in Fountain Pens, Pencils in Books & Film, A Comrade Conversation, Comix, The News, and more. This one took a long time to pull together, and we hope that it's worth the wait

PENCIL REVOLUTION #18 - No More Pencils, No More Books: The School's Out Issue
School's out, and we present two DIY projects made from excess school supplies (notebooks and adventure kits) and other items you already have. We have a few ideas for back-to-school shopping later this summer, to avoid over-buying. Also featuring: Hot Takes on the Parker "51," an essay by Tim Wasem on John Steinbeck, a new Ferrulehead comic, The News, and more.

PENCIL REVOLUTION #19 - Sweet Sixteen: The Revolution Turns 16
This mid-summer dispatch comes replete with the Pencil Goodness you've come to expect and complete with a DIY postcard to send your friend so that you can show them you remember they are alive. Just cut it out, follow the instructions, and support the USPS! (If you want/need more postcards, pre-made in full color, check out the shop!)

PENCIL REVOLUTION #20 - I Got My Pencils -- The Back to School Issue
Back to School season is always stressful, emotionally-fraught -- and expensive. All of this seems to have been multiplied this year, as kids return to school in person while the pandemic is staging a Second Act. Readers were kind enough to send in art, poetry, and stories about their back to school experiences, and we are excited to present some of that work. Also, check out the latest issue for the usual news, goings-on around HQ, and Ferrulehead comix.

PENCIL REVOLUTION #21 - Changes -- The Transition Issue
Autumn is here, and it is the season of changes. We head inward, gather our supplies and our loved ones, and hunker down before winter. In this issue, we take on the theme of changes with an ode to CW Pencil Enterprise, which will be closing its doors and website this fall. Seven years ago, Caroline created something that transcended "just" a shop, and I don't think her influence will ever go away, not among us pencil fans.

PENCIL REVOLUTION #22 -- Write This Down: The Art & Science of Note Taking
Even with super computers connected to the global network in our pockets, a lot of us still take notes on paper. Why? What goes on in our brains? What are the benefits? Best practices? In this exploration of the art and science of taking notes, we seek to answer these questions and more.

PENCIL REVOLUTION ZINE #23 -- The Gratitude Issue
Just in time for the holiday, we present The Gratitude Issue. We had to cut FERRULEHEAD in half and skip most of the usual columns this month to make room for ALL OF THE THANKS. This might be the most “perzine” Pencil Revolution yet, emanating thankfulness for everything from Musgrave to living as a human and not a raven. This issue is full cut and paste zine goodness too -- SO MUCH GLUESTICK, and we used the apple pie scented one from Elmer's down to a nub.

PENCIL REVOLUTION ZINE #24 -- The Library Issue
Pencil Revolution #24, the final issue of Volume II, is here! This issue is dedicated to libraries and features a guest post from a former reference librarian at the Enoch Pratt, an essay about a life in libraries from a Harvard-educated historian, a three-page strip of Diana Oakley’s “The Mad Penciler,” and plenty of bits by yours truly. And our usual sections on The News and Goings-On at HQ are back, and this is our longest issue yet at 24 pages (not including the heavy cover). And the cover! Bryan Bedell at Midwest Ephemera was kind enough to design and letterpress us a cover for this issue on Lux Paper 100lb cardstock in “Smoke.” It turned out AMAZINGLY! (You might recognize Bryan from Episode 28 of Erasable…)