Dr. Sabina Fazli

What is my research about?

My research focuses on zines, that is, non-commercial, small-scale DIY (do-it-yourself) publications that authors (zinesters) produce and distribute themselves. Zines originated in the 1930s as fanzines, emerging from the fan communities around science fiction pulp magazines. Fanzines also played a central role in other fan cultures, such as punk in the 1970s–80s and Riot Grrrl in the 1990s. Today, perzines (personal zines) are experiencing a modest resurgence: as analogue micromedia, they enable authors to share everyday observations, moods, and thoughts. Their current appeal often lies in their handmade quality and the opportunity they offer authors to express themselves outside digital platforms.

Why human differentiation?

Our project is based on the thesis that zines function as laboratories for identity projects. In zines, individual experiments with categories become visible, not only lingually, but also materially, in the very process of zine production. This constitutes “human differentiation” in a DIY and bottom-up mode: self-directed and self-made. The constitutive tinkering and improvisation inherent in zine-making continue into the representation of self-understandings within the zine. From the perspective of human differentiation, it is particularly interesting that we can see highly individual, creative identity projects of zinesters, thereby exploring how they relate to both self-designed and externally imposed categories within this medium.

My role in the CRC

During the first funding phase, I served together with Friedemann Kreuder as spokesperson for Research Area A. From 2025 to 2026, I was a member of the CRC’s Early Career Representatives. In the second funding phase, I am co-leader of KF2 Person Formats.

Foto: Stephanie Füssenich