All zinesters may not feel the same way, but I love office supplies! My love for pens and mail organization has even lead some of my friends to call me an office punk. Although you can make a zine with almost anything, here is a list of what I feel are the most essential zine making tools.

1. Rub-on Letters: There’s something about the way rub-on letters look that I love.  I love the slight imperfections you get when you use them.  While scrap-booking has made some rub-on letters readily available, basic black letter fonts are a little hard to find.  My favorites are made by Letraset because they have some basic fonts that look great in zines.

2. Long Reach Stapler: You can bind zines many different ways, but the easiest andmost common is stapling.  A normal stapler can sometimes work for smaller zines by stapling to the floor or bending the zine. If you plan to make 50+ quarter-sized or bigger zines, this is an essential tool.  I personally love my Paper Pro 1610, but you can find long reach staplers for as little as $12.

3. X-ACTO Knife: Finding clip art in old books and magazines for your zine is always fun. Scissors will definitely get the job done (especially if they’re laser guided), but it’s good to have an X-ACTO knife to get those small pieces.  Also, the precision cutting they can do will really help your zine look much better.

4. Glue Sticks: After you cut out your clip art, there’s no better way to stick it to your pages than classic glue sticks.  Tape, rubber cement, and white glue are no match for the all-mighty glue stick!

5. Sharpies: I have yet to find a zinester who prefers a different brand of  black marker.  Sharpies are amazing tools!  They’re cheap, they last a long time, they’re versatile, and they are everywhere. As Alex Wrekk wrote in her book Stolen Sharpie Revolution, “Have you ever noticed that there always seems to be a Sharpie marker when you need one?”  I couldn’t have said it better myself.

6. Notebooks and Netbooks: One of the my favorite things about zines is that you can read and write them anywhere.  While notebooks have always been super portable (I don’t go anywhere without my Moleskin notebook, which is the size of a half-sized zine), not everyone likes to write with a pen and paper. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you probably have noticed how prevalent ultra-portable (and very affordable)  netbooks have been in the last year.  They might not be good enough to play the latest PC games or edit massive video files, netbooks are perfect for researching for and typing your next zine.

Obviously, this is not a complete list because there are so many more awesome things you can use to make a zine.  What are your most crucial zine making tools?