Good Golly Zines, by Laura Blanchette, blends activism, journalism, art and indie publishing with project like Mid City and Good Golly Miss Trolley.
After watching Mid-Year Freak Out videos from a few book-ish Youtubers, I got really excited about doing it myself and using it as an opportunity to share some of my favourite books. From my limited understanding, this tag started over a decade ago although I'm not sure who originally created it. It's a series of prompts to encourage readers to reflect on the books they've read during the first…
I'm working with Synapcity on a series a zines for the upcoming city election! We have one zine in the works already. In May, we hosted a workshop at the Carlington Community Health Centre and talked with attendees about their vision for the election, what they want to see in Ottawa. We're still working on the final draft of the first zine that combines the work from the workshop, but I'm already…
Don't miss the bus on a special event dedicated to bettering transit in Ottawa! Join Good Golly Zines for a zine market, documentary film screening, and community panel on the future of transit in Ottawa. In the featured documentary, The Train to Nowhere, local filmmaker Gio Petti takes an in-depth look at the past, present and future of Ottawa's Light-Rail Transit and its impact on commuters,…
I'm a big podcast listener and want to start sharing some of my favourite episodes in an effort to keep the conversation going after I'm finished listening. You'll learn pretty quickly that I'm especially interest in pop culture and news podcast, so if you have any recommendations, I'm always interested in expanding my horizons! .𖥔 ݁ ˖ Co-op City, 99 Percent Invisible I've been listening to 99PI…
At this year's Object//Project Art Book Fair, presented by Possible Worlds , I gave a talk about my journey so far as a journalist and zine-maker. Although I was incredibly nervous, preparing for the talk was so satisfying because I was finally compiling all the thoughts and values I'd been relishing in while creating and working on Mid City. My interests in journalism and magazine publishing…
I tabled at the Ottawa Comics Arts Festival last weekend and alongside my regular spread, I prepped a new zine to bring with me. I was feeling especially inspired to do something analogue and I dug through my bin of scraps to collage a mini zine based on my favourite films from the last year. 2025 was a big movie-watching year for me. It's been so fun catching new releases--being one of the herd…
I shared this blog post in my newsletter first and restructured it slightly for the web Some upcoming arty markets 4 you Ottawa Comics Festival on April 4th from 10 AM to 3 PM (Glebe Community Centre) Object Project Art Book Fair on May 8 and 9th (Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre) This week, I read a post on Substack from Joel Gouveia about the "death of Spotify." His blog post responds to an…
This year was a big reading year for me because it's been my first complete year (technically) without any school at all since I started kindergarden. Scrolling through my reading list on Storygraph, I'm pretty happy with the variety of books I consumed. I made an effort to read different genres that are a step outside my comfort zone. I started a fantasy series that I'm excited to continue and…
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world." -Margaret Mead On November 1st, despite being exhausted from a late-night Halloween party the night prior, I went to Better Ottawa's People Summit — and I'm so glad I did! "More than just a conference, the People’s Summit continues to be a launchpad for a people-powered movement — one that’s organizing,…
Is it a controversial option to love elections season? Because I'm getting antsy about Ottawa's upcoming election in 2026. Yes, it's a long way off, but I'm restless for change and the collective dreaming of what a better city looks like. Councillor Jeff Leiper already shared that he's planning to run against Mayor Mark Sutcliffe who'll be running for re-election. After this budget season in…