Hello! I'm Cole, a queer photographer born and raised in Hertfordshire and I'm fundraising to release a zine documenting Herts LGBTQIA+ community.

This zine* that I've been working on for the last year was born out of want to help Herts LGBTQIA+ feel less lonely and was particularly inspired by a pin on 'Queering the Map'* that read:

"I don't know if its the school or the town but it's lonely being gay here,"

It struck me so deeply and personally as someone who they themselves, and their friends, felt the same way in the same school/town having left (school) over a decade ago. As someone who knows those who left the same school almost 4 decades ago feeling the same.

I loved my school in many ways, and I have a deep relationship with my town that I love too. Having worked directly in and with my local community with various organisations for the last 5 years I see the beautiful people that care for each other, that give to each other. I see how hard we work to lift one another up, to care for our environment and for our families. I see community everywhere in this place - even if it may not be immediately obvious to others.

I also see how lonely all of our communities are and I wanted to find a way to make community that little bit more obvious for a people I belong to, and who's voice I saw on that map reaching out for connection.

So, what am I actually doing and how can you help?

Over the last year I've been meeting and photographing Hertfordshire's LGBTQIA+ community, and collecting contributions of poetry, articles, letters, painting and illustrations. I've been shown their favourite places around Hertfordshire - theatres, cafes, bookshops, parks, cathedrals and homes - and been overwhelmed with welcome and support from every single place we've been and person who's helped us facilitate. Every single LGBTQIA+ person I've spoken to has agreed in this lonely feeling, and has been delighted (myself included) to hear how many people I've had reach out. We've felt less lonely just hearing about each other.

So now I'M TURNING IT ALL INTO A ZINE! 'Everywhere' Zine - a one off scrapbook-style art zine full of portraits by me and writing and art by the community, that will be distributed around Hertfordshire completely free of charge.

(mock-up page, not final design)

That's where you come in! To achieve this and have it be completely free to everyone, I'm asking on my community - to those who are financially able to give anything - to help me fund the printing costs. This money allows me to print a good number of zines (500+) on recycled paper and most importantly it enables me to make this zine accessible to those who may not otherwise be able to afford it; by giving it out for free.

'Everywhere' zine is a way for us (18+) Herts LGBTQIA+ community members to say to the youth, to those who aren't/can't be out, to allies, to literally anyone who may need it: we're here, we see you, we support you, we love you. So I thank you from the bottom of my heart for contributing to this being a reality.

There will be other ways to help that aren't financial, in the near future! I'm holding a launch event having been graciously given a space by a local organisation, and will put out an ask for various ways you might be able to help. (You can also share this fundraiser!) Everyone's contributions are so important <3

If you've read this far THANK YOU. This project means the world to me and I'm so grateful for everyone's support for it. <3

*Zine - a small, DIY magazine. "Short for 'magazine', zines are created and self-published by an individual or a group people. Zines aren't for profit; zines are vehicles to make art, to engage with your community or subculture, and to elevate voices that otherwise don't get heard." - LGBT+ Cultural Heritage.com

*Queering the Map - "a community generated counter-mapping platform for digitally archiving LGBTQ2IA+ experience in relation to physical space." - queeringthemap.com

To follow along with 'Everywhere' zine, you can go to my Instagram (@coleshola.e)