• Charles Sturt staff and alumni to host third Halfway Print Fest in Wagga Wagga

Wagga Wagga’s biggest celebration of DIY publishing and creativity, Halfway Print Fest, will be brought back to the city for a third year by Charles Sturt University staff and alumni.

Charles Sturt Senior Client Services Librarian and Master of Information Studies (Librarianship) graduate Ms Kate Allman (pictured) and Bachelor of Arts (Graphic Design/Photography) graduate Ms Adele Packer created Halfway Print Fest three years ago.

Both women participated in and met through the CSU Global Exchange Program and became fast friends after discovering their mutual love of design, writing, creating and publishing.

They started their own zine – a self-published magazine about any topic the creator is interested in - called Salad Days Zine as an excuse to collaborate with each other.

“Zines are very specific, they are always very personal,” Ms Allman said.

“Everything is so fast-paced and moving to online.

“Zines are an important opportunity to slow down and hold something in your hand.”

The duo travelled to zine fairs in metropolitan cities but noticed there was nothing like it in regional NSW.

Halfway Print Fest, which gets its name from Wagga Wagga’s location half-way between Sydney and Melbourne, will feature 20 stall holders from around the Riverina, Canberra and Melbourne.

There will be works for sale, zine workshops from the Sticky Institute, who are zine experts and producers from Melbourne, and a DIY Lab for those who are keen to learn.

Halfway Print Fest is a free event and will be held from midday on Saturday 7 March at the Thirsty Crow Brewery at 153 Fitzmaurice Street, Wagga Wagga.