Creative Writing: The Form of the Book

While most books are traditionally produced in a codex format, altering the format in which a reader receives a work can transform their engagement with it, influencing how they read and interact with the content.

Explore this page for insights into how authors have experimented with different formats—both print and digital—to alter, challenge, and enrich the reading experience.

Hypertext fiction is a genre of electronic literature characterized by the use of hypertext links that provide a new context for non-linearity in literature and reader interaction. Popular in the 1990s, the genre went into decline, and many stories are now full of deadlinks or rely on outdated software.

Some examples accessible online:

AUB Artists' Books Collection, showing many different bindings, materials, ideas and interpretations of "the book", can be found in the brightly coloured filing cabinets on the ground floor of the Library. 

Click here to see the full collection in the Library Catalogue, alternatively use the search box below to find individual titles/artists.

Zines (pronounced 'zeen', short for magazine) are typically self-published, noncommercial, nonprofessional, non-profit, limited edition works that are often distributed by the creators themselves, but the term is used to refer to a wide range of material. They often have a DIY aesthetic, with a folded, stapled and photocopied appearance. Zines are often produced by persons of marginalized groups, and represent a diverse range of ideas, experiences and interests.

The Library also has lots of books on the history of zines and alternative press, as well as how to create zines; click here to see a selection.

For instructions on how to make zines yourself, try the following guide: