Reading Frenzy

Portland's Independent Press Emporium

Much more than a simple dispensary of books, Reading Frenzy is a call to action. This modestly-sized storefront simultaneously functions as an art gallery, event space, literary watering hole, zine distribution point, indie publisher, friend to free speech, and an inspiration to many. Defying the odds, it has persevered for nearly sixteen years. No doubt this can be credited to a large degree to the intelligence and tenacity of its owner Chloe Eudaly. As the store kicked off its 500 friends of Reading Frenzy Kickstarter campaign this summer, I had the pleasure of learning more from Chloe about the past, present, and future of this Portland icon.

Read on! Get inspired! And please get involved! It just takes a few clicks to support an important cultural establishment and pillar of the independent publishing community.

Reading Frenzy celebrated its 15 year anniversary this past year. Wow! This milestone is extremely impressive for so many reason, especially given the changing nature of print media and challenges faced by the publishing and bookselling industry. Can you tell us why you started Reading Frenzy in the first place, and what your goals were with setting up shop? Do you think there are another 15 years ahead?

After dropping out of high school and working a series of interesting but low-paying jobs with various small businesses, I decided that if I was going to spend half my waking hours working for a pittance that I might as well work for myself and that it had better be something that felt really worthwhile to me. Factsheet 5and High Weirdness by Mail had provided me with an introduction to the burgeoning zine community (c. 1988) and I had become immersed as a zine reader and sometimes contributor. At that time there weren’t many local outlets for alternative media and most of what I was reading was obtained via mail order or on my travels.

One night in 1992, outside of the X-Ray cafe, it occurred to me that I could hitch a cart to my bicycle, fill it with zines and ride around town to shows, demonstrations, and other public gatherings. I was accumulating masses of zines and comics, and it just seemed like a lot of work to go to in order for one person to read them. The idea went through various stages – street kiosk, zinemobile – but finally turned into a regular old storefront when publisher Adam Parfrey pointed me in the direction of David Morrison (a local rare book dealer) who had a tiny and cheap space for rent on SE 37th Ave. a few doors off Hawthorne.

We’re actually coming up on 16 years now. 15 was a tough anniversary for me. The last couple of years have been really financially challenging and my 40th birthday was on the horizon. Although I believe Reading Frenzy is a special place and serves a purpose in our community, and there are aspects of it that I still love – discovering new titles, authors and artists and sharing them with our customers – I remember thinking, “If I’m still doing this in 10 years, please kill me.” That doesn’t mean someone else couldn’t pick up the torch, but 15 more years of Reading Frenzy and me? No. Hell no.

I’m actually going to school this fall to get a degree in community development. This is essentially what I’ve been doing through my business and disability advocacy, which I consider my other calling, but I’ve been doing it out of pocket and on a shoe string. I envision myself doing similar work but on a bigger scale, but getting paid to do it. That’s the dream – to get to put my knowledge and skills to good use in service of others and be duly compensated.

Come on in!

When I read through the history section of your website, I get a little misty-eyed. So many amazing events, so many lovely people have passed through your doors, and so many creative partnerships have been forged. For example, Kevin Sampsell was there from the very first year, Nikki McClure exhibited in 1997, and Top Shelf launched that same year. Can you share a good tale from the early days of running your small press emporium?

It’s so hard to pick just one! Some of my favorite people in the world have walked through this door a stranger and left a lifelong friend (why, that’s how we met!). I like the big stories – so and so launched their art career here, met their wife, or was inspired to start their own business – but I also like to think about the cumulative effect of small gestures. The impact of simply opening our doors every day, of giving an unknown, first time self-publisher a place to show off their work, connecting adventurous readers with satisfying literature.

I remember you telling me about being called a “pioneer” at a previous Portland Zine Symposium and chuckling about the moniker, but it does fit, since you are absolutely in the vanguard for promoting independent publishers and zine-makers. Do you still find this part of your work satisfying? Tell us about your role with founding the Independent Publishing Resource Center (IPRC) and fostering the zine community.

Rebecca Gilbert of Stumptown Printers was one of our first volunteers and followed the shop from Southeast to downtown. We were routinely giving one-on-one impromptu self-publishing workshops to random people who walked in and got excited about self-publishing. She was graduating from art school and I was outgrowing the space. I remember a conversation that went something like this – Me: “Becca, you need a studio space and I need an office space. How about we share one upstairs, put all our equipment and materials in it and invite people to come work on their projects.” Rebecca: “I was just thinking the exact same thing!”

We rented a space upstairs and did just that. At some point we gathered a founding board with about six people and hammered out the mission and vision. We applied for non-profit status (a maddening but ultimately successful experience). We got a Literary Arts grant (which blew our anti-establishment minds). We had monthly zine potlucks, started offering workshops, and accumulating zines for the library. Really skilled, talented people stepped forward to fill various roles – teachers, librarians, designers.

I stepped down from the board in 2001 and have served on the advisory committee since then. It’s amazing to see something that you’ve conceived and created from scratch take on a life of its own. Both Reading Frenzy and the IPRC have inspired other events and projects that have made Portland a zine epicenter. It’s hard to measure the impact, but it’s rewarding to know we were a significant contributing part of it.

You are also a publisher now, with the development of Show & Tell Press, and the ongoing (and awesome) Crap Hound releases. What was the impetus for this project? Are you planning to expand the type of content you publish?

Publishing just seemed like the logical next step. Our main project is Crap Hound, although, we did put out a one-off zine called Alien Boy about James Chasse a couple years ago (edited by Erin Yanke and Icky A.). We haven’t had the time or resources to do much else, but eventually we’ll release other titles. A Reading Frenzy anthology has been batted around for awhile, as well as reprints and new issues of some of our favorite zines and comics. Zines are really ephemeral and so much amazing work has come and gone in the form of a photocopied publication that may have only reached a few hundred people. I love the idea of rescuing this work from near-obscurity and giving it a more lasting presence.

What are your gut instincts about the shifts happening in communication from printed matter (books, magazines, letters, etc) to digital and online tools? We’d love for you to shed some light on the role print will play in the next 5 years.

I’ve actually just started thinking about this issue. I’ve been asked this question so many times over the years and have steadfastly refused to participate in the conversation. I just didn’t care, and strange as it may sound coming from a bookseller, I didn’t find it very relevant. However, a recent talk I gave at a University of Oregon zine publishing class has forced to me to confront the fact that the way people experience culture, access information and connect with each other has dramatically changed. As I was describing to a group of 18-22 year-olds the vital role that zines played in connecting like-minded individuals and building community – and how that led me to open Reading Frenzy – I realized that they very possibly could not relate to or even understand, having grown up online, where everything is seemingly at your finger tips. I’m at the very beginning of wrapping my mind around this subject – I’ll have to get back to you on that!

And lastly, I know it’s so much work. What keeps you fighting the good fight, Chloe?

Well, although it’s never been an easy way to earn a living, it’s been really satisfying in other regards. I still love the hunt – searching down new writers, artists and publishers. I love connecting readers with something they may not have even known they were looking for, and especially seeing people get so inspired that they become self-publishers themselves. There’s a feeling that although we’ve carried thousands of titles and have been operating for nearly 16 years that I’ve only scratched the surface of what’s out there, and that keeps me motivated. I would love to see the day when I can sit back and say, “Everything that should be here is here, this place has become everything it can be, and is serving its purpose to the utmost.” Maybe then I could move on!

Because of the harsh financial reality of the past two years we’ve had to take a hard look at what’s working and not working at the shop. Surprisingly to me the thing that’s sucking up the most resources and giving the least return is our events programming. You want to think that these events build community and goodwill and recognition, but the fact is that people just don’t buy printed matter the way they used to and the events can no longer pay for themselves. This is where the 500 Friends of Reading Frenzy Kickstarter project comes in – we’re pre-selling memberships, prints, t-shirts, totes and other goodies to raise funds to support our events. We don’t want to stop booking authors and art shows, so we’re attempting to create an alternate funding stream. We’re nearly 80% funded with just under a week to go. Our minimum goal is $5000, but just between you and me (and your readers) I’d really like to see 500 people come forward and make a small commitment ($25 and up) to sustaining the purpose driven work we do.

Thank you Chloe!

Get involved with Reading Frenzy, on the web and beyond! Follow them on Twitter, read their online Ledger, and add all of your Reading Frenzy-related images to their Flickr pool. First Thursday art openings are frequent, and all upcoming events can be found  on their website.