A downloadable zine

At the start of (nearly) every Clone Wars episode is a Jedi Proverb related to the plot. It's displayed in the same classic style (blue text with a black background) as "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..."

Recently, while marathoning the later seasons of the show, I opened a fortune cookie and realized that the fortune inside would be right at home at the start of an episode. Thus a very silly idea was born.

Files and Accessibility

You can download (for free):

A digital PDF for reading on a computer or phone (landscape mode is best).
A one-page, color PDF for printing the zine at home. Folding instructions below.
A one-page, black and white PDF for printing the zine at home. Folding instructions below.
An accessible, text-only HTML file; this zine proved difficult to describe with just alt text, so this was my attempt at a better format than a PDF. Please let me know if you have any issues, or if something would work better for you!

Instructions

Print the one-page PDF on letter paper at full size/100%. (If you don't have letter paper, printing "fit to page" on A4 paper should work.)

Trim off the edges of the paper along the thin guidelines. Then fold the zine, following the steps below.

Folding Steps

You'll need something to cut the paper — a craft knife with a ruler and cutting mat works best, but scissors will also work. You may also want to use something to help you crease the paper, like a bone folder or the flat edge of a plastic knife.

Fold in half lengthways with the zine content facing out. (It should look long and skinny, like a hotdog.)
Unfold the paper and lay it flat on your surface with the zine content facing up. Make sure the paper is portrait orientation, with the front and back covers on the bottom left.
Fold the right side inward so that its edge meets the middle fold.
Unfold the paper and flip it over to the blank side.
Fold the paper in half widthways with the zine content facing out. (It should look like a book or hamburger.)
Lay the folded zine flat on your surface. Make sure that the font and back covers are facing down, and that the text facing you isn’t upside down.
Fold the bottom side upward so that its edge meets the middle fold.
Unfold the paper completely and lay it flat on your surface with the zine content facing up. The folds should divide it into 8 evenly-sized pages.
With the paper in landscape orientation, cut a slit along the vertical fold . It should span the width of two pages; the two halves of the zine should remain attached at either end by one page.
- If you're using scissors, it may be easier to first fold the paper in half lengthways (hotdog fold). Then make a cut in the middle perpendicular to the fold you just made; it should span the width of a single page.
Unfold the paper if needed, flip it so the blank side is facing up, then fold it in half widthways with the zine content facing out (book fold).
Hold both short ends and push them together; the cut pages should start to form a diamond. Keep pushing until the diamond closes up and the pages look like a plus sign from above.
Find the front and back cover, and fold along the edge where they meet (the spine of the zine). You now have a mini booklet!
Flatten the zine by pressing on the folds.

Credits

Fortunes written by Wonton Food
Fortune cookie images adapted from Adobe Stock
Fortunes chosen and zine created by eladnarra
Entered into Zine Jam: Mythology Edition, because what is Star Wars if not a modern myth?

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