Zine MakingLayout may mess with your head. That's okay; breaking your brain while making a 1/4 size zine is a rite of passage! Below are content suggestions for an 8-page zine. Farther below are additional element ideas.
With help from Milo Miller, famed QZAP co-founder, I've developed zine templates for myself for making various size zines in InDesign, pdf, and Word.
Something that symbolizes your zine theme or a mind map
Rant, manifesto, I statements: why this topic matters
Cartoon, sketch, art, doodles (be bold! draw stick figures!)
More cartoon, sketch, etc.
Pencil game: maze, crossword puzzle, word finder, quiz, survey, matching
Recipe (could be literally about food, or it could be "how to____.")
Credits, playlist, reviews or recommendations
Another pro-tip: number your pages. This will help when you are assembling your zines.
Coverscolor * construction paper * relief print * acetate
staples * sewing * stab * pamphlet * paper types* materials
illustrations * fair use/copyright * photographs * typography/handwriting * backgrounds
Essay * Poem * Review * Drawing * Collage * Personality Quiz * Crossword Puzzle * Playlist * Top Ten List * Likes/Dislikes * How To * Comic * Rant * Blank Space * Art * Handwriting * Typewriting * Design Software * Stick Figures
Metadata: author, title, publication location, publication date, freedoms and restrictions
personal * political * art * literary * split * compilation * minicomics * DIY
These are proprietary tools I don't love recommending. Please share free/open source alternatives!
Phone app that's helpful if you don't have access to a scanner.
I suggest each person create their pages the way they want and have one person in charge of assembling them. Here's an example of a collaboration spreadsheet from a compilation zine I was part of.
did you know you can change the dimensions on Google slides? Try 5.5" wide by 8.5" high if you're in the US or 148.5mm x 210mm where A4 is the standard paper size.