Organia

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Zine
Title: Organia
Publisher: Bev Lorenstein and Judith Gran
Editor(s):
Date(s): July 1982
Series?:
Medium: print
Size:
Genre:
Fandom: Star Trek TOS, Star Wars
Language: English
External Links: Editor Judith Gran's Essay On Censorship & Fear and More Interviews With Judith Gran
front cover by Signe Landon
back cover by Gail Abelove
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Contents

Organia is a het, gen and slash 210-page mainly Star Trek: TOS and Star Wars anthology, "an adult fanzine of ideas" that contains fiction and art based on Star Trek: TOS, Star Wars. It included fiction, original science fiction, feminist articles and poetry. Writers include Barbara T, Toni Lay, Lois Welling, and Pat Nussman. Artists include Gayle F and Merle Decker.

Submissions

From an ad asking for submissions in the first issue of Jundland Wastes: "An adult fanzine of ideas, currently accepting submissions of SW/ST/any SF universe. For SW section: poetry, stories or article. Strongly preferred is literature with a social-cultural-political or philosophical content. We do not want porn for porn's sake, but we will not reject any material solely on grounds of theme or degree of sexual explicitness. Feminist writings needed. No forbidden themes."

Later, a Loaner Zine

Judith Gran wrote in Universal Translator #23: "Loaner' copies of 'Organia' 1, which is out of print, are available for circulation. These are copies which came back from the printer with imperfections that made them unsuitable for sale: blank pages, a not-so-perfect binding, et cetera. $100 will cover the book rate postage and envelope on the way out; you take care of sending it back."

Contents

The zine was divided into sections: fan fiction, poetry and art for Star Wars, Star Trek, along with Orginal Science Fiction and articles and essays on Feminism. The zine also contained two art portfolios: one celebrating women in science fiction and the other, "A Portfolio of Sensuous Men" that contained often explicit artwork celebrating the male characters of favorite TV shows. Finally, the zine ended with a section called "Our Children's Children" that contained puzzles, coloring art and cut out paper dolls.

Star Wars:

Science Fiction/Fantasy:

  • The Complement, poem by Felissa Del'Terra, art by Nona Christensen (54)
  • Faith, fiction by Dot Sasscer, art by Bev Swan (55)
  • Evening, poem by Jean Methos, art by Barbara Gordon (58)
  • Ghostwriters, fiction by Majliss Larson, art by Cathye Faraci (60)
  • Evolution in the Mind's Eye, poem by Michelle Malkin, art by Caro Hedge (62)
  • UFOS: Exploration of a Strange New World, article by Diane Teasman, art by Gail Abelove (63)
  • Art Portfolio by Wanda Lybarger, Brad Foster and Linda Yamashiro (68)

Star Trek:

Feminism:

Gallery

  • table of contents, click for larger

  • table of contents, click for larger

  • Joni Wagner from "A Portfolio of Sensuous Men"

  • the editors included a detailed feedback insert

  • an example of how poetry and art were combined, art from page 138 here by Vel Jaeger

  • an example of how poetry and art were combined, art from page 140 here by Vel Jaeger

  • an example of how prose and art were combined, art from page 185 here by Vel Jaeger, prose by Judith Gran

  • sample page, 186, various authors and artists

Controversy

For quite some time, there was an attempt by Judith Gran to publish a second issue of "Organia," and several submission requests ran in ad zines for it. Two letters in a 1984 issue of Datazine in the personal statements section, one from Lorenstein and one from Gran, indicated that there had been miscommunications/a falling out. There were no further issues of Organia or any other zines by this duo.

According to a 1984 ad in Universal Translator 1985 ad in Southern Enclave, Lorenstein was planning another zine called "Perfect Fusion."

From Universal Translator #23: "The first volume of this adult zine published by the former editor of 'Organia' will contain 75% Star Wars and 25% other SF. Contributors include Abelove, Alman, Blaes, Contessa, Denton, Drake, Faraci Fetter, Caro Hedge, Holman, Hull, Kaplowitz, Lay, Lorenstein, Malkin, Mathia, Necchi Osman, Ripley, Stasulis, Swan, Tobias, Barbara T, Tucker, and others. More SW artists needed."

In that same issue of UT, there was a submission request for a second issue of "Perfect Fusion." "'Perfect Fusion 2' will be an all-Trek adult zine and is currently seeking submissions about such themes as philosophy, politics, religion, and liberating relationships. Adventure, satire, and humorous situations also welcome. Looking for artists, especially for an art portfolio based on scenes/events between ST:TMP and ST:WK to be interpreted in subsequent issue. Will consider an 'alternate' portfolio with same intent if enough submissions are received."

However, this zine never made it off the ground; letters in Southern Enclave #20 cited troubles getting their money refunded.

Reactions and Reviews to Organia

See reactions and reviews for Terminus.
[zine]: Editors Judy Gran and Bev Lorenstein are two intelligent, enlightened people who have produced an "Adult Fanzine of Ideas" geared to just about everyone's preferences, sexual and otherwise. ORGANIA is a beautiful-looking zine with variety of graphic design and title typefaces. Fiction is printed in nice column format. The zine is divided into four prominent sections: SW, sf/fantasy, ST and feminism. Although I can see the convenience in this format, I'm not sure I like it. Perhaps it's my sense of aesthetic balance, but I think I prefer integration in my zines. ORGANIA's fiction and poetry is a mixed bag of very good and very mediocre. There are a lot of trite, self-indulgent, comfort-type reflections and summaries wallowing in gushy emotion. But there are also a lot of different treatments and themes and some very competent writing. In the SW section, there's "Wayward Son," by Michelle Malkin, about teenage Han and his early adventures with a street gang and his meeting up with Chewie. It's a nice, enjoyable story — especially for Han lovers — but a little too sentimental for my tastes. I'm always wary of pedestrian portrayals of street gangs, having been personally acquainted with a few myself. I haven't found an accurate picture of one yet, in pro or fanfic. Following this is some mediocre poetry, though some of Susan Matthews' shines through with her intelligent use of story-poetry. "With the Admiral's Leave," by Karen Osman, and "Out of Order," by Barbara T and Sylvia Stephens are both exceUent character studies of Empire officers (nice to see some SW material humanizing the bad guys). "The Politics of Star Wars," by Karen Osman is about the political implications of SW. Osman draws parallels between the Empire/Alliance struggle and the church/state struggle in the late medieval/early modern period. Although Osman backs up her arguments with numerous and convincing parallels in Terran history, I would have preferred more contemporary speculations. ST was a product of the Cold War, and Western ideas about evil and tyranny have been heavily influenced by it. How does SW fit in, if a parallel can be made? The problem here is that Osman gives too much detailed information with too incomplete an analysis. It is only toward the end that she begin to analyze all her data and Jones. Both express bitterness and defiance in the face of cruel male expectations. "In the Dark" is especially memorable and powerful. A children's section follows, with kids' art, puzzles, and a cartoon strip called "Fred the Jedi Cat," by Cathye Faraci, concludes the zine. ORGANIA has many of fandom's well-known and well-loved artists, and those who are easily impressed with fandom's usual art offerings (which are better termed illustrations) will love what's in ORGANIA: [Gayle F], Harlib, Whitfield, Hedge, Decker, Crouch, Dietrich, Huff, Jaeger, Landon, Sasscer, Siegrist, Wagner, Zuk and others. What these people do, they do well, and I certainly can't do better. Their offerings in ORGANIA are lovely. But fandom's art standards are notoriously conservative and unimaginative. . . . For those who can draw, there's not much difficulty in drawing familiar faces and settings. We all know what Han Solo should look like. That kind of art is nice and pretty, but safe, forgettable, and boring. But doing something original, stretching reality, is something different. ORGANIA has published scne very provocative and different art (for fandom, but tame for pro art circles). 3ev Swann, Wanda Lybarger, and 3rad Foster all offer some unusual alien settings, but the best in the issue is Dale Holman's "A Portfolio of Women in Science Fiction Literature." Holmes takes several sf books and presents her interpretations of different female characters. The pieces are not necessarily visions of what Holman believes they should physically look like; rather they are her interpretations of their emotional conflicts, their role in their societies, what they want to offer others. Predictably, some readers have reacted negatively to Holman's art, one even complaining that her figures are "out of proportion," not understanding that that may be the whole point. Fandom seems to think that the human body should be inviolate. Holman offers us a powerful vision, and uses the human body to present an idea. Her drawings are so different from fandom's usual fare because it moves; it breathes, and even attacks. Yes, Virginia, art can do something other than illustrate (with that ever monotonous stipple zip-a-tone) Luke and Han and Kirk and Spock. After a while, all those drawings begin to look like they're drawn by the same artist. I should also mention the zine's other big art section, "A Portfolio of Sensuous Men," where some of the above-mentioned artists drew provocative, sometimes nude, portraits of Kirk, Spock, Sulu, Frank Langella as Dracula, Chris Reeve as Superman, Tom Baker's Dr. Who, Lando Calrissian, Luke, and Han. Enjoy, girls. ORGANIA contains much more that I haven't mentioned, much of it worthwhile. It's a good zine to have in your collection for its excitingly new directions. If you can, do buy it. [1]
ORGANIA is... definitely worth the wait. At 212 pages (28% reduction) there's a lot of good reading for the investment. Perfect bound with scads of elegant artwork (and I'm not just saying that 'cause I'm one of their artists) and loving attention to detail, it's a handsome publication. PLEASE NOTE: this is an adult publication, and you must be 18 or older to order a copy. There is also material which may be offensive to some readers, so send a SASE for their flyer if you have any questions as to the zine's contents. In addition to Trek, subjects include STAR WARS, science fiction, feminism, and "a section dedicated to the child within us." issue #2 is already in the works. [2]

References

  1. ↑ from Universal Translator #19
  2. ↑ from TREKisM #26
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