Welcome back. A few years ago, I graduated from undergrad after a whirlwind of a final semester filled with creative projects. Since then I’ve been through more than a few hard goodbyes, living changes, family shifts, and new opportunities. Somewhere along the way, I subconsciously began to believe that the cool little projects I used to do had to be a thing of the past. My senior semester literary zine project got shelved with the others, and I traded writing and creating for more practical hobbies and responsibilities. 

Earlier this year, I realized that there is no rule forbiding me from making impractical, unprofitable zines well into adulthood. My earlier work may be a thing of the past, but I don’t think creative collaboration has to be. 

Where better to start than with what’s happening right now? Personally, this is not my favorite season of life, but The Here and Now strives to be a time capsule for every kind of present experience. The personal, the political, the fear, and the optimism.

Let this be a reflection of everything we are now, with hope that the future may be just as messy but twice as bright. 

Thank you and enjoy, 

Jewel Miller