EXILE Opens 2026 Zine Machine Call for Submissions
Artists, writers, poets, researchers, and creatives are invited to propose original zines inspired by Miami and South Florida
MIAMI, FL — EXILE has announced the return of its Zine Machine Open Call, inviting artists, writers, poets, researchers, and creatives of all disciplines to submit original zine proposals exploring the people, places, histories, cultures, and environments that make Miami and South Florida distinctive.
The submission deadline is September 6, 2026.
Rather than limiting applicants to a single theme, the program encourages participants to think expansively about the region. Proposed zines may address food, music, ecology, architecture, local history, neighborhoods, traditions, subcultures, personal narratives, disappearing places, or the unexpected details of everyday South Florida life.
Topics might range from backyard mango economies and changing urban landscapes to local rituals, unusual ecosystems, real estate, memory, migration, or subjects not yet represented in the program.
At the heart of the call is a simple question: What makes Miami and South Florida unlike anywhere else?
Applicants are asked to pitch an idea and explain what they want to investigate, document, question, or celebrate—and why that subject belongs in a zine about the region.
From Local Ideas to Free Public Editions
EXILE’s Zine Machine program produces free broadside zines created by local cultural producers and distributes them throughout Miami using retrofitted newspaper vending machines.
Each selected project is produced in an edition of 1,000 copies and made available to the public at no cost. Selected creators also receive an honorarium, and projects are chosen by an independent curator.
The program transforms the familiar newspaper box into a small-scale public publishing platform, placing artist-driven and community-focused publications directly into everyday spaces.
Current Zine Machine locations include Books & Books in Coral Gables, Panther Coffee in Little Haiti, Gramps Getaway, Sweat Records, Locust Projects, and Bakehouse Art Complex.
By distributing zines outside conventional exhibition and publishing structures, the initiative creates an accessible way for local stories, research, visual culture, and experimentation to circulate throughout the city.
How to Apply
Creatives interested in participating are invited to submit a proposal for an original zine inspired by Miami and South Florida.
Submission deadline: September 6, 2026
Program: EXILE Zine Machine
Open to: Artists, writers, poets, researchers, and creatives of all kinds
Applicants can submit through the link in EXILE’s bio.
The call is an invitation not only to publish, but to document the region from within—to examine the strange, layered, changing, and deeply personal realities that continue to define South Florida.
