BINDERARY

(BIn-deh-rah-ree)

Binderary started as a kernel of a joke in 2021 (on the 17th of October, @ 9.10 AM to be precise) with the idea to create our own NaNoWriMo or Inktober-type festival, but for bookbinding instead! In essence, Binderary is very similar to both of those events; you are in charge of setting your own binding goal for the month of February, with goals as ambitious or as low stakes as you want.

Unlike NaNoWriMo or Inktober, we encourage anyone taking part to set their own personal goals - some may decide to learn a new typesetting program, others may decide to try a new glueless bind technique, and for someone else it may just be they want to make more friends who bookbind. 

At the heart of it, Binderary is really meant to encourage everyone to set aside some time to focus on binding, to engage with the fanbinding and bookbinding communities; or as one of our mods so eloquently put it:

Over the past three years, Renegade has hosted a series of free community-run classes throughout Binderary, including: 

  • Typesetting in Word, Affinity and various other programs 

  • Paper Marbling 

  • Unique book constructions - such as a lectern books, monster books and leather bindings

  • Hidden fore-edge painting

  • and more!

We also host a fun question-of-the-day series, and threads with various guides!

“hahaha....the evil masterplan is working....it was never about the number of books but simply the motivation of community, to the benefit of creating even one thing...that is the true mission....perhaps the true binderary is the friends we make along the way...”

Currently the event is organized by:

  • Butterfingers Binding | @VerilyGrimm

  • Robins Egg Bindery | @mr_mom

  • Fanbound Books | @chucksandapen

    Mods:

  • Celestial Sphere Press | @desmothene

  • Serpent’s Nest Press | @.mirilya.

  • No-Name Publishing | @tankbredgrunt

Check out this year’s schedule of events!

All workshops will be hosted in the Renegade Bindery Discord.

GUIDELINES

Whether you’re new to the world of bookbinding or an aged veteran, join us for a month of binding fun! This event is all about community & learning, be it trying something new or refining existing skills. 

No sign-ups are required; simply choose the ruleset that fits you the best and adjust it as needed!

We will also have community lectures and virtual classes on a variety of interesting topics, as well as Craft Chats, Question of the Day, and more, all hosted in the Renegade Discord!

    • Bind one book for each week of the month. This year will be February 2024, which has roughly 4 full weeks = 4 books (5, if you want to count the partial week at the beginning as a bonus!)

    • The books can be anything - fics, non-fannish works, journals, sketchbooks, tiny books, etc! If it’s a book, it counts!

    • Use the hashtag #binderary2024 to tag your posts!

    • Have fun!

    • Bind two books for each week of the month. This year will be February 2024, which has roughly 4 full weeks = 8 books (5 weeks/10 books, if you want to count the partial week at the beginning as a bonus!)

    • The books can be anything - fics, non-fannish works, journals, sketchbooks, tiny books, etc! If it’s a book, it counts!

    • Use the hashtag #binderary2024 to tag your posts!

    • Have fun!

    • Bind five books for each week of the month. This year will be February 2024, which has roughly 4 full weeks = 20 books (5 weeks/25 books, if you want to count the partial week at the beginning as a bonus!)

    • The books can be anything - fics, non-fannish works, journals, sketchbooks, tiny books, etc! If it’s a book, it counts!

    • Use the hashtag #binderary2024 to tag your posts!

    • Have fun!

    • Bind one book for each day of the month. This year will be February 2024, which has 29 days = 29 books. HAPPY LEAP YEAR!

    • The books can be anything - fics, non-fannish works, journals, sketchbooks, tiny books, etc! If it’s a book, it counts!

    • Use the hashtag #binderary2024 to tag your posts!

    • Have fun (?) Try to, anyway.

    • Try as many new and unique techniques as you can in place of binding a book. E.g. learn to gild pages, make a lectern book, learn a new typesetting program, make a mini book etc…

    • The books can be anything - fics, non-fannish works, journals, sketchbooks, tiny books, etc! If it’s a book, it counts!

    • Use the hashtag #binderary2024 to tag your posts!

    • Have fun!!

    • All of the above Hard Mode Rules +

    • Start the book from scratch during the month - typeset and all.

    • No prepping of materials beforehand (i.e., no cutting board), except maybe tissues for your tears.

    • Use the hashtag #binderary2024 to tag your posts!

HELPFUL HINTS

  • Collect your fics/non-fannish content beforehand! Aim for one-shots in the 1k-3k range.

  • Make books for others! 

  • Make multiples of the same book to reduce your typeset needs.

  • Experiment with other binding styles aside from casebound that may reduce your construction time.

Workshop Sign-Ups are now CLOSED for 2024!

Volunteer Sign-Ups are now CLOSED for 2024!

Check out the Binderary Tracking Template to help prep for your month of binding!

EVENT ARCHIVE

  • The start of Binderary! At this time there were only 600 members in the server and 156 books were created during this year. We had a documented 22 participants, with 27 different fandoms bound for.

  • Year two of Binderary, with a whopping 500 participants! That year 729 books were started in Feburary, with 567 completed. We bound for over 117 fandoms.