Sicilian Mosaic and Trinacria Poems

Sicilian Mosaic and Trinacria Poems

Oct 27, 2021

Recently I announced the launch of my first self published Zine dedicated to photography, titled A Sicilian Mosaic.

The idea to make a zine came about last summer after watching a tutorial on Youtube, where a talented photographer showed me and everyone else on the internet how easy it is to compile his photos into a little tangible book he also made available on Amazon. I promptly bought his book, slightly sceptical about the quality. He also used Google slides to create his Zine, which looked complicated and a little clunky to use. A week later, I got my copy of his collection of photos dedicated to his pre covid trip to Amsterdam. And it was surprising to see how easy it was and how satisfying it must be to hold something you created in your hands and have a tangible product to sell or give away.


As is usual for me, the idea of making my Zine was put aside for about six months, as I put it into the too hard to start pile. Then with the realisation, I wanted to take the time to celebrate and compile my photographs after nearly two decades in Sicily. Yes, I’ve been sharing my photos on my blog and Instagram, but I had never gathered them up together.

So enthusiastic about the idea of putting some of my favourites together, I went through my archives. I spend probably a few weeks reminiscing and procrastinating. I printed out a whole heap of images, arranged them to see what looked good next to one another and did a bit of editing.

Then I began formatting my Zine, which turned out to be a massive pain in the arse, especially for someone with next to no experience in graphic design. I soon abandoned Google slides. After a few failed attempts at uploading my document onto Amazon and having the file rejected for formatting errors. I employed someone to format the document for me. Then after a handful of proof copies, I finally was happy with the final product.

A Sicilian Mosaic is a love letter to the colours, landscape and light of Sicily. It’s the best parts of my visual observations and photographic essays that I have gathered through my favourite hobby while exploring my beloved island.

I wish I could tell you all of the background stories of each image, but that would turn into yet another book project.


I loved the idea of making something small, personal and well crafted for those people who are already reading along with me on my blogs. It was an enthralling process, which I hope to continue regularly.


I wasn’t satisfied with just the one zine. I had a few poems I’d written about Sicily and a desire to make something more creative still. So one zine dedicated to turned into a second zine dedicated to poetry.


Trinacria Poems are 10 poems written during my time living on the enigmatic Italian island of Sicily. It’s about my own Sicilian heritage and the nature of this ancient place. It is also made up of original collage artwork which has been made using personal family photographs and material gathered over twenty years of living in Sicily.

Both Sicilian Mosaic and Trinacria Poems are currently available on Amazon.


Hope you enjoy them as much as I did making them.


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