Amateur Press Association
An Amateur Press Association (aka APA or Apa) was a small association of members that contributed works to a regular mailing. APAs are important in fandom and in the history of zines.
An early (arguably the earlist) APA is the "National Amateur Press Association" (NAPA) founded in 1876. The United Amateur Press Association (UAPA) founded in 1895 eventually split into the UAP and UAAPA; the American Amateur Press Association (AAPA) formed in 1936 out of the UAPAA.
In 1937 the first SF APA was founded by Donald A. Wollheim, the Fantasy Amateur Press Association (FAPA); it is still in existence as of 2007. The first comics APA was founded in 1964, CAPA-alpha (aka K-a). The first European comics APA was formed in 1977, PAPA, shortly thereafter renamed BAPA (British APA).
Significant SF APAs:
- Fantasy Amateur Press Association (FAPA)
- CAPA-alpha
- British APA
- Apa Lambda was a queer APA.
- APA-F - NYC SF APA
- APA-L - a weekly APA run by the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society (LASFS)
- ATDNSIN - the APA That Dares Now Speak Its Name - queer comics APA
- LASFAPA, 1976 founded by Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society
- Northstar - first gay comics APA
- TWP - The Women's Periodical, for UK-related or UK-based women