By Sailor Rose, Tori Brown, and Xana Robbins
Photo Taken by Regan Chern
Sailor
When we first joined ScratchThat Magazine at the start of the semester, we were a group of students who didn’t know each other very well at all. I was lucky if I knew a handful of names in that room, and being generally shy and quiet, there were even fewer people that I could say I’d had a conversation with. I can’t say for sure, but I think that a lot of people in that room felt the same.
For the first few weeks, we were finding our feet, finding our places, and everyone was a little unsure of themselves and each other. Tensions were high but I know it was only because we all wanted to do well, determined to each do our part for the magazine. But I wasn’t worried. It was easy to see that everyone was passionate and well equipped to deal with what was to come.
Everyone picked up the work quickly, picked up the planning, and jumped onto their roles. With the theme picked, we were all excited to bring our inspiration to life. Timestamp was a theme that we could all connect with and that connection was important for us. It wasn’t just a way for us to connect with our readers, but it was a way for us to connect with each other while we worked together to create something beautiful.
Coming to the end of our semester one journey, I can definitely say I know more names and more faces, I’ve made more memories to look back on in ten years time and all of these people are each their own timestamp on my life. I’m looking forward to crafting that final memory with my team at the launch. I’ve heard that I’ll be dancing alongside some of my faves – Justin Timberlake, Edward Cullen and maybe I’ll be Hannah instead of Miley that night. Regardless of who I spend the launch with, I’ll be grateful for the people I’ve spent this semester with and the memories we’ve made.
Tori
It’s been a busy semester for ScratchThat, we’ve published over 27 works on our old-school website, our social media memes have been filled with throwbacks from Prank Patrol to the Mannequin challenge, and our magazine production has driven us all crazy!
Often when we talk about nostalgia it’s overly saccharine or deeply pessimistic and it always takes this stance that being nostalgic is inherently wrong. That by engaging with nostalgia you are stuck in the past, like an unfortunate mosquito with dinosaur blood suspended in amber.
Despite this, Timestamp was a theme that we all immediately felt drawn to. We were filled with memories of ABC3 (not ABCme!), Barbie movies, and blue-light discos. But we were also reminded of the kids we used to be, and the teenagers we became, and the people we are now and all the bumps along the way that have shaped us for the worse or for the better.
We’ve managed to capture a lot of varied responses to Timestamp from the affectionate to the painful, but they all embrace nostalgia. We embrace our past selves and the ways things have changed and the ways some things have stayed the same.
Thanks for reading and being here with us, here’s to the future.
Xana
The ongoing presence of diversifying art mediums and expressions kept the energy high throughout our ScratchThat team. New ideas circulated the room each week, creating new goals, friendships and experiences. Whatever your speciality was, there was a place for you. I’ve never been in a team where you could feel so much passion radiating off one another.
When submissions opened for the zine I patiently waited, anticipating and imagining the names, artworks and written works that I would soon become all too familiar with. As a visual artist myself, I analysed the ranges from digital art to sculpture to installation. I was overcome with the meticulous translations of the one theme–Timestamp. The mix of art mediums that artists and writers alike use to translate one theme; a theme consistently and inevitably occurring inside and outside of the creative industries. Timestamp is significant as it is ever changing and growing within consecutive generations and individual experiences.
The zine’s handmade composition is an innate reflection of this collaboration. Laced with the intuitions of individual team members who crafted them. This project has opened doors and connections that have emerged into so many new skills and I appreciate each and everyone involved.
Yours, The Editorial Board,
Sailor, Tori, Xana
Author/Artists’ Bio:
Hi, I’m Sailor Rose (She/her)! But to know me a bit better, I’m Rory Gilmore, Hermione Granger, Susan Pevensie and Belle. I adore reading fantasy and queer romance novels and I love to write them too. If I’m not reading or writing, you’ll find me doing some copywriting for my super-cool jewellery job, interning at a local publishing house or working on the latest issue of ScratchThat. As long as I have a cup of tea and some Ludovico Einaudi, I’m ready to write!
Tori Brown (she/her) is a Meanjin based creative currently studying a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Creative Writing) at QUT. She has been published in Glass Magazine, Strange Daze II, and Uplift Poetry. She wrote “Never Blue” the headlining play for Vena Cava’s 2024 Freshblood Festival. In 2024 she was the recipient of the Kellie Van Meurs Memorial Scholarship for her contributions to creative writing at QUT. In 2025 she was shortlisted for QUT’s Allen & Unwin Prize. Throughout the last two years she has been active in QUT Literary Salon as both President and Social Media Manager. None of her works would be possible without the immense emotional support of her cat and the power of caffeine. Contact her via email at niwatori024@gmail.com or follow her on instagram @tori.writes.sometimes
Xana Robbins (she/her) is a Meanjin based emerging visual artist in her third year of her Bachelor of Fine Arts (Visual Arts) at QUT. While her practice continues to unpack the experimental nature of a vis arts student, Xana’s work untangles the complex interplay of sensory perception, emotional regulation, and cognitive interpretation using forms and mediums ranging from tactile collage to textiles, to digital spaces. Xana Robbins as well as a student, is an active member of the QUT Arts collective Post Datum, contributing this year as assistant curator. Her work has been exhibited with studios, competitions and associations including Studio Suksma, Chev Lane, Post Datum, and the Tanks Art Centre (Cairns).
I am seeking. I am striving. I am in it with all my heart. — Vincent van Gogh