Electronic media showcases writers' talent
         Magazine publishes creative, political writing by students

by Tim Trahan

     In its volumes are articles on fringe politics, strange fiction, and 
spam.  Romantic poetry is included, as well as editorials alleging Secret 
Service misdeeds.  However, this magazine is not made of paper, but of bytes 
of computer data.
     State of unBeing is known as an "e-zine" or electronic magazine.  It 
takes advantage of an available and inexpensive publishing medium -- 
electronic media, and is distributed for free on the Internet and on "BBSes" or
computer bulletin board systems.
     "[State of unBeing] is really both a literary journal and a political 
zine bound as one," said Marc Beherec, senior who writes for the e-zine.  The 
reader will not find Beherec's name on the table of content.  He, as most 
contributors, goes by a "handle", a name adopted in an effort to remain 
anonymous.
     About half the writers involved with the e-zine are former or present 
Leander High students, but these are not ordinary students, according to 
Beherec.  Rather, they have unique writing styles and imaginations.
     "[The contributors] are primarily the outcasts, high school and college 
radicals..., who see the corruption of society and speak out against it,...  
They ... see things in a slightly different light than the mainstream media."
     Beherec has written essays on guerrilla warfare, the Irish uprising of 
1916, and articles on socialism and direct democracy.  His prose, short 
stories, and poetry have been published as well.  His work is also published 
in the school literary magazine.
     Another student involved in State of unBeing is Daniel Brake, senior, who 
authored the "Seven Tales of Spam" series, about three characters:  Spam, 
Spork, and Lorg, which is popular among readers.
     "'The Seven Tales of Spam' are cool because they say a lot about the 
popularity of spam," said Brian Newton, sophomore.
     Among Leander graduates, Marc Beherec's older brother, 1993 graduate 
Patrick Beherec, has been influential in editing as well as writing for the 
e-zine.  He has written on political theory, religion, and history, as well as 
the occasional poem and short fiction.  Also in the class of '93 are Jon Wiley 
and Mike Dowell, who have written essays, stories, and poetry.
     State of unBeing is one of the oldest and most respected literary e-zines 
among readers and other e-zine editors in the Austin area.  Many copies have 
been downloaded from the BBSes which carry the e-zine.  There are other e-
zines from the Northwest Austin area, namely the Vertigo Voice and SwanK, but 
neither has published six issues.  State of unBeing has released 19.
     The e-zine has its own dedicated World Wide Web page, a feature of the 
Internet, giving those from around the world a chance to read the e-zine.  
Contributions are open to the public, and to find past issues, the Internet 
address is {http://www.io.com/~hagbard/sob.html}.
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This article originally appeared on page 8 of The Roar (November 9, 1995; Vol. 
22 No. 2), the student newspaper of Leander High School, Texas.