Stephen Fry to present 2018 Authors’ Awards
Announcing our esteemed panel of award-winning judges for the SoA’s annual night of ‘riches’ – eight awards worth more than £98,000 in total.
Payouts to freelance writers in 17-year-old copyright suit
Thousands of freelance writers are due to receive a total of more than $9 million as compensation for copyright infringement by electronic database, newspaper, and magazine publishers, including Dow Jones, The New York Times, and Knight Ridder.
Make your views known to Government on PLR
You will remember that, after strong lobbying by the SoA, legislation to extend PLR to ebooks was finally passed last year. However we are concerned that the Government has not taken the necessary action to implement the change. An additional piece of secondary legislation needs to be passed, which the Government committed to completing by 1 July 2018, so that the first in arrears payments could be made by February 2020.
National Insurance Contributions could become an unaffordable luxury for low-earning authors
Writers, illustrators and translators earning less than £6205 per year can currently make voluntary payments of £2.95 a week towards the state pension and other contributory benefits, in the form of Class 2 NICs.
World Intellectual Property Day
Every 26 April, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) marks a day to raise awareness of the role that intellectual property rights play in encouraging creativity.
End the chill on free speech now: reform defamation in Scotland
Today is the 5 year anniversary of the Defamation Act 2013 receiving royal assent.
Lack of funding to close adult literacy campaign Quick Reads
The popular adult literacy campaign, Quick Reads, is due to be shut down after a fruitless 18-month search for a new sponsor.
SoA responds to Arts Council England’s ‘conversation’
The Society of Authors has responded to Arts Council England’s ‘conversation’ about its strategic direction for the next ten years. This is the first stage of ACE’s consultation on its future strategy, with a more formal call for evidence due later this year.
Shortlist announced for the Elizabeth Longford Prize for Historical Biography 2018
The Society of Authors is delighted to announce the shortlist for the 2018 Elizabeth Longford Prize for Historical Biography.
New base in Bloomsbury from 2019 will ‘usher in a new era for the Society of Authors’
The SoA has exchanged contracts on current and new properties, with plans to move in March 2019.
Government agrees Creative Industries Sector Deal
We were pleased with the overall message conveyed in the report and appreciate the understanding on display of the vital role our creative industries play in the national economy. The Report says that the creative industries are ‘at the heart of the nation’s competitive advantage’.
Elections to the Management Committee
You are warmly invited to stand, or to propose fellow members stand, for election to the Management Committee.