In July 2014, a Pay the Writers meeting took place in Melbourne supported by the following organisations (in alphabetical order):
Australian Society of Authors
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) is the peak national organisation representing the rights and interests of Australia’s literary creators – all who see writing as remunerable labour, and their activity as vocation or career. Members include authors and illustrators across the range of genres. The ASA has staff in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra.
The ASA is primarily concerned with maintaining an equitable regulatory framework to support and reward literary creators. We work to maintain minimum rates of pay and conditions; produce books, contract templates, papers and information documents; defend the legal, moral and commercial rights of copyright holders; directly represent authors in challenges to inequitable agreements.
The ASA also advocates to governments and cultural agencies on questions such as copyright law, authoring in the digital environment, contract law, literary funding, and taxation matters. We have regular contact with parliamentary staffs, and government and opposition MPs and Ministers, both commonwealth and state.
Emerging Writers’ Festival
The Emerging Writers’ Festival is a not-for-profit organisation whose foundations are built on supporting emerging writers. We are a place where creativity and innovation are celebrated, where new talent is nurtured and where diverse voices from across Australia are represented. Our annual festival is held in late May and early June every year. www.emergingwritersfestival.org.au
Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance
MEAA Media is the union and industry advocate for Australia’s media professionals. Originally known as the Australian Journalists Association (AJA) founded on December 10 1910, MEAA Media has a long and proud history of:
- improving the wages and conditions of our members,
- campaigning for press freedom and the public’s right to know,
- promoting high quality journalism through MEAA’s Journalist Code of Ethics, and
- rewarding excellence and promoting professional development through the Walkley Foundation.
As a MEAA Media member you are part of a vibrant, active and independent professional association bringing the people who work in the media industry together under a single banner.
Find out more at http://www.alliance.org.au/
Overland
Overland, the most radical of Australia’s long-standing literary and cultural magazines, celebrates its 60th year in 2014.
Overland’s mission is to foster new, original and progressive work exploring the relationship between politics and culture, especially literature, and to bring that work to as many people as possible.
Overland publishes a quarterly print journal of essays, fiction, poetry and reviews, and an online magazine of cultural commentary, updated most days, as well as irregular online-only editions of fiction and poetry. It holds events, discussions and debates in writers’ festivals and similar forums throughout Australia. It hosts a number of major literary competitions, with an orientation to emerging writers.
Overland is committed to paying all its writers. Read more at www.overland.org.au
Writers Victoria
Writers Victoria is all about writing.
For 25 years, Writers Victoria has been a leading provider of information, resources and skills development for the Australian literary community.
With nearly 3,000 members, we are the state’s peak body for writers and writing. Our purpose is to support and connect writers at all stages of development - from beginners to professional published and performed writers - and to support the next generation of new Australian voices. Writers Victoria is also a major employer of writers, who deliver our workshop program and literary services.
We are an active member of the State and Territory Writers Centre’s network, a group that is particularly interested in supporting national cross-sector research into literature-sector pay rates.
As an organisation, Writers Victoria advocates for the rights and interests of writers as well as aiming to continually improve the way we work with writers ourselves.
For more information about Writers Victoria, visit www.writersvictoria.org.au or read our article about payment for writers in Overland Journal last year (available here: https://overland.org.au/2013/07/publishers-you-need-to-pay-the-writers/)