Writers' News
Congratulations!
Peter Goldsworthy
The SA Writers’ Centre would like to congratulate two prominent South Australian writers who were honoured on Australia Day. Dr Peter Goldsworthy, author of such well known titles as Honk if you are Jesus and Maestro and a member of the Centre, was received as a Member in the General Division of the Order of Australia, while author and cook Maggie Beer, who has written a number of cookbooks and pioneered South Australia’s fresh food industry, was named Senior Australian of the Year.
Varuna consultations come to SA
Peter Bishop
Varuna’s Creative Director Peter Bishop will be in Adelaide for three days – from Wednesday 24 to Friday 26 February – offering one-on-one consultations with the aim of exploring the possibilities of both direction and development of a major creative project. Peter likes to to talk with writers about the heart of a project and what’s at stake for the writer.
Since its inception in 2005, the ‘LongLines’ program has led to the recognition, development and publication of numerous South Australian writers. Even though the ‘LongLines’ funding that previously supported the consultations has ceased, Peter continues to visit South Australia in search of fresh writing talent. Consultations, which cost $50 and are by appointment only, go for 40 minutes and places are limited. So, please send up to 10 pages to the SAWC by 15th February. Successful applicants will be notified by phone and offered suitable appointment times.
Two exciting initiatives…
Our first networking function for 2010 will be held on Monday 1st March in conjunction with Varuna, the national Writers’ Centre based in NSW. Peter Bishop, its Creative Director, and a number of visiting publishers will be our special guests. We’ll be launching two exciting initiatives, a short story program in partnership with Scribe and an essay program in partnership with Griffith Review. Both are in partnership with the Centre, Varuna and Iowa, the first UNESCO City of Literature.
The SA Writers’ Centre is delighted to be involved in these exciting initiatives; how many programs can combine writing, editing, conversation, community, networking, international connections and publication. Peter will also announce a new poetry program – a partnership with the Byron Bay Writers’ Festival and Picador Press – where Varuna are looking for single poems and collections of up to 28 pages, plus there will be three publications by the time of the Byron Bay Festival in August.
Peter hopes to meet many new writers at the launch as well as many old friends. So, come along for a natter and a nibble.
Major changes to Google Book Settlement will affect Australian rightsholders
Largely in response to industry criticisms and government intervention, amendments have been made to the Google Book Settlement, with details being released in New York over the weekend. The new deal has some significant changes for Australian rightsholders.
The settlement followed a class action brought by US publishers and authors, and requires court approval to proceed.
Under the settlement originally put to the court for approval, the class that was affected by the settlement included rightsholders from any country around the world. This was a serious concern for many rightsholders, especially in Europe where governments are undertaking their own digitisation initiatives. In response to these concerns the class definition has now been narrowed. Under the amended settlement, only rightsholders for books registered with the US Copyright Office or published in the UK, Australia, or Canada will be eligible to participate in the new deal.
In keeping with this major change, the Book Rights Registry (BRR),the independent body that will administer payments under the settlement, will have a Board that includes at least one author director and one publisher director from the UK, Canada and Australia respectively.
There have also been significant changes to the settlement in regards to orphaned works: books for which the rightsholder is unknown or cannot be located. The BRR will now include a court-approved fiduciary who will represent the interests of rightsholders in relation to the commercial exploitation of orphaned works.
How monies are allocated to orphaned works if the rightsholder can never be found is also set to change. There are now two options:
a) after unclaimed funds are held for five years, the BRR, in collaboration with organisations in Canada, the UK and Australia, and in consultation with the fiduciary, may use up to 25% of the funds for the sole purpose of locating rightsholders; and
b) remaining unclaimed funds will be held for the rightsholders for at least 10 years, after which the BRR, subject to approval, may apply to the Court for permission to distribute these funds to literacy-based charities in the USA, UK, Canada, and Australia.
Other changes to the settlement include amendments to the definition of commercially available works, alterations to dispute resolution procedures, a narrowing of additional revenue models, and other changes which will make it easier for other companies to compete with Google. There has also been a general commitment to improve the claiming process and the website.
In commenting on the amended settlement, Michael Lijic, Copyright Agency Limited (CAL's) International Affairs and Digital Strategy Manager stated, ‘The new deal is a significant event for Australian rightsholders. Australia is now one of only four countries who are eligible to participate in the settlement, which means it is very important that all rightsholders in this country look at their options very seriously.
‘CAL remains impartial on the new agreement; we see our primary role as educating our members, and ensuring they are aware of all of their options.’
A new date for the fairness hearing – a court session that will determine if the agreement should be approved – has not yet been set. CAL will continue to update its members on the revised settlement as events unfold.
For further details please visit CAL's website, or the official settlement website.
Article courtesy of CAL
South Australian Authors at Writers' Week
Fabienne Bayet-Charlton
The Writers’ Centre would like to congratulate the following South Australian authors who will be appearing as part of the 2010 Writers’ Week program: Jude Aquilina, Fabienne Bayet-Charlton, Brian Castro, Lolo Houbein, Jill Jones and Carol Lefevre. Writers’ Week will take place from 28 February – 5 March in the parklands between the Pioneer Women’s Memorial Gardens and the Parade Ground.
The SA Writers' Centre is assisted by the South Australian Government through Arts SA, and the Commonwealth Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory bodies.