Issues of Interest to Writers

• The Canada Council for the Arts: Writing and Publishing Section provides support to established writers and professional emerging writers, as well as providing grants to publishers and arts organizations.
• The Nova Scotia Arts And Culture Partnership Council provides support to established artists and professional emerging artists through Professional Development, Research, Travel, Creation and Presentation Grants, as well as providing grants to organizations. Contact them directly for more information.
• Other provinces: Alberta Foundation for the Arts; British Columbia Arts Council; Manitoba Arts Council; New Brunswick Arts Council; Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council; Nova Scotia Arts And Culture Council; Ontario Arts Council.
• Statistics Canada
• TWUC (The Writers' Union of Canada)'s argument for excluding cultural industries from trade agreements

• Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
• Canadian Library Association's Statement on Intellectual Freedom
• Electronic Frontier Foundation: civil rights organization for netizens; so involved in fighting cyber-censorship that they're often mistakenly called the Electronic Freedom Foundation.
• Freedom to Read Week from the Book and Periodical Council. Site includes When the Censor Comes, a guide for "those who are in the business of disseminating ideas, such as booksellers, librarians, publishers, school boards, exhibitors, artists, teachers and writers."
• Free Expression: Censorship information from the American Booksellers' Association.
• International PGP Home Page: PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) is a public key encryption program for electronic mail; it prevents people other than the addressee (who has the key) from reading your mail.

• Association of Research Libraries: Copyright and Intellectual Property: This site examines how libraries, archives, and library/archive users are affected by copyright and intellectual property laws. Mainly American content.
• Berne Convention For The Protection Of Literary And Artistic Works: 1971. Canada is a signatory to this international agreement.
• Bill C-32: As passed 1996.
• Canadian Copyright Act from the Department of Justice.
• Canadian Intellectual Property Office: Information about copyright, intellectual property, trademarks, and so on.
• patents.com Intellectual Property Law Web Server: Articles on intellectual property law provided by the law firm of Oppedahl & Larson.
• 10 Big Myths About Copyright Explained: Focuses on USENET myths like "If I don't charge for it, it isn't a violation" and "They e-mailed me a copy, so I can post it." Uh, no. This site explains why.
• Universal Copyright Convention as Revised at Paris on 24 July 1971: Canada is a signatory to this international agreement.
• WFNS' information on copyright.

Bear in mind that electronic publishing is not an established field, and laws are still in flux. Although you should read your contract carefully, contracts for electronic publishing should be particularly clear and explicit. Don't sign anything you don't understand. Don't pay reading fees. Do expect royalties to be higher than in traditional publishing; most publishers offer 30 - 50% (as opposed to print royalties of around 10%).

• E-publishing: A Primer and Caught in the Web article on electronic publishing from our newsletter Eastword.
• Defending Authors' E-Rights: A Wired article by Steve Silberman.
• Full text of selected papers from the ICCC/IFIP Conference on Electronic Publishing which occurred May 1997 at the University of Kent at Canterbury, UK.
• Yahoo's list of electronic publishers.

While the Writers Federation of Nova Scotia does not provide programs to combat illiteracy, we think our Writers in the Schools Program helps to prevent adult illiteracy by getting grade school students interested in reading.

• Center for the Book in the Library of Congress: promote literacy and the study of the book.
• National Adult Literacy Database
• Nova Scotia Provincial Literacy Coalition
• Statistics Canada documents:
  Backgrounder on the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS)
  Highlights from The Value of Words: Literacy and Economic Security in Canada
  Highlights from Reading the Future: A Portrait of Literacy in Canada