‘SELF-PUBLISHED AUTHORS
BATTLE FOR EQUITY IN AUSTRALIA’
G'day folks,
Well, the battle still continues for independent authors
in Australia. You may recall some time back when I mentioned some great news
for self-published authors in Australia. On the same day, I also offered some
background facts on how independents were being excluded from two major awards
in particular; the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards and the Victorian Premier’s
Literary Awards (Victoria is my home State). Check out these previous posts:
‘Discrimination in Aussie Book Awards’ - 4 September 2014:
‘Great News – Aussie Book Awards’ – (2) 4 September 2014:
So, you get the picture. They have excluded independent
authors for what I consider to be frivolous reasons. Anyway, the plot thickens.
As you saw on my second post on 4 September, the
organisers of the Victorian Premier’s Awards (The Wheeler Centre) finally
decided to allow us to enter the awards in 2014. What did I do? Well, I entered
what I thought was a book that would grip the judges and prove to them that we
are sensible authors with talent. Yep, I had ten fresh copies printed, paid the
entry fee of $75.00 and entered. All sounds positive, eh?
Wait, there is more ...
Guess what happened when the longlist was announced? NO SELF-PUBLISHED AUTHORS WERE MENTIONED – NOT ONE!
I have no idea how many independent authors entered the contest, but
I’m sure many of them wrote some great books.
Hold
on. There is even more ...
Then, the Australian Prime
Minister’s office announced that its awards were open for 2015. And, you guessed it. Self-published
authors are still NOT eligible to enter. But, they did say this,
“The
Prime Minister's Literary Awards have been recognising excellence in Australian
literature since 2008. In that time 167 books have been shortlisted and
33 books have won. The Prime Minister's Literary Awards recognise and reward
excellence in Australian literature and history. These Awards play an important
role in celebrating the outstanding literary talent in Australia and the
valuable contribution Australian literature and history makes to the nation's
cultural and intellectual life.”
Mm … So magnanimous, yet so hollow. Now, go back and read the bits highlighted in red. Yep, none of those words apply to independent authors. Nope, they only apply to those in that special 'club'.
What did I do about this? I
wrote a brief article on Facebook, and the resulting comments were astounding –
hundreds of them! Then, a fellow author on Facebook, organised a petition on
Change.org, directed to our illustrious Prime Minister. Should any of you like
to support our cause, please sign the petition below:
However, we are finally getting some press, but don’t
hold ya breath. An article just appeared in The West Australian, “Self-publishers
are a hopeful lot, willing to take on the uncertainties of the publishing
market and back their own work. But these authors and other industry players
have been dismayed in the past week to learn self-published and ebook-only
authors again will be excluded from consideration in the national literary
awards.”
Clancy’s comment: Wow, all of us are used to battles of
some kind or other. However, it is 2015 isn’t it? Please let me know if I am
mistaken. Am I living in the dark ages? Besides the inequity of all this, I’m
convinced the main reason that these people refuse to acknowledge
self-published authors is simple: They are fearful of the competition that
independent authors will provide. Yes, it is a cozy club, and we are not
permitted to enter. Sadly also, they do not recognise the contribution that
self-published authors make to the Australian economy. All authors buy paper,
ink, software, hardware, pay editors, printers etc. Yes, they make a sizeable
contribution, but are not permitted to compete on a level playing field.
Yesterday I spoke to the most senior person in charge of the Prime Minister's Literary Awards, and didn't come away feeling joyful. It was a lengthy conversation and I made many points that have been made before. However, that person has asked me to present a good case. My reply was simple, 'What? Again?' Anyway, no big battle was ever won easily. To me, persistence overcomes resistance - eventually.
Not only but also, the biggest losers from all this inequity are
the kids, teens, parents, grandparents, teachers and librarians. They can only
choose books from those who are in the ‘Club’.
And ... These book awards are not judging the literary talents of ALL Australian authors. No, only the small group of privileged authors.
What a shameful state of affairs.
And ... These book awards are not judging the literary talents of ALL Australian authors. No, only the small group of privileged authors.
What a shameful state of affairs.
Stay tuned, folks. As you know, I was guest speaker on
Australia Day (26th of January), and this issue, amongst others,
was raised during my speech.
Stay tuned for further updates, but don't hold ya breath.
Stay tuned for further updates, but don't hold ya breath.
Amen, for now.
I'm ...
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