Members of the Union benefit from the
many programs and services the Union provides.
These include:
A web page for each member of the Union that highlights the
member’s accomplishments and publications as well as
providing information to interested parties regarding the
authors’ reading fees and availability. These pages
are member-updateable so members can update them as frequently
as they wish.
Access to reading programs including the National Public
Reading Program and the Writers-in-the-Schools programs.
These programs provide writers with an opportunity to promote
themselves and their work while also providing an honorarium
to compensate authors for their time.
The Union’s Manuscript Evaluation Service provides
members with an opportunity to evaluate manuscripts for a
fee.
The Union’s Annual General Meeting provides a full
day of workshops related to writing and writers. Past workshops
have included: What’s Hot, What’s Not: A Session
with Publishers; Translation: A Rose By Any Other Name; Making
a Living in the Digital Age; Street Legal: The Problems of
Non-Fiction in a Litigious Age; International Markets: Can
You Make the World Your Oyster; and Poetry and Polemics.
The Union offers cross-country Professional Development Workshops
providing detailed assistance to members and non-members about
the business of writing.
The Union’s quarterly newsletter, Write, provides
professional development information and opportunities.
Members receive all Union publications
on such topics as contract negotiation, electronic rights,
tax law and procedures, incorporation, literary agents, Canadian
publishers, ghost writing, anthology rates, and grants. In
addition members can contact the Union staff for contract
assistance.
The Union’s Grievance Committee, working with the Union’s
legal counsel, assists members in resolving professional grievances.
The Union’s listerv provides writers with daily access
to their peers and an opportunity to ask professional questions.
Regional meetings and socials provide members with another
opportunity to meet.
The Union’s annual general meeting provides an opportunity
for members to meet with their peers, discuss issues of common
concern, develop Union policy, and attend professional development
workshops. A travel subsidy is available for members attending
the Annual General Meeting.
The Union provides members with an opportunity to participate
in a group health benefits plan. This plan includes, but is
not limited to: a drug plan, hospital coverage, out-of-hospital
benefits, vision care, hearing benefits, dental care, and
specialists' services.
In addition, members’ dues allow the Union to continue
to undertake its work on behalf of writers, to advocate
for fair legislation to support writers and their work, and
to ensure that writers receive fair financial compensation
for their work.
Membership
Application Form (451 KB PDF)
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