The Latest on Writing and Publishing in Canada
ADVOCACY | ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE | AWARDS | BOOKSELLING | CENSORSHIP | PUBLISHERS | RESEARCH
ADVOCACY
Tracking the New Government’s Promises for Authors
The victorious Liberal Party of Canada made very few measurable promises to professional creators during the run-up to the April 28th vote, but The Writers’ Union of Canada and our advocacy partners will start pushing right away to see delivery on what has been discussed in the years previous… and perhaps to expand the promised territory.
“Protecting Canadian Voices” was a key plank in the Liberal platform, which noted “a strong culture is forged by the history we share and the stories we tell that are uniquely our own. In a sea of American media and disinformation, we need Canadian voices more than ever.”
Of course, Canadian authors are primarily responsible for “the stories we tell that are uniquely our own.” And with the government’s promise to “support Canadian artists and creators by increasing funding to agencies such as the Canada Council for the Arts,” TWUC will be pushing again for delivery of the Public Lending Right budget increase promised by the previous Liberal government.
The new government has also promised a lot of work and investment around artificial intelligence. In the cultural debates, there was mention of protecting human creativity and regulating the industry, but those points are less apparent in the Liberal platform document itself. TWUC will be reminding the government of its debate commitments.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Collective AI Licensing Developed in the UK
The Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) in the UK is partnering with Publishers’ Licensing Services (PLS) and the Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) to develop a comprehensive collective licensing approach to the copyrights engaged by artificial intelligence (AI) training and outputs. This means that British authors opting in to the licence will be paid for AI uses as part of their yearly royalty payout from ALCS.
In an April announcement, the International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organizations (IFRRO) noted “the announcement of the new licence comes at a crucial time in the UK, as the government is currently considering responses to a recent consultation on copyright and AI, in which it was proposed a controversial new copyright exception for text and data mining, a proposal opposed by rights holders.”
Establishing a working collective licence market for these rights should change the calculation for British lawmakers when considering unnecessary new amendments.
AWARDS
Prediction: A Canadian Will NOT Win the Griffin This Year
Eliciting both sadness and scorn online, the 2025 Griffin Poetry Prize shortlist (announced on April 23) includes exactly zero Canadian poets and/or titles. Once a prize event awarding both a Canadian and international winner, the Griffin changed its format three years ago to award a single prize from a single shortlist. At the time of the shake-up, philanthropist and prize-founder Scott Griffin said, “after 22 years that I’ve given Canadian poets a leg up on that scene, I think it’s time that they compete on equal footing.”
This change doubled the pot for the eventual winner but forced Canadian poets and titles to compete against international challengers. Past Canadian winners of the prize include Anne Carson, Dionne Brand, Nicole Brossard, Robin Blaser, and David McFadden, while the international prize has gone to the likes of John Ashbery, Alice Notley, Fady Joudah, and Paul Muldoon. While one Canadian title appeared on the March 2025 longlist — Dale Martin Smith’s The Size of Paradise, published by knife | fork | book — this marks the first year without a Canadian in the final heat. Elbows down on the desks, poets, and keep writing.
BOOKSELLING
WH Smith Officially Out of the Book Business
While the WH Smith brand has not operated dedicated bookshops in Canada for quite some time, it has continued to sell books (among many other things) in 480 high street outlets across the United Kingdom. Begun in 1792 as a simple newsagent in Little Grosvenor Street, London by Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna, the businesses expanded worldwide and even had a brief foray into cable television. Simply on the basis of longevity, it has been one of the world’s most successful sellers of books.
Until now.
In late March, WH Smith sold its British book-related assets to Modella Capital, which will continue the business under the name TG Jones. WH Smith will now pivot entirely to the travel retail category. There are still WH Smith airport shops in Canada, though their focus is not books-first. This news strikes the sentimental nerve of certain Union CEOs, who worked evenings and weekends at Smith’s during their student days and so view this sale as yet more evidence of their fleeting youth disappearing in the rearview.
CENSORSHIP
Canadian Book Has U.S. Supreme Court Hearing
The children’s book, Pride Puppy (Orca, 2021), written by Canadian author Robin Stevenson and illustrated by Canadian artist Julie McLaughlin, was at the center of an April hearing before the United States Supreme Court.
The case is a challenge by Maryland parental rights activists against the state’s largest school district, Montgomery County Public Schools, which added a number of 2SLGBTQ+-themed children’s books to its curriculum in 2022. Some local parents are insisting they have a faith-based right to remove their children from instruction that uses these books. Montgomery County previously informed parents which books would be used in instruction on which dates, but found that the resulting absences were too disruptive and risked potential social stigma and isolation for children of same-sex households.
While not strictly a case of book-banning, a ruling against Montgomery County can be expected to increase the pressure on certain titles within the curriculum process across the United States, which has in recent years seen a large spike in books challenges at schools and libraries.
Orca Books describes Pride Puppy — about a family trying to find their lost dog at a local parade — as “an affirming and inclusive book that offers a joyful glimpse of a Pride parade and the vibrant community that celebrates this day each year.” U.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch appeared confused by the storyline during oral argument at the hearing.
“That’s the one where they’re supposed to look for the leather and things — and bondage — things like that,” Justice Gorsuch insisted before being corrected by counsel.
PUBLISHERS
Association of Canadian Publishers Tracks Industry Salaries
Results from the ACP and Work in Culture’s 2024 Canadian Book Publishing Industry Salary Survey have been released showing, among other results, that gender pay parity looks better than it ever has. The ACP release noted “In a striking reversal from 2018, women in the publishing sector now earn slightly more on average than their male counterparts ($64,738 vs. $63,868), driven in part by increased representation in senior roles.”
A racial wage gap continues:
“White respondents reported an average salary of $66,045, compared to $61,650 for BIPOC respondents, highlighting the need for continued action to address racial inequities in compensation.”
What’s more, the survey found industry efforts at diversifying workforce have had limited success since 2018, with only 25% self-identifying in a non-white category. And while the report finds the industry is better paid on average than it was six years ago, it still does not provide compensation much above the Canadian average for professional work. Factors influencing results almost certainly include the Covid-19 disruption, and ongoing regulatory problems making the Canadian market far less remunerative than it might be.
RESEARCH
Studying the Canadian Book Consumer
BookNet Canada’s annual Canadian Book Consumer Study was released in late April. Tracking Canadian consumer awareness, discovery, selection, and acquisition behaviours around books, the report is available for free on BookNet’s website.
Among other highlights, the study finds that 49% of those surveyed bought new books in a given month, with 27% borrowing books from the library. Roughly half of the purchases were print books, with 26% of those being in the higher-priced Hardcover category. Fully 85% of new book buyers rated their value for money either Excellent or Good.
And physical bookstore use remains strong among Canadian consumers with 62% visiting a brick-and-mortar shop between one and four times during the year.
