Gwynn Scheltema
My Access Copyright notification came the other day to say that the Writers and Artists Payback Claim period for 1997 to 2016 opened on April 1 (closing date is May 31). I’ve also received several updates about the ongoing battle for creator rights in our Canadian Courts and what we as writers can do to help. The Writers’ Union of Canada (TWUC) also sent an update on the court cases and the advocacy they are doing.
I’ve watched my Access Copyright cheque shrink drastically over the last few years because of the education sector’s refusal to pay royalties, as has every other writer. Access Copyright and TWUC, along with other national writers organizations, are working hard on our behalf to address this issue, but ultimately, we the creators should also take action.
I’ll bring you up to date on the legal situation, and tell you how you can help.
What is Access Copyright?
Access Copyright is a non-profit, national organization representing Canadian writers, visual artists and publishers, and the work they create. Access Copyright also partners with similar organizations around the world doing the same thing abroad. Together they represent our creative works when it comes to those who want to copy and share those works in schools, corporations, governments and research situations.
Access Copyright manages the licenses and the collection of licensing fees for copied, shared and remixed content and passes those royalties on to the copyright holders. These royalties have traditionally formed around 20% of writers’ and 16% of publishers’ income. Advocacy around intellectual property is also an important part of the services Access Copyright offers to creators.
Background to the current court action
Prior to an amendment to the Copyright Modernization Act in November 2012 adding “education” as an allowable purpose under fair dealing, the education sector assured Canadian writers, visual artists and publishers they had nothing to be worried about and that this change would not impact their royalty income negatively.
Then in 2013 the ministries of education and post-secondary institutions walked away from long-standing licensing agreements. According to Access Copyright, over 600 million pages are now copied FOR FREE each year by that sector. Education’s new copying policies have devastated royalty income for creators and publishers resulting in a whopping 80% decline.
And it goes further: Course packs containing entire chapters of books, full short stories from collections and anthologies and shared online digital book copies have reduced primary book sales so that publishers receive less and, in turn, writers receive less in royalties from their publishers.
Taking the matter to court
Access Copyright felt it was time to take the matter to court. They sued York University for non-payment of mandatory fees (known as the Interim Tariff) and York counterclaimed that they did not have to pay because their actions constituted “fair dealing” under Fair Dealings Guidelines.
Finally, in 2017, the court ruled in favour of Access Copyright on both claims, but York immediately appealed.
Then at the end of 2017, the Federal Government launched a Parliamentary Review of the Copyright Act. There was now hope that the review would rebalance the law allowing creative professionals to earn the income they were due.
The big surprise, and disappointment, came in February of this year when most of Canada’s provincial education ministries and all of Ontario’s school boards launched legal action against Access Copyright.
It becomes vital now that we make our voices heard by the policy makers conducting the review, so that the legislation can be made stronger to ensure that creators are fairly compensated.
So what can you do to help?
- Start by understanding the issue fully. Go online and check out Access Copyright, TWUC, I Value Canadian Stories and Focus on Creators.
- Watch and share this video to learn how present copying practices impact the creation of content for tomorrow’s classrooms, and create a value gap for creators.
- Write a letter to your MP urging them to support creators during the ongoing Federal Parliamentary Review. Several of the sites listed in #1 have letter kits to guide you.
- Make a personal submission, to the Standing Committees from both Canadian Heritage (CHPC committee) and Innovation, Science, and Economic Development (INDU committee) who have begun considering witnesses and submissions as part of the Parliamentary Review.
- Tell other writers and urge them to get involved.
Want to learn more about copyright in Canada?
(links and explanations thanks to Access Copyright website)
- Copyright Act of Canada (last amended November 7, 2012)
- Copyright Board of Canada
- Canadian Intellectual Property Office – CIPO is responsible for administering patents, trademarks, copyrights, industrial designs and integrated circuit topographies in Canada.
- Department of Canadian Heritage – Houses the Copyright Policy Branch which, in conjunction with the Intellectual Property Policy Directorate of Industry Canada, is responsible for formulating and implementing an integrated Canadian copyright policy.
- Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada – Houses the Intellectual Property Policy Directorate which, in conjunction with the Copyright Policy Branch of the Department of Canadian Heritage, is responsible for formulating and implementing an integrated Canadian copyright policy.
If you don’t have poetry on your bookshelves, there is plenty out there to sample. You might want to start with the 
Another great website for classic poetry and prose is 
Just like the reading version of a poem a day, Writer’s Digest runs a 
The public plus local schools were invited to submit to a poetry contest. The poems had to be on topics directly related to Earth Day, like the environment, our planet, ecology, nature, organic gardening and/or farming, evolving human awareness of other living organisms, climate change, greenhouse effect, and pollution. The poems were to be 24 lines or less and the winners read their poems at ceremonies at 
One of the spin-offs that came out of NPM is something called Poem-in-Your-Pocket Day. Also celebrated in April—this year on April 26—Poem-in-Your-Pocket Day encourages people to carry a poem with them, and share it with others throughout the day. This day is celebrated not just in North America, but in Europe and Australia too. Some of the activities that everyone (not just poets) are encouraged to get involved with are:
Start a “poems for pockets” giveaway in your school or workplace
Poets also appreciate attendance at their poetry readings. A quick Google search of “poetry reading” and “Northumberland” gave me 3 readings in the next three weeks I could attend including this one at the 
Rather than complain about Canadian books and authors often being overshadowed in the marketplace by the sheer volume of books from the US, a community of Canadian publishers of all sizes, across the country, got together and created this site.
#NationalWalkoutDay, where school children and teachers across the US protested gun violence by walking out of their schools for 17 minutes this morning – part of a larger, powerful movement organized by kids – inspired us to share this list with you. The books are all about recognizing injustice, finding ways to fight it, being inspired by real-life heroes, and becoming powerful in important new ways.
Can I sell my book or buy books on 49thShelf.com?
Gwynn recently interviewed Beth Bruder, Vice President at Dundurn Press and a founding member and chair of the ACP committee that launched The 49th Shelf. Listen to that interview on 
Start with an open mind and playful attitude. Mind mapping is a “brain dump.” Expect that many of the ideas you produce will not be useful. That’s not important. You can harvest the valuable nuggets later.
Begin with one central keyword or concept in the centre of the page. Starting in the middle of the page gives the creative right brain a head start, as our non-creative left brain is used to starting in the upper left-hand corner.
Keep your hand moving. If ideas slow down, take your hand back to the central concept and begin a new branch. Draw empty lines, and your brain will move to fill them automatically; or inject more energy with a different colour pen.
The phrase DOCTORS OFFICE has me curious. I follow the branch back towards the centre, trying to work out what PINK and SUGAR have to do with it. Then it hits me… when I was a child, our doctor used to hand out tiny cylindrical candies that smelled like scented geraniums. I realize that I haven’t seen them in decades. What other sweeties from that era are no longer around? Hmmm….. Another article? A scene for my novel? A short story? Things are brewing now.
The perfect spot to be creative – and mind map to your heart’s content – is at 
hope to see a crocus – frustrated with winter already – amazed at how those squirrels survive out there in the cold – awed by the beauty of everything – awed by the determination of a tiny flower pushing through all that snow – anticipation of spring coming in just a few weeks – resignation that there is still winter to live through – teased by winter – foreverness -winter teaching me a lesson in patience – promise….
the creaking branches and knobbly branches remind me of my bony arthritic fingers – the squirrels are like busy moms dashing about making sure everyone has the things they need – layers of snow like blankets- ice is a blanket too – crocus and saffron spice – sun like a returning lover
Trees wave knobbly fingers
Bony tree limbs wave
The writing critique group I belong to understands this perfectly. We meet every two weeks and at the end of each meeting we all set a writing goal for the next two weeks only. We each set our own goal depending on what we are working on at the time and what is happening in our lives.
When I’m trying to avoid that “frog”, I play solitaire, disappear into social media or sort the kitchen junk drawer or….. I’m sure you have equally pointless—and time consuming—avoidance tactics.
Now this may seem contradictory to the “eat the frog” principle, but getting through your to-do list and achieving your goals begins with making your bed.
So there you have it.
We were gathered at the 
The objects chosen by the contributors ran the gamut of wooden carvings to a chess set; from a mason’s picks to a hand-made hammered brass coffee pot; from a document of Settlers’ Effects to a framed record of a family tree going back seven generations to 1730.
A little green frog
The whole process of choosing my symbolic object and then writing the story of how it had formed a transition from one period of my life to another was humbling. I was forced to strip way so many layers, to decide what was important to me—then and now.
Whenever I travel, I visit gardens; I seek them out in concrete-jungle cities and have a vast one of my own. My mother and grandmother taught me to create landscapes that worked with nature, not against it. They taught me how to create a green space with soul. And I realized as I looked at this tiny urban gem on my walk, that creating a garden that has a heart is very much like writing.
We all have big writing dreams: maybe the next best seller, perhaps an award or earning enough to live on. But on any given day, don’t worry about what seems unattainable. Work with what you have.
Not everything we write is worth keeping, but often you write a really good scene or stanza that just doesn’t fit with the piece or poem you’re working on. It might even be one of your proverbial “darlings.”
But you’ll find that you get more out of your writing community when you contribute: give of your time, your expertise and your encouragement and support. We all have high and low times as writers and whether you need someone to help you with a practical plot problem, to celebrate a success or just give you a kick in the pants to submit or get writing, your writing tribe are the best people to do it. But, offer the same to other writers. I know that over the years, I’ve learned more about the craft by talking to fellow writers and giving feedback to others than from any book.
Without planning and fertilizing, weeding and maintaining, gardens wither or become something else you have no use for. Your writing, like any art form, is the same. You wouldn’t expect to play the piano well without practising regularly. Writing is no different. Write, write and write some more. Plan writing time into your schedule. Fertilize your craft with workshops, reading and communing with fellow writers. Weed out all your negative attitudes about not being good enough. And fill your creative well often.
I also like the books I read to be set in exotic places, in other cultures, and affected by political or natural turmoil that I am never likely to be faced with. I like to learn about other customs and occupations. 
The first one:
The next: 
And the third: 
Who knows, you may discover a new genre that really speaks to you. Perhaps that coming-of-age story you’ve been struggling with as an historical romance might be better reworked as a dystopian YA. But you have to read some dystopian YA to find out.
Initially, it doesn’t matter. When you begin your first draft, story is key and the story will land in the genre it fits best. But once that draft is done, knowing your genre is important. You’ll need to know so you can fine tune your manuscript and pitch it to the right agent or publisher.
Let’s take the crime/mystery genre as an example and the typical “dead body”. In a cosy mystery, your readers will expect to spend a few chapters meeting the inhabitants of a cosy community and getting to know the protagonist and her friends before the “dead body” is discovered. The actual killing will be off stage. In a police procedural mystery, the “dead body” is there by the end of chapter one. Readers may even witness the murder. It will be important to follow real police investigative and forensic procedures.
1. Prepare a book jacket blurb
With your book jacket blurb in hand, you have your main dominant story thread. Use that main thread to define the main genre. For instance, if your book involves a mystery and a romance, is the dominant story thread a classic “who done it” with a bit of romance thrown in for character growth? (mystery) Or is it really about a relationship blossoming between two people who happen to be solving a mystery together? (romance)
Nail down the age group your book is aimed at: children, young adult, new adult or adult. If your manuscript appeals to more than one group, you have an age cross-over. (Think Harry Potter (children/adult) or Hunger Games (YA/adult).)
One way to do this is to have two windows open, one on Amazon and the other on Goodreads. Read the blurb on Goodreads and then search the book on Amazon to see its classification.