Join TLP and others for one day symposium at the V&A
As part of the one day symposium, Friction and Fiction: IP, Copyright and Digital Futures, The Literary Platform founder, Sophie Rochester, will be speaking on the panel What are Words Worth: All Together Now chaired by Jon Rogers, with Jack Underwood and Louise O’Hare.
Panelists will respond to the recent report, What Are Words Worth Now? a survey of almost 2500 working writers, commissioned by the Authors’ Licensing & Collecting Society (ALCS) and carried out by Queen Mary, University of London. The report has found that increasingly few professional authors are able to earn a living from their writing. In contrast to the sharp decline in earnings of professional authors, the wealth generated by the UK creative industries is on the increase.
Commenting on the findings of the survey, Owen Atkinson, Chief Executive of ALCS said:
‘These are concerning times for writers. This rapid decline in both author incomes and in the numbers of those writing full-time could have serious implications for the economic success of the creative industries in the UK.
“If writers are to continue making their irreplaceable contribution to the UK economy, they need to be paid fairly for their work. This means ensuring clear, fair contracts with equitable terms and a copyright regime that support creators and their ability to earn a living from their creations’.
Sophie will join the panel to discuss Writing for pleasure, writing for art or writing to get paid? The Literary Platform often considers the distinction between telling stories and selling stories in its work, with special emphasis on how the digital environment has impacted on this distinction. When does writing as an art-form finish and writing as part of a commercial publishing infrastructure begin? Much emphasis in TLP’s work is on how writers can sustain a career and how writers are remunerated for telling stories.
This one day symposium takes place in the company of leading writers, technologists, publishers and agents and asks whether the existing framework of publishing copyright can be adequately adapted to meet – and balance – the rights, needs and creative ambition of authors and publishers. In collaboration with Goldsmiths, University of London, Whose Book is it anyway? IP, collaborative business models, and questions of ethics and creativity in digital publishing (2012-2016) and CREATe, the RCUK Centre for Copyright and New Business Models in the Creative Economy.
Victoria & Albert Museum, London
26 September 2015
10:00 – 17:00
Read the full programme and register for your free ticket here.