Awards are available once each fiscal year to assist with the publication of titles in the upcoming calendar year that contribute to the development of provincial or national arts and culture. Funding is based upon eligible books published during the previous calendar year, as well as on the quality of the applicant’s overall publishing program.

In carrying out its mandate the British Columbia Arts Council is guided by its fundamental commitment to artistic excellence.

The Council has also articulated the following strategic priorities to inform applicants in the development of their requests to all Council programs. These priorities will be considered by advisory committees during program adjudication:

• improved sustainability of all BC arts and cultural organizations;
• inclusion of diverse artistic practices;
• encouragement of emerging artists;
• development of new art forms; and
• expansion of opportunities for regional participation.

BC Arts Council programs are accessible to aboriginal artists or arts organizations and artists or arts organizations from diverse cultural and regional communities of British Columbia.

GUIDELINES

Eligibility Criteria

Definition: Book Publishers are firms or organizations who select and develop manuscripts; enter into contractual agreements with authors or copyright holders; publish books under the publisher’s own imprint; offer books for retail sale; and actively work to promote, distribute and sell the books they produce.

(A) Publisher Eligibility

Under normal circumstances, publishers should meet, and be able to provide documentation on, the following criteria:

1. Applicants must:
   
• have been in business for at least 3 years;
• have at least 8 eligible titles in print;
• have published a minimum of 3 eligible titles a year for the past 3 years;
• new applicants must have recently received at least two awards from the BC Arts Council’s Project Funding for Book Publishers Program; and
• provide financial statements for the most recently completed fiscal year (or a statement of revenue and expenses related to the publishing segment of the company). Financial statements must specifically identify previous funding received from the BC Arts Council.
2. Book publishing should be the primary activity of the applicant. Where activities besides book publishing are also part of the applicant’s business, factors such as the ability to demonstrate separate editorial departments/boards and separate budgets for the publishing operation will be assessed in determining eligibility.
3. The publishing company must be at least 75% Canadian owned.
4. The publisher's head office and general operations must have been located in British Columbia, and the company legally registered in BC, for at least three years before the company is eligible to make application to the program.
5. The publisher must have devoted more than 75% of its previous year's publishing program to books by authors other than principals in the company.
6. Publishing original titles must be the primary focus of the applicant’s annual program.
7. The publisher must have demonstrated professional ability in the editorial process of originating and preparing material for publication, and also in marketing and distribution capabilities.
8. The publisher must provide documentation that it has fully met its royalty commitments as defined in its contracts with authors.  If there is a book for which no royalty arrangements have been made, the publisher must be able to demonstrate payment of a sum to the author(s) for the creation of the work.
9. In the case of related or affiliated companies, distinct editorial departments or boards, distinct budgets, and distinct financial statements must exist for each company’s publishing operation.

B. Title Eligibility

Under normal circumstances, to be eligible, a proposed title must, subject to the exclusions below:

1. contribute in an original and creative way to the development of provincial or national arts and culture;
2. be written by and, in the case of children’s books, also be illustrated by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada;
3. meet the current eligibility criteria of the Canada Council book publishing assistance programs; and
4. satisfy the professional standards of the Publishing Advisory Committee of the BC Arts Council.

Note: new editions of previously published titles may be eligible. The applicant must specify the changes made, and how these changes meet the eligibility criteria.

Exclusions

Titles excluded from assistance include:

1. categories of books that generally do not incur a deficit, and therefore do not require additional support;
2. books not written by a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada, and children’s books not illustrated by a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada;
3. books for which the author does not receive a royalty;
4. mass-market paperbacks distributed through mass-market channels, with print runs of 8,000 copies or more, or trade books with print runs of more than 20,000 copies, unless the jury allows them by special exception;
5. books that do not contain a significant portion of original material, such as conference proceedings or scholarly papers, unless they make a significant contribution to arts and culture;
6. directories, index compilations, almanacs, or bibliographies of minimal critical content;
7. instructional, personal-growth, or self-help books and manuals, including those of a devotional or spiritual nature;
8. testimonials, unless they are aimed at a children’s market or make a significant contribution to arts and culture;
9. picture books containing minimal critical content, unless they are aimed at a children’s market or make a significant contribution to arts and culture;
10. travel guides, travel picture books, guide books, trivia and quiz books, books describing how-to techniques, skills, games, and cookbooks;
11. books commissioned or paid for by an individual, group, political party, or company and over which the publisher does not have complete and independent editorial control (if the copyright for an eligible title is held by an organization, a government department, or the Crown, the publisher must explain how the title meets eligibility criteria);
12. co-publications with governments or government departments or agencies, except titles that are co-published with museums or art galleries and that make a significant contribution to the arts;
13. books for which 50% or more of the print run is pre-sold outside normal trade bookselling channels and book clubs;
14. verbatim interviews or previously published journalistic articles, unless directly on the arts or literature of Canada;
15. catalogues of exhibition;
16. books with fewer than 48 pages, except for children's books, which must have at least 24 pages;
17. books not printed in Canada, except in the case of international co-editions and/or full-colour, highly illustrative books from an eligible genre;
18. international co-editions in which the Canadian publisher has not made a significant contribution to the editorial and creative aspects of publication (if the publisher is requesting support for a co-edition, the details of the publisher’s editorial and creative contribution must be outlined);
19. books that contain advertising other than the publisher's own promotional material;
20. educational books that do not have a trade market, except when the publisher can demonstrate how these books will be promoted in the larger trade market;
21. books to which the author has made a financial contribution toward publication costs, self published books;
22. books with a print run of fewer than 500 copies; print-on-demand books;
23. saddle-stitched books, except for picture books for children, and books of poetry from publishers that saddle-stitch less than 50% of their annual poetry titles;
24. calendars, diaries, agendas, and colouring books;
25. sports books, except serious works of creative non-fiction, or works written for children;
26. professional reference books (law, accounting, etc.) aimed at a specialized audience, unless they are about arts and culture;
27. books written by owners or employees of the applicant’s company, unless these titles represent less than 25% of the publisher’s program each year (upon special request, the Publishing Advisory Committee may make an exception for publishing collectives);
28. books that are largely compilations of articles and primarily written for publication in a periodical, supplement or newspaper connected with the book publishing operation;
29. reprints, with the following exceptions: those published for the first time in Canada; those that contain significant new creative work in the form of writing or illustration (additions or changes to at least 20% of the text or 20% of the graphics); or those that make a special contribution to the understanding of British Columbia, its people and its history;
    
    Please note: the BC Arts Council does not fund new-format reprints, cloth-to-paper change only, or a new cover illustration only. It is the responsibility of the publisher to specify the changes made, and how these changes meet the eligibility criteria.
30. translations of titles which are not both originally written, and translated, by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada;
31. anthologies which do not contain 50% or more selections written by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada; and
32. anthologies that are publications of contest winners’ entries; or publications of the work of non-professional writers; or publications for which the contributing authors are not paid. The publisher must explain the payment and royalty arrangements made with anthology contributors.

Application Requirements

Applicants are advise/ to contact the Program Coordinator prior to submitting an application.

Applications require detailed submissions, and have to include:

• a signed, completed current Block Funding for Book Publishers application form that addresses all application questions;
• a list of principal administrative and editorial staff and/or significant contractors of the applicant, giving name and title or responsibility;
• an overview of the company’s publishing program, including mandate and history, along with copies of any recently prepared planning and policy documents;
• a list of all eligible titles published during the immediately preceding year, with a signed completed Canada Council Title Analysis report for each new title listed;
• a list of titles proposed in the previous application which were cancelled or postponed, with the reason(s) why they were not published;
• a list of eligible new editions published during the immediately preceding year, with a signed completed Canada Council Title Analysis report for each new edition listed;
• a list of already published or projected eligible trade titles for the upcoming year;
• a list of projected new editions for the upcoming year;
• the applicant’s standard contract with authors;
• two copies of the most recent audit or independently prepared financial statements (“review engagement”) for the applicant, as well as the applicant’s budget for the current and upcoming year;
• 7 copies of the most recent catalogue of books actually used for trade sales; and
• One copy of each eligible book published in the immediately preceding year. Please note: only submit copies of eligible books. If you are in doubt about a title’s eligibility, please contact the Program Coordinator.

Adjudication Process

The BC Arts Council is committed to active partnerships in the development and dissemination of arts and cultural activity in British Columbia. Merit-based, independent assessment is the primary method of evaluation.

While the Council makes every effort to respond swiftly to each application, in the interests of fairness, the following process is used to evaluate every application:

• the Council receives and adjudicates applications once each fiscal year;
• the Council acknowledges receipt of applications in writing;
• the Council’s staff review applications for completeness and accuracy;
• the Publishing Advisory Committee then evaluates the applications, and determines the level of funding and conditions on the payment of awards; and
• the Council informs each applicant of the decision.

The base component (60% of the total Block funding) is determined by the number of eligible titles a publisher has produced over two years as well as the average industry genre title deficits. The program uses a deficit assistance approach based on the average cost of a book’s first print run to encourage the publication of culturally significant books the marketplace cannot deliver on its own.

The merit portion of the Block funding (40% of the budget) is based on the Advisory Committee’s assessment of the relative merit and professional excellence of a publisher’s program. Merit points are not necessarily awarded to every applicant. A copy of the merit scoring sheet is available for information at Merit Score Sheet .

Eligible new editions of a previously published title will be funded to a maximum of 50% of the recommended award for an original title in the same genre. A new edition of a particular title will only be considered for an award once. No more than 15% of a publisher’s annual list will be eligible for support under the new edition category.

Recognition of Assistance

In recognition of funding, the support of the BC Arts Council should be acknowledged in all promotional materials. The Council will provide successful applicants with examples of camera-ready formats of the Council’s logo, along with usage guidelines. The logo is also available in a variety of formats on the Council’s Web site at www.bcartscouncil.ca.

The logo should be used on posters, brochures, print ads and programs and used where possible on media releases and signs related to the funded project.

Application Deadline

Applications must be delivered or postmarked by:

• December 17, 2007