Author Eligibility

• Authors participating in this program must be members of the Union (whether the event has a host organization or is self-hosted by the author).
• Each member is eligible for up to two full readings or four partial readings, or any combination equivalent to two full readings, each fiscal year (April 1 – March 31). Of these readings, only one for the period September 1 to March 31 can be a self-hosted virtual event.

Host Eligibility

• Host organizations are eligible for funding for two full readings or four partial readings, or any combination equivalent to two full readings, each fiscal year (April 1 – March 31). 

Please note that applications usually exceed available funding and it may not be possible to fund all applications. Do not submit more applications than you are eligible for. 

Host organizations and authors may apply for funding for in-person or virtual readings. In this program, we refer to full and partial readings: 

• A full reading includes a minimum of 15 minutes of reading time per author, excluding additional time for discussion or questions.
• A partial reading involves more than one author and includes 5–15 minutes of reading time per author, excluding additional time for discussion or questions. 

Host organizations must arrange a date for the reading with the author(s) before applying for funding. There are two ways to contact authors:

• Use the Member Directory to check the author’s profile for an email address or phone number.
• Send an email to the author care of The Writers’ Union of Canada to info@writersunion.ca.

Please note that author contact information is intended for the purposes of booking only. Please respect authors’ privacy. 

The Union pays the author’s reading rates directly to the author as follows:

• For a full reading, we pay a reading rate of $300.
• For a partial reading, we pay a reading rate of $150.

The Union pays the reading rates directly to the author following the successful completion of the event and receipt of the author’s Final Reading Report.

Please note that funding for this program is non-transferable, due to large demand on the Union's funding programs.

All in-person events for this program must be local. To assist with travel expenses a very minimal travel reimbursement will be provided to any participating author where required (e.g., transit and limited mileage). Travel reimbursement cannot exceed $50 per event. Copies of receipts will need to be uploaded when completing the online Final Reading Report.

Eligible Events

In order to be eligible for funding through this program:

• Participating author(s) must be Union member(s).
• Virtual reading(s) must take place on a publicly accessible platform (e.g., Facebook Live, GoogleMeet, YouTube, Zoom) and must include audio and video.
• Readings must be advertised to the public in advance and acknowledge funding support from The Writers' Union of Canada and the Canada Council for the Arts. 
• Attendance numbers must be provided as part of the Final Reading Report. 
• Final Reports must include copies of promotional materials.

Ineligible Events

The following events, activities, and hosts are not eligible for funding through this program:

• Conferences, workshops, roundtable discussions, fundraising events, book prizes, or podcasts.
• School or classroom visits are not eligible.
• Readings for which reading fees are funded by another program of the Canada Council for the Arts.
• For host organization applicants: Readings by authors who sit on a board or executive committee of the host organization for the period during which the host organization has applied for and received funding.
• For host organization applicants: Readings by authors who are staff or volunteers with the host organization.
• For host organization applicants: Readings hosted by publishers.

We encourage you to consider presenter and audience access needs as you plan your virtual or in-person events (e.g., closed captioning, ASL interpretation). We also encourage you to make accessibility information available to your audience as part of your promotional materials. In-person events held in fully accessible venues will be prioritized. To ensure your application is prioritized, submit by the appropriate session deadline.

As part of the Union’s Equity Implementation Plan, applications for readings featuring authors who are Black, Indigenous, racialized, LGBTQI2S, or living with a disability will be prioritized. To ensure your application is prioritized, submit by the appropriate session deadline.

As part of this program, readings must be advertised to the community at large. Copies of advertisements and promotional materials must be submitted to the Union with your Final Reading Report (e.g., screenshots of digital promotion/event pages, PDFs of posters). All publicity materials must acknowledge the financial assistance of the Canada Council for the Arts through The Writers’ Union of Canada. Click here to access logos.

Applications for events taking place between September 1, 2022 and March 31, 2023 closed on August 17, 2022. Applicants will be notified of results within 3 weeks following the August 17 deadline. 

For more information about this program, please contact the TWUC office at soconnor@writersunion.ca.

This program is funded by the Canada Council for the Arts.