At the heart of the book trade since 1858
Issue 6055
Editor's Letter Storymakers A
few weeks ago I wrote that we were fortunate in book publishing that we mostly don’t need to rely on taxpayer subsidies or other forms of patronage, for with such monies come strings we may not want to be bound by. The row over Arts Council England’s warning to funded bodies of “reputational risk” that might arise from “overtly political” activit, makes that point well, but it also serves to underline a wider narrative, publishing is political, and we are all involved. ACE, it seems to me, does well in a tough environment,
Such has been the clamour, RSL has now referred itself to the Charity Commission
particularly at the grass-roots level where funding is most needed. Much small press publishing and writer development would not happen in the UK without its outreach, and for many publishers and writers it is the difference between hope and extinction. Set up to be neutral, ACE has long used its sway to nudge beneficiaries towards what we might regard as desirable goals around diversit, sustainabilit and regional representation. Some already regard this as an over-reach—just not a contentious one. But the climate has changed recently, and the present government is clearly intent on making the way taxpayer money is used visible to the electorate. Secretary of State for Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch’s comment about not funding art that is “opposed to the UK” is particularly worrisome. Indeed, that a columnist for the Spectator recently lauded what a “more organised and serious Conservative government could do to limit access to public funds for organisations and movements that are explicitly political, and explicitly
anti-Conservative”, shows has far the mood has shiſted. Should public money come with strings? For sure. Should it come with a political straitjacket? Nah.
It is within this context that ACE must now operate, its changes an atempt to create a framework around how to deal with contentious areas that—to be honest—are no longer as well delineated as they once were. That, two statements later, we are still no clearer to understanding what ACE was trying to articulate speaks to the problem. Regardless of where the lines are drawn, one of the reasons we have artists is to test the limits, the threatened withdrawal of money an egregious over-step.
For another spin on all this, we could do worse than reflect on the Royal Societ of Literature’s travails where atempts to broaden its body of fellows, the delayed publication of its annual magazine that featured an article reportedly critical of Israel, and a perceived reluctance to support the author Salman Rushdie when he was stabbed, has raised concerns, including over its commitment to free speech (similar accusations have also been made about the Societ of Authors and English Pen). Such has been the clamour, RSL has now referred itself to the Charit Commission. This is all very disappointing. The
haritCommission. ng. The
politicisation of writing and authors should come as no surprise, interrogation of the decisions we make is not new,, either. Bodies such as ACE, RSL, and others, exist to be arm’s length supports to those who create and make art: when these entities become the story, it has gone wrong.
uthors should ation of the
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e who creat ities become
In next week’s magazine New Titles Fiction: June 2024, Travel Focus
Philip Jones @philipdsjones Contents23rd February 2024 Lead story
Spotlight on the Creative Artists Agency
TheBookseller.com 06
I was really interested in that quite formative, long-term friendship between gay men and straight women
Books Débuts of 2024 36
New Titles Paperback Preview 40 This Week
Lead Story: Creative Artists Agency ........................ 06 Company Spotlight Susanna Lea Associates ......... 08 LBF: Agents’ Hotlists ............ 10 Nibbies Shortlists 2024 ......... 26
Books
Débuts of 2024: Volume 2 ....... 36 Paperback Preview ............. 40 Jobs in Books
Recruitment ................... 53
week’s number one
This
Data The bestseller charts 30 05
23.02.24 At the heart of the book trade since 1858. £5.95
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