News and Advocacy

What’s our purpose?

Our purpose is to support Australian authors and illustrators to pursue their creative career, and receive fair payment for their work.

What do we offer our members? 

We offer education and information; advice from experts; connection with other creators; and advocacy for authors’ professional interests.

We empower authors and illustrators with knowledge, professional development, support, and community, and lobby industry and government for contracts, practices, and policy settings that sustain their careers.

What are our values? 

We believe that authors and illustrators create the stories and ideas that are integral to Australian culture. This work should be valued and treated with respect.

We are committed to the following principles: 

• Fair pay for authors and respect for copyright
  Authors and illustrators ought to be paid fairly for their work. We advocate for the rights of authors to earn a sustainable living. We support a robust copyright framework as it is the legal mechanism by which authors can earn a living.   

• Inclusivity and equity
  The ASA respects and values diverse life experiences and heritages, and welcomes and supports all writers and illustrators from all backgrounds whatever their gender, sexual orientation or identity, race, ethnicity, cultural background, faith, age, or disability.

• Freedom of expression and a right to respectful communication
  We believe authors should be free to express their ideas and opinions, within reasonable limits set by anti-discrimination and other laws. Through their work we understand our societies, build empathy, overcome our prejudices and reflect on provocative ideas.

Australia is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which sets out the right to hold opinions without interference and the right to freedom of expression. 

What do we speak on? 

The ASA advocates on behalf of authors’ collective interests and we speak on matters that affect the professional lives of Australian authors and illustrators where we can make a material difference. Typically, we support individual members in confidence through our advice service, not in the public domain. 

Our Constitution states we are “non-sectarian and non-party political”. 

Our current advocacy campaigns are outlined below. If you have suggestions for areas of advocacy either to government or industry, please let us know by contacting us via email at [email protected].