What we do

Philip Pullman calls for authors to be paid properly for ebook library loans

The Society of Authors has found that authors may be losing out twice over on ebook loans made through libraries and is advising all authors to check their royalty statements carefully and claim reimbursement from publishers if they believe they may have inadvertently been underpaid.

Click here to read more 

Authors' Awards 2013

The Society’s annual awards and prizes were presented on Thursday 13 June by the poet and playwright Carol Ann Duffy CBE, FRSL at the Army and Navy Club in London. Our Chair Anne Sebba introduced the reception where £70,000 was awarded to twenty-four writers. Read all about the winners here.

Management Committee Election

Anne Sebba, Patrick Barwise and David Kynaston will retire from the Management Committee later this year. Anthony Horowitz retired earlier in the year. The authors remaining will be Alison Baverstock, Andrew Crofts, Gregor Dallas, Juliet Gardiner, Philip Gross, Daniel Hahn and James Runcie.

There are seven candidates for the four vacancies on the Committee. You can read each candidate's personal statement here. Ballot papers have been sent with the Summer Author for UK members and separately for non-UK members. Ballot papers should be returned to the Electoral Reform Society, in the envelope provided, by 20 July.

About us

The Society is a membership organisation which has over 9,000 members writing in all areas of the profession. Whatever your specialisation, you are eligible to join as soon as you have been offered a contract from a publisher, broadcaster or agent.

Why you should join

• Confidential, individual contract vetting service
• Advice about rights, fees or any other professional query you may have to help you negotiate with your publisher
• Access to fantastic resources that will help you through the publishing process
• Subscription to The Author, our quarterly journal, featuring articles from prominent industry professionals
• A varied calendar of events and training sessions
• Optional listing on our public database of members' specialisations
• And many more membership benefits

The Society administers a wide range of grants and prizes such as the Authors’ Foundation, one of the few bodies making grants to help with works in progress for established writers. We are also privileged to act as literary representative of the estates of a number of distinguished writers including Bernard Shaw, Virginia Woolf, Philip Larkin, E. M. Forster, Rosamond Lehmann, Walter de la Mare, John Masefield and Compton Mackenzie. Read more...