Recipe books, car guides as well as yoga and ornithology manuals could be excluded from the legal definition of Quebec literature. Same thing for comics, and perhaps also for children’s literature. It is each collective agreement that will establish, following negotiations, whether it includes these works or excludes them. What would literature be thus defined, by very small separate pieces?
The National Association of Book Publishers (ANEL), in a bulletin published on its website which provides an update on the last negotiation meeting, specified the counter-proposal it presented to the Union of Writers and Writers Quebec (UNEQ). The offer sheds light on the possible interpretations of the definition of literature found in the revised version of the Status of the Artist Act.
ANEL negotiates on behalf of some 110 publishing houses, including Alto, Boréal, HMH, La courte scale, La Pastèque. She announces that she is counter-proposing “an interim union contribution of 2.5% on the royalty or on the advance on royalty paid to the member and non-member of the UNEQ, resulting from a publishing contract signed , at the earliest, from 1er January 2023, of an “original book expressed by the novel, the tale, the short story, the dramatic work, the poetry, the essay or any written work of the same nature”, excluding the book whose nature does not is not included in this legislative definition of “literature” and to the exclusion of self-published books”.
In other words ? If the proposal is accepted, authors of cookbooks, DIY or gardening manuals or personal growth guides would not be included in this agreement. They would not have to remit union dues to the UNEQ.
Law 35 defines literature as the previous Law on the status of the artist did, namely as “the creation and translation of original literary works, expressed by the novel, the tale, the short story, the dramatic work, poetry, essay or any written work of the same nature”. However, this last part of the sentence leaves room for several interpretations.
Already in the parliamentary committee, during the debates held last May, before the adoption of the reform project, the opposition parties questioned this open definition. Maître Dominic Normandeau, a lawyer assigned to the Ministry of Culture, then explained that “this kind of expression must be interpreted in the light of the terms that have been listed before”.
“I find it hard to see, there, spontaneously, how one could, by the expression “written work of the same nature”, interpret in the light of a novel, a tale, a short story, a dramatic work, poetry, essays as the cookbook would be… We are really not in the same nature as a novel, a tale and then a short story”, he continued.
A few moments later, Brigitte Doucet, who was then senior adviser to the office of the Minister of Culture, indicated that it was a more inclusive definition that had prevailed, in use, until now. “I have many years of experience in the Status of the Artist Act, she recalled then. When we were talking earlier about the definition of “literature”, it is very broad and, ultimately, it will be up to the court to decide whether a work is covered or not, it will never be at the head of a person , but rather by categories of works”.
“And, in my opinion, that’s as broad as being able to cover textbooks and how-to books, stuff like that.” UNEQ’s recognition covers all literature, and it will be up to them, according to their requests, to negotiate… application with the publishers,” added Ms.me Sweet.
The first interpretations of the impacts of the overhaul of the Act — including those made last December by the interlocutors of the Duty — believed that henceforth all creators of books, regardless of genre, literary or not, would be legally considered authors of literature.
“The recognition published on the site of the Administrative Labor Tribunal provides that the UNEQ protects “all professional artists working in the field of literature in Quebec”, explained then the researcher in law at the University of Sherbrooke Véronyque Roy. We therefore think of all the creators, in any language, who enter into agreements for remuneration related to their work in the Quebec book industry. Consider the publishing contract signed in Quebec. »
Comics are no longer literature
Thursday, Karine Vachon, director general of ANEL, confirmed to the Duty that the association was working with a definition that excludes how-to books. She also pointed out, in the course of the questions, that the Act raised questions about whether or not children’s books were included in the definition. “It could be debatable. As for the comics, too. Especially since comics were previously listed separately in the Act, and were removed in 1988. »
In its informative guide to preparing for the next extraordinary general meeting of its members, on March 29, the UNEQ does not specify which definition of literature it intends to defend during the negotiations. It must be said that since last December, the UNEQ has had to manage numerous criticisms from certain authors, members or not, in relation to some of its proposals, such as union dues or the sale of the Maison des writers. UNEQ has already started negotiations with ANEL and Sogides, and said in December to the Duty expect to lead dozens more.
At the time these lines were written, neither the UNEQ nor the office of the Minister of Culture had yet answered the questions of the Duty.
Who will define Quebec literature? “If there is disagreement on what is covered and what is not, continued in the parliamentary committee Mme Doucet last May, it is not in the Act that it is specified, but it will rather ultimately be before the courts that it will be decided. »
With Annabelle Caillou