ALCS Interview

WriteWords

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Charon by scampmacmil

A longer version of this interview is available to WriteWords Full and Community Members.
Click here to learn more about becoming a member.

WriteWords talks to the ALCS- Author's Licensing and Collecting Society

Which writers can join? In what media/form?

Academic writers, fiction, non-fiction, translators, adaptors, scriptwriters, magazine and journal article writers, editors and children’s writers are all eligible to be ALCS Members.

For the majority of our 78,000 Members, writing is not their main job. Many of our Members are doctors, nurses, teachers, lawyers, academics etc. They might be an academic writing for a journal or have contributed to a book. These people might not consider themselves as writers but have written to share learning and best practice, or even just to supplement their income.
While the vast majority of the money ALCS collects at present is done so for printed materials we also collect fees for the use of their work when it has been scanned. We continue to work hard to find ways to ensure that writers are remunerated fairly when their work is used digitally.

How much is membership and what does it involve?

Lifetime membership costs Ł25. This is deducted from your first royalty payment so that no-one is out of pocket and you don't pay anything up front. You won’t pay anything at all if we don't collect any money for you.

How does it work?

In order to claim your secondary royalties you will need to complete an ALCS application for membership form and then register your published works, screenplays or journal and magazine articles. You will also need to keep this register up-to-date as you write more material to ensure you receive all fees due to you.

You can apply to join on-line at www.alcs.co.uk or alternatively contact our Membership Services Department on 020 7264 5700 or drop us an email at membership@alcs.co.uk.

How do you find royalties?

ALCS collects money owed to writers from a wide range of sources, both national and international. These sources include the scanning and copying of books, journals and magazines which currently account for approximately 65% of ALCS income. This income is collected by the Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA). The CLA offers a number of licensing options for businesses, educational institutions and governments to ensure writers are appropriately remunerated when their works are copied or scanned. The CLA divides this income between the publishers and the authors, and the ALCS distributes the authors’ share.
The ALCS also collects and distributes secondary royalties from: the overseas Public Lending Right; cable retransmissions; education recording; poetry festivals and Small Literary Rights, where small excerpts of literary work are read on television or radio, and other sources.

A longer version of this interview is available to WriteWords Full and Community Members.
Click here to learn more about becoming a member.

View ALCS's WriteWords Directory Entry

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