Subsidy funding from the Department of Canadian Heritage, administered through the Association of Canadian Publishers, is offered for staff of all Canadian-owned book publishers to enroll in workshops, seminars, conferences, and courses related to the business of book publishing.

The following activities are eligible for subsidy funding. This list is not exhaustive; subsidies for attendance at other programs may be made available with prior approval.

• SFU Publishing Workshops

• BookNet Canada TechForum & ebookcraft

• BookMachine CAMPUS courses

• Digital Book World conferences

• Editors Canada conferences

• Association of University Presses conferences

• Eastbound

• PubWest

• Online and in-person continuing education courses, conferences, or workshops related to book editing, design, production, sales, marketing, business management, etc.

The ACP Mentorship Program, exclusive to all ACP members in good standing, matches industry specialists with members from across the country for a one-day focused session on the topic of their choice.

At the 1997 ACP AGM, several members noted the lack of people ready to assume leadership positions in Canadian publishing, while at the same time publishers expressed an interest in acquiring skills from their more experienced colleagues in the industry. These concerns resulted in the creation of the now long-standing ACP Mentorship Program.

This program aims to offer publishers of all sizes an opportunity to directly learn from each other and provide an opportunity for publishers to work in a focused and intensive way with industry specialists on a specific aspect of their business. This program aims to offer publishers of all sizes an opportunity to directly learn from each other.

The Diversity and Inclusion Committee of the Association of Canadian Publishers (ACP) has identified a number of initiatives to address the under-representation of racialized and marginalized people working in the Canadian book publishing industry. Publishers continue to seek ways to expand their professional networks to include those from diverse communities. This is particularly important for smaller publishing firms that make up the majority of ACP’s membership.

With few staff positions and limited opportunities to hire full-time staff, contract and freelance work is a reality of their publishing operations and presents an opportunity for ACP to help publishers diversify their professional networks. We recognize that engaging more freelancers from diverse communities is not a long-term solution to this challenge but it is a preliminary step and initiative we can undertake immediately.

The Discovery Series offers professional development seminars on sector-specific topics that directly address the immediate needs of Canadian publishers and draws on the expertise of the association’s membership and wider network. Sessions are held online and recorded for the benefit of ACP members and affiliates.

These committee-driven sessions respond to members’ specific areas of interest or concern, and then-current trends within the publishing industry, focusing on the unique realities of Canadian publishers’ businesses and markets. Sessions in the Discovery Series are coordinated as industry updates, roundtables, and discussion panels. 

ACP’s Publishing 101 Webinar series shares basic publishing knowledge and practices.

The series is aimed for new publishers, junior staff at publishing companies, and those interested in jumpstarting their career in the publishing sector—anyone working in the industry or who is interested in learning more about the business side of publishing.

Publishing 101 aims to be approachable, providing expertise from trusted sources within the industry and a forum for fledgling industry professionals to discuss their own experiences and perspectives.

ACP member publishers are able to subscribe to BookNet Canada’s SalesData and CataList services at significantly reduced rates through buying groups administered by ACP.

Members of ACP affiliate organizations also receive similarly reduced rates.

To learn more about this program, download our announcement document or contact Jessica Riches at jessica_riches@canbook.org.

Top Grade: CanLit for the Classroom is the ACP Children’s Committee’s effort to increase sales to the school market through a preview program.

ACP has typically mailed selections of members’ marketing materials including ARCs, catalogues, and promotional items to key decision-makers within school boards across the country to help provide information and improve connections.

As of Fall 2020, Top Grade has partnered with 49thTeachers to create an online hub of Canadian titles and teaching resources and develop preview content for educators, made accessible whenever and wherever.

Please visit the new site for detailed title listings information featuring amazing Canadian literature for the K-12 classrooms, excerpts, and short book preview videos covering curriculum themes. Top Grade catalogues from previous years will remain below for your reference.

Launched in March 2009 as the digital arm of the ACP, Canadian Publishers Digital Services (CPDS), eBOUND Canada is now an independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to advancing Canadian publishers’ engagement in the digital marketplace regardless of their size or level of expertise.

Its growing number of programs includes digital asset management, e-production, marketing, metadata management, conversion services, and professional development.

49th Shelf is a website that brings together more Canadian books than any other source in the world. The site is devoted to celebrating Canadian books and to making it easy for readers to find them.

Conceived in 2009, and launched in 2012, 49th Shelf has a single purpose: to raise the visibility of Canadian books in the marketplace. It is open to Canadian-authored books of all categories and formats and types of publisher (Canadian-owned, multinational, or self-published).