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Drawing upon a research study on lifelong learning, citizenship, and fiction writing, this paper explores issues around identity and learning in becoming a fiction author. Five main thematic areas are discussed: (1) envisioning a writing career, (2) compelled to write, (3) learning the craft, (4) getting published, and (5) online identity. The challenges, hurdles, and motivational factors in pursuing a career in a field as tenuous as fiction writing are explored. The paper argues that fiction writers, like many people who work in the creative sector, have a strong desire to engage in work that they consider to be meaningful. Those who succeed demonstrate great perseverance. As the impact of new technologies and social media shape and change the publishing sector, there are new challenges as well as opportunities that writers will need to learn about and address as they develop their career trajectories.

Current reforms in elementary and secondary science education call for students and teachers to develop more informed views of the nature of science (NOS)--a process in which science textbooks play a significant role. This paper reports on a case study of the development of representations of the NOS in a senior high school chemistry textbook by the book's author, editor, and publisher. The study examines the multiple discourses that arose as the developers reflected on their personal and shared understandings of NOS; squared these with mandated curricula, the educational needs of chemistry students and teachers, and the exigencies of large-scale commercial textbook publishing. As a result, the team developed and incorporated, in the textbook, representations of NOS they believed were the most pedagogically suitable. Analysis of the data in this study indicates that a number of factors significantly influenced the development of representations of NOS, including representational accuracy (the degree to which representations of NOS conformed to informed views of the NOS), representational consistency (the degree to which representations of NOS in different parts of the book conveyed the same meaning), representational appropriateness (the age-, grade-, and reading-level appropriateness of the NOS representations), representational alignment (the degree to which NOS representations aligned with mandated curriculum), representational marketability (the degree to which NOS representations would affect sales of the textbook), and 'Workplace Resources' factors including availability of time, relevant expertise, and opportunities for professional development.

In an address to a symposium on children's book publishing in Canada, the author describes and critiques recent efforts of governments, school systems, publishers, and other organizations to promote the production, distribution, and use of materials distinctly Canadian. A sample list of children's books is appended. (Editor/SJL)

Discusses reasons for the self-publishing trend in Canada. Topics addressed include changes in the publishing industry, desktop publishing, quality control, printing, publicity, reviews, marketing, and the future of self-publishing. Two sidebars discuss vanity presses and self-publishing and libraries. (32 references) (LRW)

Reports the preliminary results of a survey of the environmental scanning behavior of 207 chief executive officers (CEOs) in the Canadian publishing and telecommunications industries. Topics addressed include information sources, perceived source accessibility, perceived source quality, and frequency of source use. (16 references) (LRW)

Discusses relationships among teachers, curriculum package authors, and publishers. Describes the Atlantic Science Curriculum Project's reform efforts. Recommends that curriculum development projects include: (1) lengthy informal development; (2) combined testing of design and materials; (3) the withholding of contracts until materials are in advanced states of development; and (4) continual functioning. (DK)

Discusses the relationship and interdependence of children's libraries and publishers of children's books. Developments in publishing for children in the United States, Great Britain, and Canada are examined; publishing trends are described, including a more global approach; and the influence of technological changes are considered. (five references) (LRW)

United States-based publishing firms dominate the Canadian learning materials market; their business and editorial practices suppress Canadian viewpoints and undermine Canadian publishers. Provincial and federal measures intended to strengthen domestic publishing have been adequate only in central Canada. As information technology advances, further such efforts become more crucial than ever. (MCG)

Discusses both the advantages and the limitations of the Canadian cataloging-in-publication (CIP) system, a decentralized system which began in January 1976 with three principal library agencies--the University of British Columbia, York University (transferred to the University of Toronto in 1982), and the Bibliotheque Nationale du Quebec in Montreal. (CLB)

Presents a publisher's perspective of the many issues surrounding social studies-history textbooks written for the Canadian market. Discusses publication problems imposed by social studies programs which vary from province to province and examines questions of, among other things, text bias, textbook screening, and the emergence of multimedia-based materials. (GEA)

Offers a number of practical suggestions to Canadian academic librarians expected to write for publication. Areas discussed include choosing a topic; finding a publisher; collecting data; allowing respondents to comment on manuscript drafts; preparation of manuscripts; joint authorship; expenditures, royalties, and taxes; and publishing contracts. (CLB)

Describes Government of Quebec materials available in microformat from two private publishers, Service de Microfilm du Quebec and Micromedia Limited. Materials include sessional papers, journals of the legislative assembly, and debates. Recent legislation affecting the legal deposit of government publications in microform is also discussed. (9 references) (CLB)

The lack of "Canadian content" in Canadian public school textbooks can be more easily explained by changing national educational goals than by foreign ownership of the publishing industry. Science textbooks are used to illustrate. (SB)