THE Oxford Literary Festival has reversed its decision not to pay authors who speak at the event.
For next year’s festival, authors speaking will be paid a fee of £150, after organisers said they had been a ‘strength of feeling’ on the issue.
The decision comes after author Philip Pullman quit as patron of the festival in protest at authors not being paid to speak at the events.
He said at earlier this year that his resignation was a 'matter of principle', because of his role of president of the Society of Authors – which campaigns for writers to be paid for all festival events.
The festival told The Bookseller it had rebalanced its budgets.
A spokesman for the Oxford Literary Festival said: "The Oxford Literary Festival today announces that it will pay an author fee of £150 to all authors speaking at the 2017 festival and thereafter.
“We have conferred with interested parties and, recognising the strength of feeling, have rebalanced our budgets to enable this to happen.
"We will announce the first of our speakers for the 2017 festival in the middle of December. We can promise another inspiring and diverse Oxford Literary Festival."
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