Member Review
The Union was begun because, in the early '70s, writers had no way of comparing experiences. But the results have been much greater than expected: Public Lending Right, benefits for the institutional copying of our work through Access Copyright, informed contract advice, a network to draw upon, and a collective voice. All writers in Canada have benefited — not only those who have joined the Union and pay their dues.
Member Profile
Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch
Marsha didn't learn to read until she was nine. At ten, she taught herself how to read with Dicken's Oliver Twist. After high school, Marsha earned an honours degree in English at UWO. In 1978, she took a job with an industrial supplier, becoming the first woman in Canada to be an industrial sales rep. She married Orest Skrypuch in 1981, and in 1982, she returned to UWO and got her Master of Library Science degree. She worked as a librarian for Agriculture Canada until 1984 when her son Neil was born. Marsha invented a washable nursing pad that was so successful it was sold across Canada and in Europe for over a decade. In 1996 Marsha's first book, Silver Threads was published. All of Marsha's books have one thing in common: they are the stories that people tend to brush under the carpet.
