Experimentation Project for Accessible Publishing

The importance of accessibility in digital publishing is becoming increasingly recognized by publishers in Canada, and in order to identify and clarify a path to accessible publishing, NNELS (National Network for Equitable Library Service), eBOUND, and l’Association national des éditeurs de livres (ANEL) undertook this experimental project. Over the course of this project, NNELS worked closely with 11 independent Canadian publishers (six produce English language books and are members of eBOUND, and 5 produce French language books, and are members of ANEL) in order to learn about publisher workflows and the stages a book goes through, from submission to publication. This report reviews what was learned about publisher workflows, and provides detailed recommendations on how publishers can improve the accessibility of their ebooks by making adjustments to their workflows. A key finding of this project is the knowledge that the burden of work, when it comes to improving accessibility, does not rest solely on the publisher, although they will need to be the driving force for change within their own organizations. But, changes can be made by all of the key players in the workflow, from the author, to the copy-editor, to the designer, to the conversion house/ebook producer.