Overview:
The Literature Committee’s (LC) mission is to ensure that every aspect of the S-Anon/S- Ateen program of recovery is presented as useful and comprehensive written material for our members, friends, professionals, and the world at large. The S-Anon /S-Ateen Conference Approved Literature (CAL) process ensures that all program literature is:
• Identifiably S-Anon in content according to the Twelve Steps, Twelve Traditions, and the Twelve Concepts of Service.
• Responsive to identified needs of the fellowship.
• Factual.
• Timely.
• Understandable by a broad-based reading audience.
• Based on experience, strength, and hope from the S-Anon point of view.
Each literature project is unique. From concept to completion, it may take many specific steps and several years to produce a finished product. The process may require the expertise of several writers and drafts before a manuscript is approved. The Conference Approval process begins with an approved concept for literature development and ends when the LC and S-Anon Board of Trustees (BOT) approve the final manuscript.
The LC Chairperson and Editors review the conceptual idea for the literature and read all the writings that may have previously been submitted. They select a Sponsoring Editor (or Co-Sponsoring Editors) to create drafts for the Committee’s review. If needed, additional writings may be solicited from the LC and other S-Anon members.
Before the Conference Approved Literature (CAL) status is assigned, the manuscript must obtain approval from the combined members of the:
1. Literature Committee, which is made up of the Editors and the Readers.
2. S-Anon Board of Trustees.
The Conference Approval Process
The following describes more specifically how the LC considers the conceptual idea and implements the Conference Approval process in the actual development of projects.
1. An idea for recovery material may come from any S-Anon member, group, World Service Conference (WSC), or other service arm. The LC Editors consider the idea to determine if it meets current or future literature needs of the fellowship. Recovery material falls into two general classes. Minor publications include leaflets, pamphlets, and booklets. Major publications include bound books.
a) Minor publications may be conceptually approved by the LC Editors and BOT and moved through the Conference Approval process in a timely manner.
b) Major publications are presented by the LC Chairperson in a motion to the WSC requesting conceptual approval before work on the project can begin.
c) Any WSC member may present a motion for conceptual approval for Conference- Approved Literature (CAL) at a WSC. Literature approved in this manner will be referred to the LC, which will prioritize and coordinate development of the literature with all the other projects currently under consideration.
2. Once an idea has conceptual approval for development, the LC Editors determine the preliminary scope and direction of the project and assign a Sponsoring Editor.
3. Depending on the parameters of the project, the Sponsoring Editor submits one or more outlines of the proposed work to the LC Editors to ensure that both the Sponsoring Editor and the other editors agree on the direction of the project. For a large project, additional editors may be assigned to assist the Sponsoring Editor.
4. If member writings are needed, they are requested from the fellowship through World Service Office (WSO) publications, website announcements, and individual contact, so that the identified message of our program is adequately reflected in the proposed work. All writings received by the LC must include a written release by the submitter and become the property of S-Anon International Family Groups, Inc. A lack of submissions from the membership may indicate that there is not an urgent need for the literature at this time.
5. LC Editors provide independent review of the initial outline and draft(s) of the manuscript for content and language and to ensure that S-Anon principles have been adhered to throughout the work. Following independent review of the drafts, the Sponsoring Editor incorporates the edits from LC Editors and subsequently from the Readers. This process may be repeated additional times, until the draft is ready for final review and approval. All comments are considered. Decisions to incorporate comments/edits into the draft regarding content are made based on the Twelve Traditions and Twelve Concepts of Service, especially Tradition One “Our common welfare should come first…” The Sponsoring Editor carefully considers how the content meets the needs of the fellowship as a whole or the members of the fellowship for whom the piece is written, such as S-Ateen members, parents, adult children of sexaholics, etc.
Editors adhere to the S-Anon Branding and Style Guide. Editors also adhere to S-Anon policies, as defined in the current S-Anon/S-Ateen Service Manual, and incorporate them into this process of developing literature. Drafts are reviewed and edited by LC members only and are not distributed to the fellowship.
6. After the Sponsoring Editor produces a final draft, it is sent to all LC and BOT members requesting a CAL vote to approve or disapprove. Votes are to be submitted by the deadline to two designated LC Editors; late votes may be accepted with prior permission. A ”no” vote is to be accompanied by a rationale in order to assist the LC Editors.
A quorum of eligible voting members must vote for a piece to pass as CAL. A quorum is defined as fifty percent plus one of eligible voting members.
If three “no” votes are received, the piece does not pass as CAL and will be returned to the Sponsoring Editor for revision and further rewrite. The Sponsoring Editor considers all concerns expressed by the voters and determines the next course of action.
7. If the manuscript is approved and the S-Anon Conference Approval process is completed, the project will enter production, including final copyediting, design, printing, and the creation of promotional materials.
8. It may take an additional three to six months to produce a finished product. The Sponsoring Editor(s) and the LC Editors determine the final presentation.
9. Once the manuscript is approved and the presentation style defined, estimated costs, including a marketing plan, are submitted first to the Finance Committee, and then by the Finance Committee to the BOT for approval of the printer, selling price, and the quantity to be produced.
10. If the LC and BOT conclude that an electronic version of a publication would benefit our fellowship, necessary steps will be taken for it to be formatted and made available through the sanon.org website.
Title Selection Process
Throughout the development of a proposed CAL manuscript, LC members are invited to suggest titles for the work in progress. The final title, agreed upon by the LC Editors, is approved at the same time as the final draft of the manuscript.
Title Change Process
A proposal to change the title of an existing piece of CAL must be addressed by the full LC and BOT. If they agree that a change may be made, the proposed new or amended titles are presented to the WSC for approval.
Literature Revision Process
Any S-Anon member, group, or service arm may submit requests for revisions to recovery material to the LC. The LC Editors determine whether a current publication is in need of revision and/or update based on the expressed needs of our fellowship. For the revision to proceed, the CAL process is used throughout, from the point of assigning a Sponsoring Editor to its approval by the entire LC and the BOT.
Process for Discontinuance of Conference Approved Literature (CAL)
1. The following criteria are required for discontinuing a CAL publication:
• Material has had a three-to-five-year initial introductory period from the date of initial publication.
• Sales of the material reflect minimal interest by membership.
• Content is or will be adequately covered in other CAL material if necessary
2. The LC makes a motion before the WSC to discontinue the item after a determination that the criteria outlined above have been fulfilled.
UPDATED 3/4/2021
