Regulations of the Inne Tradycje Publishing Programme 2027

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The Inne Tradycje publishing programme was established by the Book Institute to support books and periodicals of high social, artistic and substantive value whose publication on market terms is difficult due to their non-commercial nature. The aim of the programme is to promote literature and publications in the field of humanistic reflection that are insufficiently present in readers' awareness – by publishing valuable works of poetry, prose, essays and scholarship. The programme takes the form of the Book Institute's financial contribution to the costs of preparing the publication.

  1. The programme is carried out within the tasks approved by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage, which in 2027 include:
    1. poetry books,
    2. books of literary criticism and essays,
    3. books promoting literature and reading, and books devoted to people who create literature,
    4. scholarly journals in the humanities,
    5. non-commercial contemporary prose and drama.

    The applicable types of tasks and all updates and changes in this respect are published on the Book Institute's website (www.instytutksiazki.pl). Explanations and additional guidelines on the intended interpretation of the above categories can be found in Annex 1 (Guidance and explanations).

  2. The Book Institute's financial contribution is intended to finance part of the costs of the publication, in particular:
    1. author fees;
    2. purchase of licences;
    3. costs of editing, graphic design and pre-press preparation.
  3. The Book Institute's financial contribution to the costs of the publication does not entitle it to a share in the publisher's revenue from distributing the work.
  4. The decision on the Book Institute's financial contribution is made through a call for proposals.
  5. Polish publishers may take part in the call for proposals, meaning entities conducting business activity in publishing (Division 58 of the Polish Classification of Activities) as well as non-governmental organisations and cultural institutions conducting publishing activity whose registered office is in Poland. There is no limit on the number of proposals submitted by individual publishers.
  6. Interested publishers may submit proposals on a rolling basis. The results of the call for a given month are announced by the 20th day of the month following the month in which the proposal was received by the Book Institute.
  7. Both books (with an ISBN or e-ISBN) and periodicals (with an ISSN or e-ISSN) may receive funding.
  8. Proposals are submitted electronically via the form available on the website https://instytutksiazki.pl; the form contains information on how personal data are administered.
  9. The proposal form includes questions such as:
    1. a detailed description of the book / plan of the journal issue together with a cost estimate;
    2. biographies of the authors and editors of the publication,
    3. the current publishing programme and a profile of the publishing house;
    4. a description of the planned distribution and the promotion plan for the publication
    5. submission of an excerpt or the whole of the publication.
  10. At the Book Institute's request, the publisher is obliged to provide additional information.
  11. Complete proposals undergo a substantive assessment carried out by a Steering Committee appointed by the Director of the Book Institute, composed of Institute staff and external experts. For the purpose of assessing the submitted publications, the Committee may commission internal reviews.
  12. The Committee assesses proposals on a scale of 0 to 100 points according to the following criteria:
    1. social potential of the publication – up to 20 points
    2. artistic/substantive/scholarly value – up to 60 points,
    3. potential of the publisher and experience of the people preparing the publication – up to 20 points.

    Explanations and additional guidance on the intended interpretation of the above criteria can be found in Annex 1 (Guidance and explanations).

  13. The substantive assessment is made in writing and consists of the minutes of the Steering Committee's work, a comment and a score.
  14. In the case of a proposal where a conflict of interest could arise, the member of the Steering Committee withdraws from the assessment and informs the Director of the Book Institute.
  15. Publications authored by employees of the Book Institute will not be assessed. Publications authored by employees of the Book Institute are excluded from funding under the programme.
  16. On the basis of the substantive assessment, the Director of the Book Institute or a Deputy Director authorised by them determines the amount of the Book Institute's financial contribution to the costs of the publication.
  17. The final decision on signing an agreement with the publisher is made by the Director of the Book Institute or a Deputy Director authorised by them.
  18. In a calendar year, the Book Institute's financial contribution may be granted to a maximum of six publications (books and/or journal issues) of one publisher, and the total funding for one publisher in that period may not exceed one hundred and sixty thousand (160,000) zloty gross (including VAT, if applicable).
  19. The results of the call are published on the Book Institute's website and in the Book Institute's Public Information Bulletin.
  20. If the proposal is accepted, the Book Institute concludes an agreement with the publisher for the publication and distribution of the work.
  21. The publication should be published and settled by the publisher within the deadline indicated in the proposal, no later than 2 November 2027.
  22. The deadline for publishing and settling the work indicated in the proposal may be extended to 30 November 2027 at the publisher's request with the consent of the Director of the Book Institute or a Deputy Director authorised by them.
  23. Settlement of the work means the publisher's effective delivery to the Institute, within the deadline for publishing and settling the publication, of:
    1. 5 copies of the publication produced in accordance with the agreement for the publication and distribution of the work referred to in point 19;
    2. an invoice issued no later than 2 days after the Book Institute confirms receipt of the 5 copies of the publication, for the gross amount, i.e. including all applicable taxes, in the amount set out in the agreement;
    3. written information on the print run of the published work and the manner of its distribution.
  24. After the Book Institute confirms performance of the agreement and the correctness of the settlement, the Book Institute's financial contribution to the costs of the publication set out in the agreement will be transferred to the publisher's bank account indicated in the invoice.
  25. Within 90 days of the Book Institute's financial contribution being credited to the publisher's bank account, the publisher is obliged to deliver to the Book Institute declarations confirming that the publisher has paid the remuneration/fees set out in the agreements concluded with the authors (authors of the published texts and/or translations).
  26. If the publisher fails to deliver the documents listed in point 24, it will lose the right to apply for the Book Institute's financial contribution to publishing works under the Inne Tradycje publishing programme for 5 consecutive calendar years.
  27. In particularly justified cases, the Director of the Book Institute or a Deputy Director authorised by them may consent to changes in the print run declared in the proposal while maintaining the Book Institute's financial contribution to the costs of the publication, if the publisher submits such a request and it is justified and documented.
  28. The Book Institute may ask the publisher to submit a report on the publication together with copies of the relevant source documents, in particular information on promotional activities carried out and sales results.
  29. Changes to these Regulations, in particular changes to the tasks listed in point 1, require the approval of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage.

Annex: Guidance and explanations

  1. Publications are funded in five functionally different categories:
    1. first-edition, low-print-run, niche poetry collections that explore the possibilities of the poetic (aesthetic) function of language (following R. Jakobson's categorisation, cf. „Poetyka w świetle językoznawstwa”, „Pamiętnik Literacki” 1960, 51/2, pp. 431-473), addressed primarily to readers of contemporary poetry in its experimental dimension,
    2. non-commercial books of literary criticism and essays with a limited readership, focused on metalinguistic and cognitive functions (cf. ibid.)
    3. books promoting literature and reading and books devoted to people who create literature – more accessible, usually addressed to a wider readership, fulfilling a cognitive function,
    4. scholarly journals in the humanities, listed in international research indexes, intended for academic readers and differing within the category by academic discipline: they include publications in philosophy, political science, literary studies, linguistics, international relations, theatre studies and theatre criticism, and others,
    5. non-commercial contemporary prose and drama – formally experimental books and works intended for theatrical interpretation.
  2. In line with the programme's strategic aim of ensuring the greatest possible diversity of publishing output and supporting as many publishers investing in non-commercial publications as possible, the programme aims to fund as many valuable publications as possible prepared by as many publishers as possible.
  3. In line with the programme's strategic aims, which include making valuable publications absent from the book market available to readers, first-edition texts will be preferred. In the case of reissues or new translations, a justification showing that the proposed publications are unavailable must be provided.