Authors
In 1989, authors and publishers came together in support of the "Declaration of Book Preservation". This declaration, a direct answer to the threat to book permanence posed by acid, brought these groups together around their commitment "to use acid-free paper for all first printing of quality hard-cover trade books in order to preserve the printed word and safeguard our cultural heritage for future generations."
Now there is a new threat to the permanence of hardcover first printings—the rise in the prevalence of books published on groundwood papers. Groundwood papers (which do not meet ANSI standards for paper permanence) pose just as significant a threat to permanence as acid, with one exception. There are de-acidification processes available for books, but books printed on groundwood cannot be preserved, they can only be re-printed on Permanent Paper.
As an author, would you want your book to last longer than it took you to write it? If so, you need to ask your publisher if your book is being printed on Permanent Paper. It’s the only way to guarantee that your book will stand the test of time.
Up to 50% of the books appearing on the New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists are now printed on groundwood papers. How do you know what type of paper your latest work was printed on? Click here to see if your book is printed on Permanent Paper or groundwood paper. If it's not listed here, email us at permanence@glatfelter.com and we will buy your book and test it for you.