3. Selection and acquisition
Libraries Tasmania collects high quality items in existing and emerging formats.
Tasmanian content is defined as:
- Published in Tasmania
- By Tasmanian authors
- About Tasmania, or a related subject that directly informs understanding of Tasmania
- Directly associated with a notable Tasmanian individual, institution, place or event.
These criteria can be difficult to apply when:
- Authors lived in Tasmania for a short time before leaving.
- Authors have recently moved to Tasmania.
- Works have little or no explicitly Tasmanian content but provide a wider context for understanding some aspects of Tasmania.
In situations where it is unclear if the item is ‘Tasmanian’, the significance of the author or work to Tasmania, and the influence of Tasmanian experiences on them are considered. For example, Sara Douglass was inspired by Tasmania’s landscape and history, so we regard her as a Tasmanian author. Conversely, a book by an overseas academic who taught for a year or two in Tasmania would not be selected unless the work contained substantial Tasmanian references.
Materials for the Heritage Collection can be purchased through Libraries Tasmania’s budget or acquired through the following processes:
- Auction houses
- Booksellers – new, second-hand and antiquarian
- Commercial and private purchases
- Commercial publishers
- Cultural gifts program
- Donation
- Gift
- Individuals
- Legal deposit
- Library suppliers
- Self-publishers