I think it's really not common knowledge. A few years ago, I served on a B.C. awards jury. I think our awards were either $6,000 or $12,000. It was $6,000 for a less established writer and $12,000 for a more established writer. I was shocked at the number of big names in Canadian writing, people whose names you would recognize if I said them, who were still applying for these $12,000 awards.
People are on very narrow margins. Every penny really does count. That goes for the publishers as well, as Mr. Williams has said.