Romance Novel Finally Breaks The Post’s ‘No Self-Published Books’ Rule

The Washington Post, like many other highly influential book platforms, has always adopted a hands-off policy regarding self-published books. That has now changed with Serving Pleasure, an erotic romance which won a place on The Post's "best of" list for romance.

Does this mean self-published books have finally earned respectability? Probably not. The Washington Post is owned by Amazon, which - it won't shock you to know - published Serving Pleasure.

It would not be at all unreasonable to assume that perhaps a little suggestion was whispered in the reviewer's ear.

(The lady doth protest too much, methinks. Read on.)

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Romance finally breaks The Post’s ‘No Self-Published Books’ rule

By Ron Charles, Washington Post, November 24

It was bound to happen sooner or later: For the first time ever, a self-published book appears on one of The Washington Post’s best-of-the-year lists.

The distinction — bestowed on Alisha Rai’s erotic novel “Serving Pleasure” — marks a small but telling milestone. Long scorned as the “vanity press,” self-publishing now draws hundreds-of-thousands of hopeful authors. The vast majority of the books sell very few copies, but each year produces another rockstar — a EL James or a Hugh Howey — whose stratospheric success fuels more dreams and brings more legitimacy to the platform.

“Serving Pleasure” appears on The Post’s list of the year’s best romance fiction, one of several genre lists in Book World’s Best Books of 2015 package. Rai, who works as a lawyer by day, released “Serving Pleasure” through CreateSpace, Amazon’s independent publishing platform. (Amazon founder and chief executive Jeffrey P. Bezos owns The Washington Post.)

Our romance reviewer, Sarah MacLean, didn’t think she was doing anything particularly radical by including a self-published book.

Read the rest of this article HERE.