banning books

The Wild West of Self-Publishing!

  I like the phrase used by Husna Haq from the Christian Science Monitor- "The Wild West of Self-Publishing"! As you all know, self-publishing has opened a door to a whole new world for aspiring independent writers, but there is a dark side to this opportunity. Pornographers have slipped through the door and now book sellers are trying to walk the fine line between banning such material outright and selective censorship. One immediate outcome is that this week I tried to send a self-published book to a Kobo reader and found their store shut down. They have removed all self-published titles until they can get a handle on this problem. And apparently Amazon and Barnes and Noble are also reviewing their titles, looking for any offensive material. Of course, there are those who feel we should be able to buy and read what we want; and who balk at such censorship. The enormous success of Fifty Shades of Grey has fueled a firestorm of copycat writers who are trying to out-shock readers and produce the next big money maker. But there is a difference between erotica and pornography; with the former having at least an element of artistry to it,…

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