Does a bestseller necessarily mean well-written?

My mum (who doesn't read) recently came home from work with a sneaky copy of 50 Shades Of Grey tucked away in her handbag. When she revealed the book to me, I'm not going to lie, I was horrified because:

a) My mum was reading what has been described as soft-porn (she argued it was erotica)

b) My mum never reads. She's read one John Grisham novel and started to read The Help only to stop a quarter of the way through because it was 'stressing her out'. Mum, that's history.

Although I had fun flicking through the book and reading all the rude bits, I did notice that in places it was poorly written. The book never claimed to be a masterpiece, so I do kind of feel sorry for all the stick it's been getting. However, it does make me think whether there has been a change in what a commissioning editor looks for in a book. Do they now want sales over quality? Despite the fact that the book has sold millions of copies and has been described as "unputdownable" and "kinky", it has yet to be described as "well-written". Although, give the woman some credit, it can't be easy writing well about S&M.

Then again it could be argued that these types of book have got people reading, giving a boost in what is a difficult time for the industry. All the money made by this book alone is going back into the book industry meaning more books can be printed; books that are a bit risky that wouldn't have been published before. It has also proven how powerful 'word of mouth' can be, especially when - despite all the bad reviews of the book all over the internet - it is still a bestseller. 


I WILL read the book as I feel its only fair before I start slating it. If anyone else has read it and wants to share their thoughts or even a review, please send it over to us at : editorlumi@googlemail.com.