In 2008, online humorist David Thorne published a spoof article on his website detailing the “worst idea for a novel ever”: a book in which nothing happens. The article went viral, and Thorne decided to turn it into an actual book.
The result was The Epiphany Machine, a “novel” consisting solely of a transcript of a conversation between two people. Despite its minimalist approach, the book was a huge hit, selling over a million copies and becoming a bestseller in multiple countries.
Thorne’s success proves that there’s no such thing as a bad idea for a book – only bad execution. With the right amount of creativity and talent, even the most far-fetched concepts can be turned into a success.