The next new trend

I am still looking for the perfect formula for a best-selling book.

Two months ago, I thought I had found the key. What you needed, I believed, was a one-word title, such as Blink, Fish! or Nudge.

Then I realized that a title alone is not enough. You need some content. And this is where the second key element comes into play: timing.

You have to catch a trend just at the right time. This is not easy.

A book coming out now, such as this one, with suggestions for solving the international financial crisis, seems perfectly timed. But it was written too early to catch the most recent events.

On the other hand, a book like The Black Swan, which looks at why catastrophic events are often impossible to predict, is becoming more and more topical even though it is not actually about the current crisis.

The problem with trends is that, if you jump on the bandwagon too late, nobody is interested. Who needs another book now about the phenomonal rise of China?

Indeed, given the recent negative news, it would seem more promising to pen a book about China's impending downturn.

This, I've decided, is the key. Stop the bandwagon just before it crashes out of control, turn it round, and drive it in the other direction.

So, here are my top five suggestions for the next best-sellers. All have one-word main titles and all explain new trends:

• Crash! The end of the Chinese boom.
• Love! How bankers found their way to our hearts.
• No! Why Barrack Obama couldn't change the US.
• Welcome! Foreign workers can save the world economy.
• Up! Why we all want to pay higher taxes.