Y’all, let’s talk about Stephen King’s first big hit, “Carrie.” Picture this: it’s 1974, and this unknown dude Stephen King drops a book that’s gonna stir up all kinds of drama. First off, this man was about to throw the whole story in the trash! Yeah, you heard that right—his wife had to dig it out and be like, “Baby, what are you doing? This is gold!”
Now, “Carrie” is not just any book. It’s about this high school girl, right? She’s got these wild telekinetic powers, which is basically the ability to move stuff with her mind, and let me tell you, she is not having a good time at school. This girl is getting bullied, and y’all know how cruel kids can be. So, one thing leads to another, and it’s like, prom night from hell! This book touches all the bases—teen angst, revenge, and some really freaky family dynamics.
So, Stephen King, he sends this book out, and guess what? The hardcovers weren’t exactly flying off the shelves. Only sold 13,000 out of 30,000. But then, bam! The paperback hits and sells over a million copies in its first year. Talk about a turnaround! And Stephen was so shocked by the $400,000 deal for those rights, he had to sit down. He probably thought he won the lottery or something
And y’all, this book didn’t just make waves by selling a bunch; it literally changed the game for horror stories. It’s like Stephen King looked at the horror genre, flipped it on its head, and said, “Let me show you how it’s done.” He mixed in real-life fears, some deep psychological stuff, and boom—horror that makes you think and sweat
Now, “Carrie” has been made into movies, a musical—yeah, a musical, can you believe it?—and more. It just goes to show, sometimes the stuff you think is trash can turn out to be treasure. So, next time you’re about to throw something out, think about Stephen King and that almost-trashed masterpiece. Who knows? You might be sitting on the next big thing!
