diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 5689715..b5b50e2 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -195,20 +195,22 @@ print(output)
 
 ## ⚙️ Options
 
-All parameters are optional.
-
-|       Option        |         Type          |        Default        |                                    Description                                    |
-| :-----------------: | :-------------------: | :-------------------: | :-------------------------------------------------------------------------------: |
-|      `header`       |      `List[Any]`      |        `None`         | First table row seperated by header row separator. Values should support `str()`  |
-|       `body`        |   `List[List[Any]]`   |        `None`         |   List of rows for the main section of the table. Values should support `str()`   |
-|      `footer`       |      `List[Any]`      |        `None`         |  Last table row seperated by header row separator. Values should support `str()`  |
-|   `column_widths`   | `List[Optional[int]]` |  `None` (automatic)   |                List of column widths in characters for each column                |
-|    `alignments`     |   `List[Alignment]`   | `None` (all centered) | Column alignments<br/>(ex. `[Alignment.LEFT, Alignment.CENTER, Alignment.RIGHT]`) |
-|       `style`       |     `TableStyle`      | `double_thin_compact` |                        Table style to use for the table\*                         |
-| `first_col_heading` |        `bool`         |        `False`        |         Whether to add a heading column separator after the first column          |
-| `last_col_heading`  |        `bool`         |        `False`        |         Whether to add a heading column separator before the last column          |
-|   `cell_padding`    |         `int`         |          `1`          | The minimum number of spaces to add between the cell content and the cell border  |
-|    `use_wcwidth`    |        `bool`         |        `True`         |   Whether to use [wcwidth][wcwidth] instead of `len()` to calculate cell width    |
+All parameters are optional. At least one of `header`, `body`, and `footer` must be provided.
+
+Refer to the [documentation](https://table2ascii.readthedocs.io/en/stable/api.html#table2ascii) for more information.
+
+|       Option        |              Type              |        Default        |                                    Description                                    |
+| :-----------------: | :----------------------------: | :-------------------: | :-------------------------------------------------------------------------------: |
+|      `header`       |    `Sequence[SupportsStr]`     |        `None`         | First table row seperated by header row separator. Values should support `str()`  |
+|       `body`        | `Sequence[Sequence[Sequence]]` |        `None`         | 2D List of rows for the main section of the table. Values should support `str()`  |
+|      `footer`       |      `Sequence[Sequence]`      |        `None`         |  Last table row seperated by header row separator. Values should support `str()`  |
+|   `column_widths`   |   `Sequence[Optional[int]]`    |  `None` (automatic)   |                List of column widths in characters for each column                |
+|    `alignments`     |     `Sequence[Alignment]`      | `None` (all centered) | Column alignments<br/>(ex. `[Alignment.LEFT, Alignment.CENTER, Alignment.RIGHT]`) |
+|       `style`       |          `TableStyle`          | `double_thin_compact` |                        Table style to use for the table\*                         |
+| `first_col_heading` |             `bool`             |        `False`        |         Whether to add a heading column separator after the first column          |
+| `last_col_heading`  |             `bool`             |        `False`        |         Whether to add a heading column separator before the last column          |
+|   `cell_padding`    |             `int`              |          `1`          | The minimum number of spaces to add between the cell content and the cell border  |
+|    `use_wcwidth`    |             `bool`             |        `True`         |   Whether to use [wcwidth][wcwidth] instead of `len()` to calculate cell width    |
 
 [wcwidth]: https://pypi.org/project/wcwidth/
 
diff --git a/docs/source/generate_style_list.py b/docs/source/generate_style_list.py
index 633b225..f71fdbe 100644
--- a/docs/source/generate_style_list.py
+++ b/docs/source/generate_style_list.py
@@ -4,12 +4,12 @@
 from table2ascii import PresetStyle, table2ascii
 
 
-def indent_all_lines(text, number_of_spaces=3):
+def indent_all_lines(text: str, number_of_spaces: int = 3) -> str:
     """Indent all lines in a string by a certain number of spaces"""
     return "\n".join(number_of_spaces * " " + line for line in text.split("\n"))
 
 
-def generate_style_list():
+def generate_style_list() -> str:
     """Generate README.rst the style list"""
     # get attributes in PresetStyle
     attribute_names = [attr for attr in dir(PresetStyle) if not attr.startswith("__")]
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ def generate_style_list():
     return f"{heading}\n\n{table_of_contents}\n{style_list}"
 
 
-def write_to_file(filename, content):
+def write_to_file(filename: str, content: str) -> None:
     """Write content to filename"""
     with open(filename, "w") as f:
         f.write(content)
diff --git a/table2ascii/exceptions.py b/table2ascii/exceptions.py
index 4af1a26..86be92a 100644
--- a/table2ascii/exceptions.py
+++ b/table2ascii/exceptions.py
@@ -1,15 +1,16 @@
 from __future__ import annotations
+
+from collections.abc import Sequence
 from typing import Any
 
 from .alignment import Alignment
-
 from .annotations import SupportsStr
 
 
 class Table2AsciiError(Exception):
     """Base class for all table2ascii exceptions"""
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         """Return the error message"""
         raise NotImplementedError
 
@@ -39,16 +40,16 @@ class FooterColumnCountMismatchError(ColumnCountMismatchError):
     This class is a subclass of :class:`ColumnCountMismatchError`.
 
     Attributes:
-        footer (list[SupportsStr]): The footer that caused the error
+        footer (Sequence[SupportsStr]): The footer that caused the error
         expected_columns (int): The number of columns that were expected
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, footer: list[SupportsStr], expected_columns: int):
+    def __init__(self, footer: Sequence[SupportsStr], expected_columns: int):
         self.footer = footer
         self.expected_columns = expected_columns
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return (
             f"Footer column count mismatch: {len(self.footer)} columns "
             f"found, expected {self.expected_columns}."
@@ -62,12 +63,12 @@ class BodyColumnCountMismatchError(ColumnCountMismatchError):
     This class is a subclass of :class:`ColumnCountMismatchError`.
 
     Attributes:
-        body (list[list[SupportsStr]]): The body that caused the error
+        body (Sequence[Sequence[SupportsStr]]): The body that caused the error
         expected_columns (int): The number of columns that were expected
-        first_invalid_row (list[SupportsStr]): The first row with an invalid column count
+        first_invalid_row (Sequence[SupportsStr]): The first row with an invalid column count
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, body: list[list[SupportsStr]], expected_columns: int):
+    def __init__(self, body: Sequence[Sequence[SupportsStr]], expected_columns: int):
         self.body = body
         self.expected_columns = expected_columns
         self.first_invalid_row = next(
@@ -75,7 +76,7 @@ def __init__(self, body: list[list[SupportsStr]], expected_columns: int):
         )
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return (
             f"Body column count mismatch: A row with {len(self.first_invalid_row)} "
             f"columns was found, expected {self.expected_columns}."
@@ -89,16 +90,16 @@ class AlignmentCountMismatchError(ColumnCountMismatchError):
     This class is a subclass of :class:`ColumnCountMismatchError`.
 
     Attributes:
-        alignments (list[Alignment]): The alignments that caused the error
+        alignments (Sequence[Alignment]): The alignments that caused the error
         expected_columns (int): The number of columns that were expected
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, alignments: list[Alignment], expected_columns: int):
+    def __init__(self, alignments: Sequence[Alignment], expected_columns: int):
         self.alignments = alignments
         self.expected_columns = expected_columns
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return (
             f"Alignment count mismatch: {len(self.alignments)} alignments "
             f"found, expected {self.expected_columns}."
@@ -112,22 +113,35 @@ class ColumnWidthsCountMismatchError(ColumnCountMismatchError):
     This class is a subclass of :class:`ColumnCountMismatchError`.
 
     Attributes:
-        column_widths (list[Optional[int]]): The column widths that caused the error
+        column_widths (Sequence[Optional[int]]): The column widths that caused the error
         expected_columns (int): The number of columns that were expected
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, column_widths: list[int | None], expected_columns: int):
+    def __init__(self, column_widths: Sequence[int | None], expected_columns: int):
         self.column_widths = column_widths
         self.expected_columns = expected_columns
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return (
             f"Column widths count mismatch: {len(self.column_widths)} column widths "
             f"found, expected {self.expected_columns}."
         )
 
 
+class NoHeaderBodyOrFooterError(TableOptionError):
+    """Exception raised when no header, body or footer is provided
+
+    This class is a subclass of :class:`TableOptionError`.
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self):
+        super().__init__(self._message())
+
+    def _message(self) -> str:
+        return "At least one of header, body or footer must be provided."
+
+
 class InvalidCellPaddingError(TableOptionError):
     """Exception raised when the cell padding is invalid
 
@@ -141,7 +155,7 @@ def __init__(self, padding: int):
         self.padding = padding
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return f"Invalid cell padding: {self.padding} is not a positive integer."
 
 
@@ -163,7 +177,7 @@ def __init__(self, column_index: int, column_width: int, min_width: int):
         self.min_width = min_width
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return (
             f"Column width too small: The column width for column index {self.column_index} "
             f" of `column_widths` is {self.column_width}, but the minimum width "
@@ -184,7 +198,7 @@ def __init__(self, alignment: Any):
         self.alignment = alignment
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return (
             f"Invalid alignment: {self.alignment!r} is not a valid alignment. "
             f"Valid alignments are: {', '.join(a.__repr__() for a in Alignment)}"
@@ -208,7 +222,7 @@ def __init__(self, string: str, max_characters: int):
         self.max_characters = max_characters
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return (
             f"Too many characters for table style: {len(self.string)} characters "
             f"found, but the maximum number of characters allowed is {self.max_characters}."
@@ -234,7 +248,7 @@ def __init__(self, string: str, max_characters: int):
         self.max_characters = max_characters
         super().__init__(self._message())
 
-    def _message(self):
+    def _message(self) -> str:
         return (
             f"Too few characters for table style: {len(self.string)} characters "
             f"found, but table styles can accept {self.max_characters} characters. "
diff --git a/table2ascii/merge.py b/table2ascii/merge.py
index 3e8888b..05b0073 100644
--- a/table2ascii/merge.py
+++ b/table2ascii/merge.py
@@ -39,5 +39,5 @@ class Merge(Enum):
 
     LEFT = 0
 
-    def __str__(self):
+    def __str__(self) -> str:
         return ""
diff --git a/table2ascii/options.py b/table2ascii/options.py
index 9f73a16..36f6ee0 100644
--- a/table2ascii/options.py
+++ b/table2ascii/options.py
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 from __future__ import annotations
 
+from collections.abc import Sequence
 from dataclasses import dataclass
 
 from .alignment import Alignment
@@ -17,8 +18,8 @@ class Options:
 
     first_col_heading: bool
     last_col_heading: bool
-    column_widths: list[int | None] | None
-    alignments: list[Alignment] | None
+    column_widths: Sequence[int | None] | None
+    alignments: Sequence[Alignment] | None
     cell_padding: int
     style: TableStyle
     use_wcwidth: bool
diff --git a/table2ascii/table_style.py b/table2ascii/table_style.py
index 620eb77..4336a06 100644
--- a/table2ascii/table_style.py
+++ b/table2ascii/table_style.py
@@ -128,11 +128,11 @@ def from_string(cls, string: str) -> "TableStyle":
             raise TableStyleTooLongError(string, num_params)
         # if the string is too short, show a warning and pad it with spaces
         elif len(string) < num_params:
-            string += " " * (num_params - len(string))
             warnings.warn(TableStyleTooShortWarning(string, num_params), stacklevel=2)
+            string += " " * (num_params - len(string))
         return cls(*string)
 
-    def set(self, **kwargs) -> "TableStyle":
+    def set(self, **kwargs: str) -> "TableStyle":
         """Set attributes of the TableStyle
 
         Args:
diff --git a/table2ascii/table_to_ascii.py b/table2ascii/table_to_ascii.py
index 835db3d..1b3a523 100644
--- a/table2ascii/table_to_ascii.py
+++ b/table2ascii/table_to_ascii.py
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 import textwrap
 from math import ceil, floor
+from collections.abc import Sequence
 
 from wcwidth import wcswidth
 
@@ -15,6 +16,7 @@
     FooterColumnCountMismatchError,
     InvalidAlignmentError,
     InvalidCellPaddingError,
+    NoHeaderBodyOrFooterError,
 )
 from .merge import Merge
 from .options import Options
@@ -27,9 +29,9 @@ class TableToAscii:
 
     def __init__(
         self,
-        header: list[SupportsStr] | None,
-        body: list[list[SupportsStr]] | None,
-        footer: list[SupportsStr] | None,
+        header: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None,
+        body: Sequence[Sequence[SupportsStr]] | None,
+        footer: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None,
         options: Options,
     ):
         """Validate arguments and initialize fields
@@ -41,9 +43,9 @@ def __init__(
             options: The options for the table
         """
         # initialize fields
-        self.__header = header
-        self.__body = body
-        self.__footer = footer
+        self.__header = list(header) if header else None
+        self.__body = list([list(row) for row in body]) if body else None
+        self.__footer = list(footer) if footer else None
         self.__style = options.style
         self.__first_col_heading = options.first_col_heading
         self.__last_col_heading = options.last_col_heading
@@ -60,6 +62,10 @@ def __init__(
         if body and any(len(row) != self.__columns for row in body):
             raise BodyColumnCountMismatchError(body, self.__columns)
 
+        # check that at least one of header, body, or footer is not None
+        if not header and not body and not footer:
+            raise NoHeaderBodyOrFooterError()
+
         # calculate or use given column widths
         self.__column_widths = self.__calculate_column_widths(options.column_widths)
 
@@ -103,7 +109,7 @@ def widest_line(value: SupportsStr) -> int:
             text = str(value)
             return max(self.__str_width(line) for line in text.splitlines()) if len(text) else 0
 
-        def get_column_width(row: list[SupportsStr], column: int) -> int:
+        def get_column_width(row: Sequence[SupportsStr], column: int) -> int:
             """Get the width of a cell in a column"""
             value = row[column]
             next_value = row[column + 1] if column < self.__columns - 1 else None
@@ -122,7 +128,9 @@ def get_column_width(row: list[SupportsStr], column: int) -> int:
             column_widths.append(max(header_size, body_size, footer_size) + self.__cell_padding * 2)
         return column_widths
 
-    def __calculate_column_widths(self, user_column_widths: list[int | None] | None) -> list[int]:
+    def __calculate_column_widths(
+        self, user_column_widths: Sequence[int | None] | None
+    ) -> list[int]:
         """Calculate the width of each column in the table based on the cell values and provided column widths.
 
         Args:
@@ -187,7 +195,7 @@ def __pad(self, cell_value: SupportsStr, width: int, alignment: Alignment) -> st
         raise InvalidAlignmentError(alignment)
 
     def __wrap_long_lines_in_merged_cells(
-        self, row: list[SupportsStr], column_separator: str
+        self, row: Sequence[SupportsStr], column_separator: str
     ) -> list[SupportsStr]:
         """Wrap long lines in merged cells to the width of the merged cell
 
@@ -219,9 +227,9 @@ def __row_to_ascii(
         heading_col_sep: str,
         column_separator: str,
         right_edge: str,
-        filler: str | list[SupportsStr],
-        previous_content_row: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
-        next_content_row: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+        filler: str | Sequence[SupportsStr],
+        previous_content_row: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+        next_content_row: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
         top_tee: str | None = None,
         bottom_tee: str | None = None,
         heading_col_top_tee: str | None = None,
@@ -266,9 +274,9 @@ def __line_in_row_to_ascii(
         heading_col_sep: str,
         column_separator: str,
         right_edge: str,
-        filler: str | list[SupportsStr],
-        previous_content_row: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
-        next_content_row: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+        filler: str | Sequence[SupportsStr],
+        previous_content_row: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+        next_content_row: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
         top_tee: str | None = None,
         bottom_tee: str | None = None,
         heading_col_top_tee: str | None = None,
@@ -306,9 +314,9 @@ def __line_in_cell_column_to_ascii(
         heading_col_sep: str,
         column_separator: str,
         right_edge: str,
-        filler: str | list[SupportsStr],
-        previous_content_row: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
-        next_content_row: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+        filler: str | Sequence[SupportsStr],
+        previous_content_row: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+        next_content_row: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
         top_tee: str | None = None,
         bottom_tee: str | None = None,
         heading_col_top_tee: str | None = None,
@@ -373,7 +381,7 @@ def __line_in_cell_column_to_ascii(
         return output + sep
 
     def __get_padded_cell_line_content(
-        self, line_index: int, col_index: int, column_separator: str, filler: list[SupportsStr]
+        self, line_index: int, col_index: int, column_separator: str, filler: Sequence[SupportsStr]
     ) -> str:
         # If this is a merge cell, merge with the previous column
         if filler[col_index] is Merge.LEFT:
@@ -437,7 +445,7 @@ def __bottom_edge_to_ascii(self) -> str:
             heading_col_bottom_tee=self.__style.heading_col_bottom_tee,
         )
 
-    def __content_row_to_ascii(self, row: list[SupportsStr]) -> str:
+    def __content_row_to_ascii(self, row: Sequence[SupportsStr]) -> str:
         """Assembles a row of cell values into a single line of the ascii table
 
         Returns:
@@ -453,8 +461,8 @@ def __content_row_to_ascii(self, row: list[SupportsStr]) -> str:
 
     def __heading_sep_to_ascii(
         self,
-        previous_content_row: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
-        next_content_row: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+        previous_content_row: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+        next_content_row: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
     ) -> str:
         """Assembles the separator below the header or above footer of the ascii table
 
@@ -475,7 +483,7 @@ def __heading_sep_to_ascii(
             heading_col_bottom_tee=self.__style.heading_col_heading_row_bottom_tee,
         )
 
-    def __body_to_ascii(self, body: list[list[SupportsStr]]) -> str:
+    def __body_to_ascii(self, body: Sequence[Sequence[SupportsStr]]) -> str:
         """Assembles the body of the ascii table
 
         Returns:
@@ -551,14 +559,14 @@ def to_ascii(self) -> str:
 
 
 def table2ascii(
-    header: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
-    body: list[list[SupportsStr]] | None = None,
-    footer: list[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+    header: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
+    body: Sequence[Sequence[SupportsStr]] | None = None,
+    footer: Sequence[SupportsStr] | None = None,
     *,
     first_col_heading: bool = False,
     last_col_heading: bool = False,
-    column_widths: list[int | None] | None = None,
-    alignments: list[Alignment] | None = None,
+    column_widths: Sequence[int | None] | None = None,
+    alignments: Sequence[Alignment] | None = None,
     cell_padding: int = 1,
     style: TableStyle = PresetStyle.double_thin_compact,
     use_wcwidth: bool = True,
@@ -581,8 +589,8 @@ def table2ascii(
             Defaults to :py:obj:`False`.
         column_widths: List of widths in characters for each column. Any value of :py:obj:`None`
             indicates that the column width should be determined automatically. If :py:obj:`None`
-            is passed instead of a :class:`list`, all columns will be automatically sized.
-            Defaults to :py:obj:`None`.
+            is passed instead of a :class:`~collections.abc.Sequence`, all columns will be automatically
+            sized. Defaults to :py:obj:`None`.
         alignments: List of alignments for each column
             (ex. ``[Alignment.LEFT, Alignment.CENTER, Alignment.RIGHT]``). If not specified or set to
             :py:obj:`None`, all columns will be center-aligned. Defaults to :py:obj:`None`.
diff --git a/tests/test_convert.py b/tests/test_convert.py
index 60e696a..3030cd6 100644
--- a/tests/test_convert.py
+++ b/tests/test_convert.py
@@ -1,7 +1,11 @@
 import pytest
 
 from table2ascii import table2ascii as t2a
-from table2ascii.exceptions import BodyColumnCountMismatchError, FooterColumnCountMismatchError
+from table2ascii.exceptions import (
+    BodyColumnCountMismatchError,
+    FooterColumnCountMismatchError,
+    NoHeaderBodyOrFooterError,
+)
 
 
 def test_header_body_footer():
@@ -117,6 +121,11 @@ def test_footer():
     assert text == expected
 
 
+def test_no_header_body_or_footer():
+    with pytest.raises(NoHeaderBodyOrFooterError):
+        t2a()
+
+
 def test_header_footer_unequal():
     with pytest.raises(FooterColumnCountMismatchError):
         t2a(