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Nicholas Sparks talks about his life, his career, and his books

By GEEGEE ROSELL

“Oh, GeeGee, I’m sorry. Nick isn’t here right now. He’s out jogging with the dog. If you’ll give me your number, he’ll call you back.”

That was Cathy, Nicholas Sparks’ wife. It was obviously just a regular day at the Sparks household, and this interview was on the list of the many things this best-selling author had committed to.

“Nick” did indeed call me back and was graciously apologetic for having delayed our talk. I had been given a 15-minute time slot to ask him what he thinks of the movie version of “Nights in Rodanthe” and of his other three books that have been made into movies. We ended up talking for nearly an hour.

“Nights in Rodanthe” is set in the tiny coastal village of Rodanthe on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. It is the story of Paul and Adrienne, who meet while each is trying to recover from a devastating loss. Sparks writes love stories, and this one, like many of his others, promises to bring a tear to your eye.

The book has been made into a major motion picture, starring Richard Gere and Diane Lane, which opens on Friday, Sept. 26. Much of it was filmed on Hatteras Island in May of 2007 – the month when Hollywood came to Hatteras.

My interview with Nicholas Sparks was in mid-August.

“Nice to be working at home” he said at that time, because his future was about to include a great deal of traveling to promote his work.

“Nine months of the year – no interviews” he says. But that’s not the case this fall.

Around the same time that “Nights in Rodanthe” is released nationwide, the next Sparks novel, “The Lucky One,” will hit bookstore shelves. That release is set for Sept 30. So this month is a busy time for the author. He was on a media junket to promote the new book for several days in mid-September. That included nearly 40 interviews in two days. Then it was off for the “field tour” of the movie -- a “sneak peek,” as Sparks calls it -- when the movie opened in three or four cities a few days before the New York premiere on Sept. 22.

How does he keep it all straight, I wonder?

“Actually it’s even more involved than that. ‘The Choice’ (his novel that came out in the U.S. in 2007) is being released in Germany in hardcover this month too, so I’m doing publicity for that as well. I get to a location and often ask, ‘What am I talking about? Let me know and then we’ll talk.’”

Getting back to “Nights in Rodanthe,” yes, he likes it. In a word, he says it is “lovely.”

Is it his favorite?

“It depends on my mood,” he answered. “‘A Walk to Remember’ is so sweet. My kids like to watch that one. And my favorite changes depending on the criteria. Which screenplay did I think was the best written?”

Then he chuckles.

“Which was the biggest seller?” he asks.

In addition to “Nights in Rodanthe” and “A Walk to Remember,” his other novels that have become major films are “Message in a Bottle” and “The Notebook.”

He saw the finished “Nights in Rodanthe” in April in Los Angeles and met with the film media marketing folks. Before that he’d been to the working set twice, both times in Wilmington, N.C., where the interiors were filmed. He says he’s a distraction if he hangs around the set too much. Folks pay attention to him and not the movie production. So he limits his time on the set, but he does enjoy meeting the stars.

When I mentioned the parallel of Richard Gere being voted “All Time Sexiest Man” in 1999 and Sparks the “Sexiest Author” by People magazine in 2000, Sparks paused and then said, “No one has ever made that connection to me before. You can say you’re the first to ever ask me about that.”

So being just that sexy, has Sparks ever considered a cameo in any of the movies?

“Not a chance,” he said. “I could have a cameo in any of them, but I don’t want to. I have name fame not face fame. I can take the kids to a bookstore in New York and until I hand the clerk my credit card, I’m usually not recognized. ‘Is that really you?’ the sales clerk will say. I like being anonymous in public. I have five children. I’m a father. My work being well received is enough fame. 99.9 percent of my life, I’m not famous. My job is exhaustively challenging.

“My novels take about five months for a first draft. That book is then 98 percent finished. My agent and editor don’t let me slide with anything, though. I can’t get by with melodrama. When I’m not writing or promoting, I coach track, I go to lunch. I happen to have a job I’m good at and occasionally I’ll realize, ‘Wow, I guess people do read me.’ So, no, I don’t want to be in any of the movies.”

I asked if the screenplay and the novel had any major differences and what Sparks thinks of those changes.

“Yes, there are some differences,” he said. “Please don’t write me and complain. There have to be differences. They’re different media. A novel is a story told with words. A movie is a story told with pictures. Take introspection. You can’t film introspection. You can’t film her thinking. The film has to add scenes to convey the visuals of excitement or anger. Without question, this movie is closer to the book than any of the others. It was an easier book to adapt -- only two main characters and a limited setting.”

The novel “Nights in Rodanthe” was published in 2002. I asked Sparks what the timeline usually is for book to movie.

“A couple of years-ish,” he said, noting that the film version is the second attempt at a screenplay of “Nights in Rodanthe.”

“The studio,” he said, “didn’t like the first one and hired another screenwriter. They liked the second one, and that’s the movie we’ll see.”

So what else is in the works? The movie production of “The Guardian,” a romantic suspense novel, is currently in process. The film rights to “True Believer” and “At First Sight” have been sold.

At that juncture, I mentioned that we had been on the phone for a much longer time than he had committed to and thanked him for a great interview. Sparks once again apologized for being out with his dog when I first called. He closed with, “I’m blessed.”

It was a pleasure talking with this friendly and well-spoken man. Sparks was upbeat and energetic throughout the hour. It was obvious that he does indeed enjoy his busy but rewarding life.

(GeeGee Rosell owns Buxton Village Books.)