Writing was very difficult after success of novel One Day, says David Nicholls

Author David Nicholls has said “it was very difficult to write for a couple of years” after the publication of his best-selling romance novel One Day.

The book, which was adapted for the screen in 2011 and recently made into a Netflix series, follows the relationship between Emma and Dexter, who meet on the evening of their university graduation.

On BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs, Nicholls, 57, spoke about the moment he realised the 2009 book had become a hit.

He said: “There was a photograph in one of the newspapers of Geri Halliwell reading it on a sun lounger in hardback, and then, shortly after that, it became something that you saw on the tube quite often, which is a big thrill for a writer, to see someone reading your book.

“And that felt very exciting. To see that it was out there in a way that I hadn’t experienced before, and people were talking about it and responding to it and writing to me about it.

“And that was really exciting and unexpected, because my first book had done really well, my second book had done not so well, and there were no expectations for the third book, so to see it take off in that way was thrilling.”

He added: “People were responding to the manuscript in ways that I hadn’t expected, very emotionally, and I knew that I enjoyed writing it in a way that felt different, and I knew that I felt very attached to the characters in a way that I hadn’t experienced before.

“But that doesn’t always communicate, that doesn’t always pass on to the reader. And in this instance, it seemed that it was and that was really exciting.”

He said that after the book’s publication: “It was very hard, because you suddenly become very self conscious.

“Do you try and write the same book over and over again, do you show your versatility and range and write something completely different? Do you write something that works internationally?

“It was very difficult to write for a couple of years. I was working on the screenplay of the film and that was distracting and the book was coming out around the world.

“So I was still speaking about Emma and Dexter and then sitting down at my desk and trying to come up with new characters and I just couldn’t do it.

“I hesitate to call it writer’s block, because I was toying with ideas, but I spent a year – I hired this very bad, grim, depressing office, and I’d lock myself in day after day.

“I just needed to get away from Emma and Dexter for a while, grateful though I was for the success of the book, it was very hard to escape them.”

In February Netflix released a series, based on the book, starring Leo Woodall and Ambika Mod.

Nicholls’ other books include his debut novel Starter For Ten (2003) and Us (2014).

Nicholls’ Desert Island Discs episode will air on BBC Radio 4 at 10am on Sunday and be available on BBC Sounds.