The first book I did - the first successful book - was a kind of a travel book, and publishers in Britain encouraged me to do more.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
From a child I was fond of reading, and all the little money that came into my hands was ever laid out in books. Pleased with the 'Pilgrim's Progress,' my first collection was of John Bunyan's works in separate little volumes.
When my first novel was published, I went in great excitement round bookshops in central London to see if they had stocked it.
My first book was the most successful debut novel in the U.K. ever and every one of my books has reached number one in the U.K. Clearly the British know brilliance when they see it.
I collect books, primarily first-edition 20th-century fiction.
I was incredibly lucky that my first book found a large and loyal readership. It changed my life - from being a very withdrawn adult to living in Paris as a full-time writer. It has also given me enormous confidence.
My first book was the book that changed my life.
If I hadn't been able to get my first book published, I am not sure what I would have done.
From the very beginning, I envisioned success as selling enough books so I could keep getting published and continue to write what I wanted to without compromising.
I got my first book deal when I was in college, but it was published in Germany, and I could never actually read it.
I'd sold the book first. Actually to a paperback publisher. I had nothing. I just had the idea.