Line #166 Creator/NicholasSparks


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/2018_nicholas_sparks.png]]
2	Nicholas Charles Sparks (born December 31, 1965) is the screenwriter behind the films ''Film/MessageInABottle'', ''Film/AWalkToRemember'', ''Film/TheNotebook'', ''Nights In Rodanthe'', ''Literature/TheLastSong'', ''Dear John'', ''The Lucky One'', ''Literature/SafeHaven'', ''Film/TheBestOfMe'', ''The Longest Ride'' and most recently, ''The Choice''. He reportedly began writing during his first year of college at Notre Dame after a track injury and a long recovery. He took a string of jobs from [[http://www.biography.com/people/nicholas-sparks-562686 waiter, real estate appraiser, telemarketer, orthopedic manufacturer, and pharmaceutical sales]]. Finally in 1994 he tried one last time and produced ''Film/TheNotebook'' which launched him to fame.
3
4	He makes distinctions about his work and insists that he screenwrites [[http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2010-03-11-lastsong11_CV_N.htm love stories, not romance; drama, not melodrama]]. And that's why, he said, he dominates the genre.
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6	----
7	!! List of his selected works
8
9	[[index]]
10	* ''Literature/AWalkToRemember''
11	* ''Literature/TheLastSong''
12	* ''Literature/SafeHaven''
13	* ''Literature/TwoByTwo''
14
15	!! List of adaptations of his selected works
16	* ''Film/MessageInABottle'' (1999)
17	* ''Film/AWalkToRemember'' (2002)
18	* ''Film/TheNotebook'' (2004)
19	* ''Film/NightsInRodanthe'' (2008)
20	* ''Film/DearJohn'' (2010)
21	* ''Literature/TheLastSong'' (2010)
22	* ''Film/TheLuckyOne '' (2012)
23	* ''Literature/SafeHaven'' (2013)
24	* ''Film/TheBestOfMe'' (2014)
25	* ''Film/TheLongestRide'' (2015)
26	* ''Film/TheChoice'' (2016)
27	[[/index]]
28
29	!!Tropes about the screenwriter:
30	* AbhorrentAdmirer: Several Sparks heroines have one of these, often a BadBoss.
31	* AmbiguouslyChristian: Sparks himself is quite unambiguously Christian, having been raised Catholic and running a private Christian academy in North Carolina; however, the messaging of his works is not typically overtly Christian. While many Sparks characters are seen praying and attending church, and some go so far as to express a belief in God or a higher power in general, only a few characters, such as Jamie in ''A Walk to Remember'' and Steve in ''The Last Song'', are openly devout.
32	* AnguishedDeclarationOfLove: Often. The one in ''The Choice'' is very similar to the one from ''Film/TheNotebook'' in tone, to the point of being a ShoutOut.
33	* ArtImitatesLife: Sparks outlines the inspirations for all of his books on his website. Many of his stories are [[WriteWhoYouKnow based on his own life or that of a loved one]]:
34	** [[https://nicholassparks.com/stories/true-believer/ Jeremy and Lexie]] in ''True Believer'' and ''At First Sight'' (in terms of personality), plus [[https://nicholassparks.com/stories/nights-in-rodanthe/ Paul and Adrienne]] in ''Nights in Rodanthe'' (in terms of their relationship history), are based on himself and his ex-wife.
35	** [[https://nicholassparks.com/stories/message-in-a-bottle/ Garrett, Catherine, and Theresa]] in ''Message in a Bottle'' are based on his parents and his father's second fiancée.
36	** [[https://nicholassparks.com/stories/the-rescue/ Kyle]] in ''The Rescue'' is based on one of his sons.
37	** [[https://nicholassparks.com/stories/a-bend-in-the-road/ Miles and Missy]] in ''A Bend in the Road'', plus [[https://nicholassparks.com/stories/a-walk-to-remember/ Landon and Jamie]] in ''A Walk to Remember'', are based on his sister and brother-in-law.
38	** [[https://nicholassparks.com/stories/the-choice/ Travis and Gabby]] in ''The Choice'' are based on, respectively, his brother and his former assistant.
39	** [[https://nicholassparks.com/news/2015/inspiration-dear-john-pow-program/ John]] in ''Dear John'' is based on his cousin.
40	** [[https://nicholassparks.com/stories/the-notebook/ Noah and Allie]] in ''The Notebook'' are based on his wife's grandparents.
41	** [[https://forward.com/culture/183443/how-nicholas-sparks-came-to-write-his-first-jewish/ Ira]] in ''The Longest Ride'' is based on his grandmother's partner.
42	** [[http://loyolaphoenix.com/2019/01/nicholas-sparks-loses-spark-with-latest-novel-every-breath/ Tru and Hope]] in ''Every Breath'' are based on a real-life couple whose names were changed to protect their privacy.
43	* BigApplesauce: The vast majority of [[CityMouse city mice]] in his stories live in UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity.
44	* TheBigDamnKiss: There are a few varieties:
45	** A FirstKiss, often featured on Sparks movie posters AgainstTheSettingSun.
46	** A NowOrNeverKiss when the couple is arguing about [[WillTheyOrWontThey whether or not]] they will get (back) together.
47	** Ultimately requited love being SealedWithAKiss.
48	* BittersweetEnding[=/=]DownerEnding: What a ''ridiculously'' abundant amount of his books end up having.
49	* BlackAndWhiteMorality: There are two types of characters who exist on the periphery of the [[OfficialCouple central romance]]: [[ShipperOnDeck those who support it]] and [[ShippingTorpedo those who oppose it]].
50	** People in the former group are typically a [[TheConfidant confidant]] of one of the leads, who may form half of a BetaCouple with a partner who exists for the same reason. They are always able to [[EveryoneCanSeeIt recognize the developing romance before the people in it do]], and they primarily exist to keep the central romance moving with their sage advice.
51	** Some characters in the latter group may make a HeelFaceTurn and begin encouraging the romance. Those who don't often conclude their role in the story by having the hero(ine) [[GetOut sever ties with them]]--or, on the extreme end, experiencing a KarmicDeath.
52	* ButNotTooForeign: Tru Walls, the hero of ''Every Breath'', lives and works in UsefulNotes/{{Zimbabwe}}, as did three generations of Walls men before him. Lest anyone get excited at the prospect of a rare interracial Sparks romance, we are told within the first two pages that Tru is of English extraction and his great-grandfather worked with [[EvilColonialist imperialist icon Cecil Rhodes]].
53	* CaughtInTheRain: Might be in everyone of his books/films.
54	* ComboBreaker: The average Sparks novel [[RomanceArc follows a couple through falling in love, overcoming an obstacle, and reconnecting]]. There are two exceptions to this pattern:
55	** ''The Wedding'', which tells the story of an aging couple rekindling their love.
56	** ''Literature/TwoByTwo'', which tells the story of a marriage breaking down for good.
57	* CreatorKiller: Nicholas Sparks Productions closed down a few months after the film version of ''The Choice'' underperformed.
58	* CreatorProvincialism: Most of his works are set in various small coastal towns in North Carolina, where he's from. If not specifically North Carolina, somewhere in the Southeast--South Carolina, UsefulNotes/{{Georgia\|USA}}, Louisiana. Complete with lots of SceneryPorn.
59	* EmpathicEnvironment[=/=]MoodLighting: In the movies, [[OrangeBlueContrast happy scenes are tinted orange and pink while sad scenes are tinted blue and gray]], and the weather and script match these colors accordingly, ranging from a [[CueTheSun sunny, golden]] FallingInLoveMontage to a [[GrayRainOfDepression gray, rainy]] SadTimesMontage.
60	* ForeverFling: His works are rife with them, most famously TropeCodifier ''Film/TheNotebook'', in which Noah and Allie's teenage summer romance sets the course for the rest of their lives. Variants are also present in these Sparks novels:
61	** ''Film/MessageInABottle'': Theresa and Garrett meet and fall in love within a week. [[spoiler:Theresa becomes immediately ready to be with Garrett permanently, but he hesitates due to lingering grief over his first wife, Catherine. He does eventually decide to move on with Theresa but dies in an ocean storm before he can.]]
62	** ''True Believer'': Jeremy and Lexie spend about a week together before Jeremy returns home to New York, only to fly straight back to North Carolina to pledge his love to Lexie. [[spoiler:Her unexpected pregnancy prompts them to get married, despite being aware of how little they know about each other until Lexie dies in childbirth.]]
63	** ''Film/DearJohn'': John and Savannah fall in love within two weeks and attempt to stay together despite John's overseas military service. [[spoiler:The distance weighs on Savannah and she breaks up with John, but never stops loving him despite having married someone else. In the book, the fate of their relationship is ambiguous; in the movie, it's implied that they get back together after Savannah's husband dies.]]
64	** ''Film/NightsInRodanthe'': Paul and Adrienne meet and fall in love over a weekend until work and family obligations force them to separate. [[spoiler:They attempt to stay together, but Paul dies in a mudslide.]]
65	** ''Film/TheBestOfMe'': Dawson and Amanda's high-school relationship ends when Dawson is arrested. [[spoiler:They reconnect after 20 years and decide to get back together, which is scuttled by Dawson's murder.]]
66	** ''Film/TheChoice'': Travis and Gabby's affair of a couple of weeks [[spoiler:is enough for Gabby to break off her engagement to Kevin and become engaged to Travis very shortly afterward.]]
67	** ''Every Breath'': Tru and Hope meet and fall in love within several days, but they can't be together because of Tru's sterility and Hope's desire for a child. [[spoiler:She marries her current boyfriend, but she never stops loving Tru. They reconnect in their old age and have a blissful few years together before Hope's death.]]
68	** ''Dreamland'': Colby and Morgan pledge their love to each other after only three dates. [[spoiler:Morgan later returns to Colby at his family's farm after she's hit it big in UsefulNotes/{{Nashville}}.]]
69	* GlamorousSingleMother: A few heroes are single parents who [[GoodParents effortlessly]] balance their FamilyBusiness with the work of raising their AdorablyPrecociousChild(ren) and being RidiculouslyPhotogenic at all times.
70	* HasAType: Several heroines in his books are described as dark-haired with a "[[ButNotTooWhite hint of olive]]" to their complexion. In the movies, they tend to be [[EveryoneLovesBlondes blonde]].
71	* HateSink: A RomanticFalseLead is often this. They are often characterized by their insistence on [[MaliciousMisnaming maliciously misnaming]] their romantic rival at all times, as well as [[StandardFemaleGrabArea grabbing the heroine by the arm]] against her will. Their unique loathsomeness may take one of several forms:
72	** DomesticAbuse (Kevin in ''Safe Haven'')
73	** [[TheAlcoholic Alcoholism]] (Frank in ''The Best of Me'')
74	** Unsympathetic adultery (Jack in ''Nights in Rodanthe'', Josh in ''Every Breath'')
75	** [[TheSociopath Sociopathy]] (Richard in ''The Guardian'')
76	** Simply being a {{Jerkass}}, which may include one or more of the above (Belinda in ''A Walk to Remember'', Keith in ''The Lucky One'', Ashley in ''The Last Song'', Vivian in ''Two by Two'')
77	* HollywoodAtlas: Sparks portrays the South only with its most positive stereotypes: gentility, family, faith, tradition, hard work, and enormous oceanside houses with white picket fences and trees dripping with Spanish moss. Characters who embody less comfortable Southern stereotypes, among them {{h\|eteronormativeCrusader}}omophobia and [[DrugsAreBad drug use]], are DesignatedEvil or mentioned briefly without being seen.
78	* HollywoodAutism: There are a number of characters with autism in the Sparks canon; they are always male and their autism is always high-functioning.
79	* IdealizedSex: Almost every Sparks movie depicts a round of lovemaking, often [[TheirFirstTime the couple's first]], which is always gentle, romantic, perfectly timed, dimly-lit, mutually satisfying, and free of any discomfort or awkwardness, even when one or both partners are virgins. Almost all of these encounters are [[IkeaErotica missionary position only]], with the occasional ShowerOfLove thrown in for variety. None of these scenes shows any nudity more scandalous than a quick glimpse of {{Sideboob}}, and any sounds from the actors louder than heavy breathing are [[TheModestOrgasm drowned out by music]].
80	** In the books, the leading couple never has sex for the sake of having sex; they always [[SexEqualsLove pledge their love to one another]] immediately before, during, or after the encounter, if they have not already done so. Prior to this, they [[CantActPervertedTowardALoveInterest never think of each other in a sexual way]], even if physical attraction is clear and present. On the other hand, should the hero or heroine have had any sexual encounters that take place outside the context of the central romance or a previous committed relationship (and they rarely do), they usually [[SexIsEvilAndIAmHorny feel deeply ashamed about it]].
81	* InfoDump: Instead of letting his readers glean information about the leading couple [[ShowDontTell from their thoughts, words, and actions]], Sparks spends 50 to 100 percent of the first two chapters of his novels explaining almost every detail of their personalities, back stories, and motivations.
82	* LoveLetter: The leading couple often writes to each other in longhand, even when more convenient communication methods are available. Usually includes one VoiceoverLetter or more.
83	* {{Melodrama}}: [[https://www.buzzfeed.com/annehelenpetersen/why-nicholas-sparks-matters-now According to BuzzFeed's Anne Helen Petersen,]] Sparks's embrace of this is what makes him stand out as an author--although [[http://usatoday.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Nicholas+Sparks,+Miley+Cyrus+share+a+%27Last+Song%27+love+story+-+USATODAY.com&expire=&urlID=422482057&fb=Y&url=http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2010-03-11-lastsong11_CV_N.htm/&partnerID=1663 Sparks himself might dispute that characterization.]]
84	* MenActWomenAre: In a Sparks romance, it is the man's job to make [[GrandRomanticGesture grand romantic gestures]] and the woman's job to accept them.
85	* MonochromeCasting: Characters who are not white, Christian, or heterosexual are so few in Sparks stories that they are [[TokenMinority tokens]] within the entire canon:
86	** [[JiveTurkey Eric]] in ''A Walk to Remember'', [[SassyBlackWoman Jean]] in ''Nights in Rodanthe'', and Victor in the film version of ''The Lucky One'' (he is Hispanic in the book) are all the TokenBlackFriend of one of the protagonists.
87	** Ira and Ruth in ''The Longest Ride'' are his first Jewish protagonists.
88	** Maria in ''See Me'' is his first Hispanic protagonist.
89	** Marge and Liz in ''Two by Two'' are the members of his first QueerRomance.
90	** Morgan in ''Dreamland'' is his first (half-)Asian protagonist.
91	** There's also [[EthnicMenialLabor Willa the housemaid]] in the film version of ''The Notebook''.
92	** Minority extras are usually presented in a way that suggests [[PoliticallyCorrectHistory a perfectly racially integrated South]].
93	* MrFanservice: Sparks heroes often get a ShirtlessScene on the beach or while performing [[HotMenAtWork hard physical labor]], allowing the heroines to [[EatingTheEyeCandy eat the eye candy]].
94	* MsFanservice: There will always be an excuse for the heroine to be shown in a bikini, tight jeans, or short shorts.
95	* ObfuscatingStupidity: This tends to be a feature of his male heroes' sense of humor. They'll often to pretend to have forgotten or never learned about something they know perfectly well, only to get a loving eye-roll from the heroine.
96	* ObliviouslyBeautiful: All Sparks heroines are beautiful, well-dressed, and slender, but he goes out of his way to emphasize [[UnkemptBeauty how little effort]] they put (or appear to put) in being so and how little they realize that [[HeadTurningBeauty all men find them attractive]]. On the other hand, there is an undercurrent of contempt for female characters who are [[VanityIsFeminine excessively preoccupied with]], [[ProudBeauty or conscious of]], their own beauty. The heroine is juxtaposed with one or more of these women, often her friends or co-workers, to emphasize [[NotLikeOtherGirls how much more real she is]].
97	* OneTrueLove: [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVsCynicism The ideal]] Sparks promotes above all others. If there is one iron-clad rule of his stories, it is that no half of a Sparks OfficialCouple is allowed to be truly happy with anyone but the other half.
98	** Couples in Sparks novels tend to [[LoveAtFirstSight sense their connection instantly]], simply by looking into each other's eyes. Within weeks or even days, they will [[WhatIsThisFeeling recognize this feeling]] [[LoveEpiphany as love]] and [[FourthDateMarriage commit to each other for eternity]]--emotionally, anyway, since something will [[StarCrossedLovers usually require them to separate]] soon after this.
99	** Some couples meet while one of them is attached to a RomanticFalseLead. This person may be a sympathetic DisposableFiance who [[DudeWheresMyRespect never does anything wrong]] and must accept that the hero(ine) loves someone else more; a BitCharacter who never does anything and only exists to be dumped; or a HateSink who never deserved the hero(ine).
100	** Other couples meet while one of them is [[TheMourningAfter still getting over the death of]] [[TheLostLenore a spouse]] or another close relative, who was always TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth; the arrival of the other lead will speed up the grieving process considerably. In a few cases--among them ''Message in a Bottle'', ''The Lucky One'', and ''A Bend in the Road''--the other lead has some connection to, or knowledge of, the dead person before meeting their love interest, but [[CannotSpitItOut can't bring themselves to say so]], causing a BreakUpMakeUpScenario.
101	** When the separation period of a couple [[UnrequitedLoveLastsForever lasts for years or even decades]], the man spends it [[IWillWaitForYou pining for the other]], refusing to date anyone else on more than the most casual basis, while the woman [[AbsenceMakesTheHeartGoYonder attaches herself to someone else]], who may be the RomanticFalseLead or a SecondLove depending on the story. From here, she will start leading an AwfulWeddedLife or discover a serious flaw in her relationship, which provides the perfect excuse for [[LoveWillLeadYouBack love to lead her back]] to her OldFlame and make her a SympatheticAdulterer. After this, she will be [[SexChangesEverything torn about the fallout]], requiring the man to nobly [[IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy give her his blessing]] to go back to her current partner, which she may do, at least for a while. In short, this type of romance amounts to a ForeverFling.
102	** If the couple does reunite for good toward the end, they will live HappilyEverAfter. If they don't, it's usually because [[BusCrash one of them has died]].
103	* OppositesAttract: All Sparks couples are opposites in at least one fundamental way:
104	** AgentMulder[=/=]AgentScully: Some couples disagree over questions of the religious and/or supernatural.
105	** TheCityVsTheCountry: One half of the couple, usually the CountryMouse who prefers the GoodOldWays of their CloseKnitCommunity, may feel like a FishOutOfWater when in the [[ViceCity decadent, dangerous environment]] of the CityMouse. They, in turn, may initially regard their partner's [[SmallTownBoredom small town as boring]] until they come to appreciate its SimpleMindedWisdom and SceneryPorn. If this is a significant source of tension between the couple, the country will always win.
106	** [[UptownGirl Inter-Class Romance]]: Usually the man is a WorkingClassHero, or at least has a job that requires getting his hands dirty in some way, although he may have literary HiddenDepths. Meanwhile, [[UptownGirl the woman]] is a [[HigherEducationIsForWomen college girl]] with more artistic interests. When she has a RomanticFalseLead, he is always a WhiteCollarWorker, which we are meant to view as less masculine and/or down-to-earth.
107	*** In some Sparks stories, one half of the leading couple comes from a significantly wealthier background than the other without this difference impeding the romance.
108	*** This trope may overlap with DatingWhatDaddyHates if parents get involved.
109	** MenAreTough[=/=]WomenAreDelicate: Sparks heroines tend to have [[AcceptableFeminineGoals traditionally feminine jobs]]: homemaker, waitress, hairdresser, librarian, teacher, artist, musician, nurse, pediatric assistant, animal caregiver, parenting columnist. His heroes, on the other hand, have been a sailor, a fireman, a mechanic, a police officer, a carpenter, a soldier, a surgeon, a bull rider, an MMA fighter, an oil rig worker, and a safari park ranger. Notable inversions are Travis of ''The Choice'', who is a veterinarian, and Maria of ''See Me'', who is a criminal lawyer.
110	** UptightLovesWild: In many Sparks romances, one half of the couple (usually female) has a perfectly mapped-out life that is upended by the arrival of the free-spirited, usually male half. That said, if they live HappilyEverAfter, they end up in a thoroughly conventional married life.
111	* PlotArmor: Multiple Sparks heroes go to war, and occasionally incur serious injuries, but none of them are fatal or so physically crippling that the hero ''looks'' any different.
112	* PowerBallad: The theatrical trailer for each film adaptation (with the exception of ''The Notebook'') is punctuated by a [[RadioFriendliness radio-friendly]] one of these:
113	** ''Message in a Bottle'': Natalie Imbruglia, "Torn"
114	** ''A Walk to Remember'': Music/MandyMoore, "Cry"
115	** ''Nights in Rodanthe'': Gavin Rossdale, "Love Remains the Same"
116	** ''Dear John'': Music/SnowPatrol and Martha Wainwright, "Set the Fire to the Third Bar"
117	** ''The Last Song'': Music/MileyCyrus, "When I Look at You"
118	** ''The Lucky One'': Music/TheFray, "You Found Me"
119	** ''Safe Haven'': [[SofterAndSlowerCover Lissie]], "[[Music/FleetwoodMac Go Your Own Way]]"
120	** ''The Best of Me'': Music/JohnLegend, "All of Me"
121	** ''The Longest Ride'': {{Music/Hozier}}, "Work Song"
122	** ''The Choice'': Music/SamSmith, "Like I Can"
123	* RecycledPremise: Aside from his works frequently displaying the listed tropes, there are other similar plot elements that keep cropping up:
124	** ''The Best of Me'' and ''The Longest Ride'', released within months of each other (the former in October 2014, the latter in April 2015), both feature the young lovers in question being counseled by a sage older man and, following a period of separation, having the next stage of their relationship being facilitated by that older man's last will.
125	** ''The Best of Me'' and ''The Notebook'' both feature virtually parallel storylines between older and younger versions of the lovebirds.
126	** ''The Notebook'' and ''The Choice'' both play out over two separate timeframes, with a love triangle as the focus of the first and the heroine's medical incapacitation as the focus of the second.
127	** ''The Notebook'', ''Nights in Rodanthe'', and ''The Wish'', plus one of two storylines in ''The Longest Ride'', are all {{fram\|ingDevice}}ed as a story being retold to another character.
128	** ''Message in a Bottle'', ''True Believer'', ''Nights in Rodanthe'', ''Dear John'', ''The Last Song'', ''Every Breath'', and ''The Wish'' all feature a couple meeting unexpectedly and falling in love in coastal North Carolina before one of them is compelled to return to another state or country. ''Dreamland'' is a subversion, only in that the couple meets in UsefulNotes/{{Florida}}.
129	** ''Message in a Bottle'' and ''Every Breath'' both feature someone sending a love letter with no expectation that the addressee will ever read it.
130	** ''A Bend in the Road'', ''True Believer''[=/=]''At First Sight'', and ''Safe Haven'' all feature ghostly occurrences.
131	** ''A Walk to Remember'', ''The Best of Me'', and ''Every Breath'' all feature an underage character with a life-threatening illness or disability.
132	** ''Message in a Bottle'' and ''The Lucky One'' both feature one of the leading characters traveling across several states to track down the other after finding a message they wrote to someone else.
133	** ''True Believer'', ''A Bend in the Road'', ''The Longest Ride'', and ''Every Breath'' all feature one half of the leading couple being unable to bear children.
134	** ''The Choice'' and ''The Last Song'' both feature the heroine initially disliking the hero until they bond over their mutual love of animals.
135	** ''The Guardian'', ''The Choice'', and ''The Wish'' all feature the leading relationship being facilitated by a dog. In the case of ''The Guardian'', it is an EvilDetectingDog.
136	** ''Dear John'' and ''The Longest Ride'' both feature the hero's [[InHarmsWay dangerous line of work]] coming between him and the heroine.
137	** ''True Believer'' and ''A Bend in the Road'' both feature a misunderstanding between the leading couple stemming from the hero's mistaken belief that the heroine has been deceiving him in some way.
138	** ''The Rescue'', ''The Lucky One'', and ''Safe Haven'' all feature the leading couple falling in love after one of them forms a bond with the other's children.
139	** ''A Walk to Remember'', ''Nights in Rodanthe'', and ''The Last Song'' all feature children who are [[DysfunctionalFamily estranged from one of their parents]] while or before [[FollowInMyFootsteps following in that parent's footsteps]]. In the first two of these works, the child follows their footsteps into the medical profession.
140	** ''Nights in Rodanthe'', ''The Rescue'', and ''The Best of Me'' all feature the hero grappling with guilt over a death for which he blames himself.
141	** ''The Last Song'' and ''Two by Two'' both feature a father struggling to connect with his daughter.
142	** Leading ladies in ''The Notebook'', ''Nights in Rodanthe'', ''Two by Two'', ''Message in a Bottle'', and ''The Longest Ride'' are either [[ArtistsAreAttractive painters, professionally or as a hobby, or employed in a profession relating to painting]].
143	** ''Dear John'', ''The Longest Ride'', and ''The Return'' all feature heroes who return to their North Carolina hometowns after being injured in combat overseas. The hero of ''The Wish'' also leaves North Carolina for this reason [[spoiler:but dies in combat.]]
144	** Five Sparks novels are set in the town of New Bern, where Sparks himself lives.
145	* RecycledScript: Even within recycled plot elements, there are some very specific scenes that make multiple appearances:
146	** ''At First Sight'' and ''Two by Two'' both feature the hero showering and shaving before taking the heroine, who is in the first stages of labor, to the hospital. An example of ArtImitatesLife as Sparks himself did this during one of his ex-wife's pregnancies.
147	** ''The Guardian'' and ''Safe Haven'' both feature the villain having abusive sex with another woman while comparing her unfavorably to the heroine.
148	** Multiple works feature one half of the leading couple (usually male) teaching the other half (usually female) how to engage in a water sport.
149	** The film versions of ''The Notebook'', ''The Lucky One'', ''Safe Haven'', and ''The Choice'' all feature an OldFashionedRowboatDate.
150	** ''Message in a Bottle'' and ''Two by Two'' both include mentions of a cat named Harvey.
151	** Prior to meeting their respective heroes, the heroines of ''True Believer'', ''A Bend in the Road'', and ''The Rescue'' were all unceremoniously dumped by investment bankers.
152	** Multiple works feature a [[ThroughHisStomach home-cooked meal]] followed by a ConvenientSlowDance followed by TheirFirstTime.
153	** ''The Rescue'' and ''The Lucky One'' both feature a character making their own ice cream.
154	** ''A Bend in the Road'', ''The Guardian'', and ''The Wedding'' all feature a meal of crab-stuffed sole.
155	** Many Sparks movies feature the leading couple [[StargazingScene discussing and observing astronomical phenomena, at times looking at the same stars while miles apart]]. More specifically, ''A Walk to Remember'' and ''The Best of Me'' both feature the hero building a telescope.
156	** ''Dear John'' and ''The Best of Me'' both feature the hero making a grand gesture to secure medical treatment for someone close to the heroine.
157	** ''The Last Song'' and ''The Choice'' both feature a character authorizing extraordinary measures to prolong the life of a hospitalized character who had previously signed a Do Not Resuscitate.
158	** Eight Sparks heroines have names ending in ''-ie''.
159	** Numerous books show one of the leads having a casual outing with the other and being struck by the feeling that it could be the first of many such outings to come.
160	** The heroines of ''The Notebook'', ''The Best of Me'', and ''The Choice'', plus the hero of ''The Last Song'', all have [[MyBelovedSmother nosy, hypercritical mothers]] who are determined that their daughters should be proper [[SouthernBelle Southern belles]] (or that their sons should date them).
161	* SeinfeldianConversation: The books are unfortunately fraught with these. In ''The Choice'', for example, Gabby and Travis spend almost an entire page talking about why Travis is opting for barbecued chicken instead of a burger.
162	* SelfAdaptation: Sparks has production credits on four film adaptations of his books and a screenwriting credit for ''The Last Song'', the only one of his films to predate the book of the same name.
163	* ShoutOut: In ''The Choice'', a brief mention is made of [[Film/TheNotebook a blissfully happy married couple who had to move to a nursing home, where they died together]].
164	* ShoutOutThemeNaming: Many of his characters share a name with one of his family members or friends:
165	** Landon Carter from ''A Walk to Remember'' is named for his son Landon.
166	** Miles Ryan from ''A Bend in the Road'' is named for his sons Miles and Ryan.
167	** Lexie Darnell from ''True Believer'' and ''At First Sight'' is named for his daughter Lexie.
168	** Savannah Curtis from ''Dear John'' is named for his daughter Savannah.
169	** Catherine Blake from ''Message in a Bottle'' is named for his ex-wife, Cathy.
170	** Paul Flanner and Adrienne Willis from ''Nights in Rodanthe'' are named for his ex-in-laws, Paul and Adrienne Cote.
171	** Theresa Osborne in ''Message in a Bottle'' may be named for his agent, Theresa Park.
172	** Jamie Sullivan in ''A Walk to Remember'' may be named for his editor, Jamie Raab.
173	** Jennifer Romanello in ''The Guardian'' shares a name with his publicist, also Jennifer Romanello.
174	** Denise Holton in ''The Rescue'' is named for Denise Di Novi, who produced several of his movies.
175	** Julie Barenson in ''The Guardian'' is named for Julie Barer, another agent who provided guidance for that manuscript.
176	* SingleTargetSexuality: Present to an extent in several of his works, when two lovers are separated for a long while and are unable to feel more strongly for anyone--including their spouses--than each other. Up to eleven in ''The Best of Me'', in which even Amanda is astonished that Dawson has not dated or slept with any other woman in the ''twenty years'' since their high-school romance ended.
177	* StalkerWithACrush: Richard in ''The Guardian'', Rodney in ''True Believer'', Keith in ''The Lucky One'', and Kevin in ''Safe Haven''. (It should be noted that three out of four of these stalkers [[TheBadGuysAreCops are cops]].) [[StalkerWithoutACrush Averted]] in ''See Me'', although the stalkee does suspect at first that the stalker is someone she knows to have a crush. This trope only applies to antagonists, though, because...
178	* StalkingIsLove: ...when a {{protagonist\|CenteredMorality}}--such as Theresa in ''Message in a Bottle'', Noah in ''The Notebook'', and Logan in ''The Lucky One''--does it. A slight case with Alex of ''Safe Haven'', who goes to Katie's house ''in the middle of the night'' to leave her a bicycle as present. Sure enough, she's made out to be an ungrateful bitch for being unnerved by the gesture.
179	* SugarBowl: The standard Sparks setting is an [[GoodOldWays old-fashioned]] [[SmallTowns small town]], drenched in SceneryPorn and filled with [[CloseKnitCommunity friendly]] and [[QuirkyTown quirky]] locals, with NoPoverty, no crime, no racism, no [[TownWithADarkSecret dark secrets]], very few [[NuclearFamily non-nuclear families]], and no real problems short of occasional HostileWeather and [[NoTrueScotsman a bad apple or two]]. Subverted in ''True Believer'' and ''At First Sight'', in which Lexie's hometown of Boone Creek is down on its luck economically but pretty and friendly once you get used to it, as she repeatedly insists to CityMouse Jeremy.
180	* ThatMakesMeFeelAngry: Rarely trusts his audience to discern a character's feelings on their own and instead states them outright in the narration or dialogue.
181	* TheTopicOfCancer: Many key characters die of this.
182	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Several, depending on the scenario:
183	** At the beach or in a backyard, the characters feast on burgers, chips, and cold beers.
184	*** This is an aversion of HollywoodCuisine: Despite all of his stories being set in or near North Carolina and many including barbecue scenes, you almost never see his characters dining on pulled pork or ribs.
185	** Every coastal community in Sparksland includes a charmingly weathered seafood shack where the leading couple dines.
186	*** In ''Safe Haven'', the heroine works at such a place. The hero actually takes her someplace much nicer for their date.
187	** If the woman cooks dinner for the man, she makes pasta. If the man cooks dinner for the woman, [[RealMenEatMeat he makes steak]].
188	** To drink, sweet tea before dinner and beer or red wine afterward--unless a DesignatedEvil character is doing the drinking, in which case they'll take hard liquor.

Context Creator / NicholasSparks