'My cup is always half empty'

His ability to write in the voice of the common man, or woman for that matter, in a style which appeals to both mass market and more literary bookworms has elevated him to the top of his profession.

His writing has also struck a lucrative chord with the film world. His latest novel, A Long Way Down, has been bought by Johnny Depp's production company and Nick has recently been to the US for the premiere of the American version of his memoir Fever Pitch, starring Drew Barrymore, due for release in the UK in August.

He should be smiling, and he is, but there's no doubt that the 48-year-old has a long affiliation with pessimism and the darker side of life. His cup is always half empty, not half full, he admits.

His latest novel, A Long Way Down, centres on four very different characters - a failed rock star, the mother of a severely disabled boy, the rebellious daughter of a politician and a disgraced TV presenter - who meet by chance in a notorious suicide spot, Toppers' House, in North London on New Year's Eve and unwittingly become each other's mutual support.

''I heard something on the radio about how, on certain nights of the year, suicide rates go up and then I was reading something about how often Beachy Head is used and put the two pieces of information together,'' Nick explains.

His writing reflects his own angst from past times and there's a connection between him and each of the characters he has created, including the C-list TV presenter.

''Over the last few years I've had this very limited experience of minor celebrity. The way people react to you when they recognise your name is interesting and strange.''

Being a relatively unknown face but well-known name brings two reactions from people who meet Nick Hornby, he says.

''There are people who have read all the books who do a double take as they can't believe the person who wrote High Fidelity is standing in the room, or buying a newspaper in a shop.

''But the vast majority of people apologise for not having read my books. They know I'm not JK Rowling. People feel so guilty about books and reading. I think it's quite sad.

''My books have all sold a million copies each, which in publishing is amazing, but if it was a TV programme they'd take it off. Books don't make much of an inroad in the national consciousness.''

Nick also has a severely autistic son, Danny, 11, so was able to write the part of the fictional mother of a disabled boy from first-hand experience.

''Danny has introduced me to a world I didn't know much about before I had him. It can be incredibly frustrating. Sometimes you can't understand why he can't understand. However patient you try to be, there are still moments where he will try the patience of a saint. But most of the time he's a very active and happy boy who can't communicate.''

Nick is divorced from Danny's mother, but the relationship is amicable and Danny divides his time between both parents. Nick also has two sons - Lowell, two, and 11-month-old Jesse - with his partner, film producer Amanda Posey.

''Danny's doing well with his siblings, much better than I thought he would,'' he says. ''I didn't think I'd have any more kids after Danny and then when I was with someone who did want kids, it seemed the perfect solution for Danny to have half siblings.''

Nick works from an office a stone's throw from his beloved Arsenal Football Club, where he is a season ticket holder, and lives just round the corner.

''It's easy to be a hands-on dad working from here,'' he says simply. ''I'm always home by six.''

Times haven't always been so easy, though. His late 20s and early 30s were a low point for the Cambridge graduate who gave up teaching to pursue his writing career. He struggled in the early years and ended up depressed and in therapy.

''That was the time I was most frightened about life,'' he reflects. ''By the time I was 30 all the people I'd been at university with were off up the career ladder, had money and were living in their first flat.

''There was no way I could afford to do that. Every time I ran out of money I'd go back to work of some kind or another, supply teaching, but I had a very tattered-looking CV.

''I just felt that a regular life was becoming further and further away. I was fed up and that went on for a long period of time.

''I had therapy in my early 30s. It directly helped because I don't think I'd have been able to write my first book (Fever Pitch) without it.

''I hadn't realised that my obsession with football had any meaning beyond itself. There's always an awkward moment when you walk in, sit down and you don't know what to say. Therapists don't tend to say anything.

''To fill the silence, she used to say, 'How was your weekend?'. I'd say, 'Rubbish - lost 2-0', or 'Fantastic - beat Spurs 3-0', just as a way of saying something.

''After about six months she said, 'Why do you make the same stupid joke every time you come in?' and she got me to talk about football in a way I never had done before.

''It seemed to me like a straightforward hobby, but it became a way of talking about all sorts of things. It had a meaning beyond the literal.''

Unlike so many novels which are optioned by film companies, never to be seen again, Nick's books have reached the big screen.

He wasn't worried that his work wouldn't translate to the screen effectively and points out that making a film is a much more collaborative project than writing a book.

''You could ask for all the controls you want, but you are going to get a vote, and you could be out-voted. To seek absolute control is daft because I don't know enough about the business of making films to start ordering professional people around.''

He says he's really pleased with how the films have turned out.

''I've had great times, all the people involved have been incredibly respectful and much nicer than I'd anticipated. They've always wanted my approval even though they were doing their own thing. No-one has wanted to cut me out of the process. For me, it's fun and money.''

He is currently working on a screenplay with the actress Emma Thompson and has been adapting a memoir for BBC Films.

So are the clouds of pessimism finally lifting?

''I don't think life works like that, that one enters a period of permanent happiness just because one is doing OK. Just the act of living has its sadnesses.

''All of us are going to lose our parents and have intense worries about our kids - and that's just in a good life. I'm not fed up. I'm happier than I was, but I'm always waiting for something bad to happen.

''I'm definitely a half empty rather than a half full person.''

l A Long Way Down, by Nick Hornby, (Viking £17.99).