Sophie Kinsella urged me to finish my bestseller, says Jojo Moyes

The late author Sophie Kinsella convinced fellow writer Jojo Moyes to complete her bestselling romance novel, Me Before You.

Speaking on Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs, Moyes said Kinsella had inspired him when he almost gave up on the book after writing 20,000 words.

It became an international bestseller and was adapted into a 2016 film starring Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin.

Kinsella, whose real name is Madeleine Sophie Wickham, was diagnosed with aggressive brain cancer in 2022 and died at the age of 55 earlier this month.

Speaking to Lauren Laverne on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs programme, Moyes said he almost stopped writing his best-selling novel because he felt depressed after years of little commercial success.

She said: “I met my friend Sophie Kinsella and had lunch with her and at the time I was broke and quite depressed because I thought my writing career was over.

“I told him the story of the 20,000 words I said at lunch, and he looked at me and said: ‘You should write this book, you know that? You should write this book.’

“When I got home, her husband Henry called me and said, ‘Jojo, Maddy… told me about this book and I think you should write it too.’

“I love it for many reasons, but this is one of them.”

The series Me Before You follows the life of working-class girl Louisa Clark, who becomes the caretaker of paraplegic Will Traynor, a wealthy man who became paralyzed after a motorcycle accident.

The book was based on a news report Moyes saw about a young rugby player who was left paralyzed after an accident, which persuaded his family to take him to a Swiss assisted-death clinic.

“I knew I loved this book and I knew it was the best possible version of herself, but I had no idea it would resonate this much,” she told Laverne.

• Available to listen to the full interview BBC Voices.