Nicholas Sparks once wrote, "I love you. I am who I am because of you. You are every reason, every hope, and every dream I've ever had, and no matter what happens to us in the future, everyday we are together is the greatest day of my life. I will always be yours." But that was in a book. In real life, he and his wife of 25 years have separated.

Sparks, 49, told People that he and his wife, Cathy, are separated but that it was "not a decision we've made lightly." The author, who has published seventeen novels that all center on the impenetrable framework for everlasting love, says he and Cathy remain close friends, confirming that love is not forever, no matter what fools read about in books.

In an interview in 2012 with dating website eHarmony, where many people go to find the love that Sparks has written about in The Notebook, The Lucky One, and The Last Song, the writer said, "You know, all of the female characters I create have many elements of my wife." Perhaps one of those qualities was the desire to no longer be married to Nicholas Sparks.

[Image via AP]