Crime writer Ian Rankin has spoken candidly about his drunken antics with a younger woman and the professional help he sought for his drink problem.

Rankin, the creator of the best-selling Rebus detective series, described his public embrace with a 26-year-old aspiring author following the British Book Awards last year as a "turning point" in his relationship with alcohol.

The episode led him to issue an apology to his 50-year-old wife Miranda and their two sons, one who suffers from a rare and life-limiting genetic disorder.

The 49-year-old author is reported as saying: "Yes, it was a turning point in my life. I just thought to myself now is the time to get my head together and sort myself out.' "And with the help of friends, family and professionals I have done that. I've got my life together.

"I did have a look at myself and realised it was time to sort myself out. I am now only a social drinker.

"I've also made some life changes. I've gone from writing two books a year to writing one book every two years."

The author has previously admitted to binge drinking and passing out through alcohol abuse, saying last year: "The problem I've got with booze is a fairly straightforward one, which is that I don't know when to stop - the cliche of one is too many and 10 is not enough."

Rankin, originally from Cardenden in Fife, met his wife while they were both students at the University of Edinburgh. He said that the couple were planning to travel together next year and "spend some quality time in each other's company".

He added: "Happiness is not a natural default setting for many Scottish people, but I can honestly say I am as happy with my life as I have been for a long time. I have changed a lot."

Rankin's Rebus books have sold 16 million copies in 26 languages, with the works turned into a hugely successful television series.

He is said to have been unfaithful to his wife after losing the Crime Thriller Writer of the Year award at the book awards at London's Grosvenor House Hotel.

In the interview with a London-based Sunday newspaper he also spoke of his homelife in Edinburgh, where his neighbours are authors JK Rowling and Alexander McCall Smith, who were described as a "steadying force" in his life.

On his friendships, Rankin said: "It makes me laugh, because people think we sit and talk about existentialism. We actually just sit and blether about the sorts of things everyone does, like the weather and the traffic."

He described "Jo" Rowling as lighthearted and shy and a person who was more comfortable in the company of children than adults "She's very centred, though, and you'd never know she has all this money and fame. She's been round to ours for dinner and we've been round to hers. It's all very normal, neighbourly stuff.

"It's not often that the three of us do manage to get together, but when it happens, it's always good fun and we do enjoy each other's company."

Rebus had his last outing two years ago in the novel Exit Music and while it is not clear if the character is alive or dead, the writer has created another detective, Malcolm Fox, for his new work The Complainants.

While his publishers gave him the freedom to work in any genre he wanted, Rankin found himself drawn back into the life of an Edinburgh policeman.

"In the end, I found myself going back to what I know - and they were very happy," Rankin told the newspaper.

"Malcolm Fox is very different from Rebus and he is only 40, so I hope he has got a future ahead of him," he said.