Inside Christian Fiction’s Rise And Reach With David Gregory

A skeptic sits down to dinner with Jesus at a quiet Italian restaurant, and a half-million readers later, David Gregory finds himself at the center of Christian fiction’s unlikely boom. I invited David to unpack how a self-published novella became a national bestseller, why some faith-forward stories cross into the mainstream, and what it really takes to write novels that don’t preach yet still carry a clear message.We get practical fast: what qualifies a book as Christian fiction, how to keep theology organic to the plot, and why readers bristle when characters pause for sermons. David shares behind-the-scenes moments from Dinner with a Perfect Stranger, the ripple effects of The Shack and the Left Behind series, and the ongoing shelving debate that keeps many faith-based novels in the religion aisle instead of general fiction. We also talk audience realities—why women 35+ dominate the category, how teens still respond when the story sings, and the surprising power of simple word of mouth over trend-chasing tactics.Then we zoom out to the business. David explains the platform-first logic of today’s publishers, why he returned to self-publishing after major-house launches, and what has and hasn’t moved the needle for discoverability. He teases new projects, including a fable-like work for all ages and screen adaptations of The Last Christian and One of Us, a contemporary retelling of the gospels through the life of Manuel, a Mexican American mechanic. If you care about faith, fiction, or the craft of making both feel real, this conversation will change how you think about story.Send us Fan MailSupport the show📬 JOIN THE NEWSLETTERThe Storyteller Quest is  a weekly letter on writing,publishing, and the business of books.Subscribe, and I'll send you Traditional, Self, or Hybrid? —11 pages on what each publishing path really costs, plus a7-question worksheet that tells you which one is yours.Subscribe here.