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.

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