by K.P. Gresham
Up to now, I’ve avoided a particular phrase in describing my Pastor Matt Hayden Mystery Series. And the secret is…I write Christ-centered mysteries.
To me, this term is more accurate in describing my books than calling it Christian fiction. Of course, it is Christian fiction. However, a lot of folks who read Christian fiction expect there will be no swear words, no blood on the page, nothing that would be considered “controversial.”
In my Christ-centered mysteries, I like to acknowledge the real world, just as Christ lived in the real world during His time on earth. He ate with taxpayers, drank wine (heavens, His first miracle was to create some awesome wine for a wedding banquet at His mother’s request), hung out with tax collectors and bad guys. Although He was incredibly within His rights to judge others, He did not. Instead, He loved them.
My character, Pastor Matt Hayden, has existed in the real world. He came from a police family. His father was a police captain, his brother was an officer on the bomb squad, and Matt was an undercover cop on the Miami docks. Then a corrupt police chief killed both his father and brother as they had been getting too close to outing the chief’s crimes. Finally, the chief came after Matt. A confrontation ensued, and Matt had the opportunity to kill the chief. God stayed his hand. And Matt was called to become a pastor, which he did when he entered the Federal Witness Protection Program.
Matt becomes a pastor who is very familiar, maybe too familiar, with the real world. He knows, as Jesus knew, people who were crooks, prostitutes, alcoholics–you get the gist. And Matt does not condemn them. He holds them to account, of course. But his main goal is to love them.
So, in my books, you’re going to hear swear words, ‘cuz bad guys swear. And Matt’s girlfriend owns a bar. And bad stuff happens to good people, and good people sometimes slip up and do bad things.
That’s life.
I have to acknowledge this reality, because I saw folks lie to my dad a lot. My dad was an incredible Lutheran minister. The messages from his pulpit were all about love. But what I saw, that dad didn’t always see, was the “act” some folks were pulling on him. Whenever we’d go to a parishioners home, the family Bible was always on display, the best china was on the table, everyone was dressed nicely, and we all said grace before and gave thanks after a delicious meal. But I knew that some people weren’t always so crystal clean. Not everyone, by a long shot. I love the people of those churches. Good, loving people. But there were a few that had issues. One of my dad’s “good” friends was a regular at a questionable bar in town with a woman on his lap who wasn’t his wife. Dad never knew this; I didn’t want to break his heart. This type of thing happened from time to time. Sometimes dad’s world wasn’t real.
Jesus, on the other hand, couldn’t be hoodwinked. And I wanted Matt to come into his ministry with his eyes wide-open. And I want my books to show Matt’s faith and desire to love in a real-world setting.
So, if you go to the link above to get my books, you will see that this is the first time I’m saying my books are Christ-centered mysteries. And when you get there, you will see the name of this promotion is…
November Edgy Christian Fiction.
So, I guess I’m living on the Edge. But now you know my secret.
K.P. Gresham, Author
Professional Character Assassin
K.P. Gresham is the award-winning author of the Pastor Matt Hayden Mystery Series as well as several stand-alone novels. Active in Sisters in Crime and the Writers League of Texas, she has won Best Novel awards from the Bay Area Writers League as well as the Mystery Writers of America.
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Website: http://www.kpgresham.com/
Email: kp@kpgresham.com
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Books by
K.P. Gresham
The Pastor Matt Hayden Mystery Series
Austin Mystery Writers 