Your debut novel, The Father’s Son, is what I might call apologetic fiction. Do you think there is a difference in how readers are receptive to apologetics, or a defense of the faith, in fiction as opposed to traditional nonfiction?
The writing of and reception to The Father’s Son have certainly been a gift from the Holy Spirit, and, at one level, the story does weave in a case for the faith Christ left us as essential to living life as fully as God intends. At its heart, The Father’s Son is a very human journey for the main character, David Kelly, confronting the effects of his childhood trauma. From the world’s standpoint, David has everything, but the emotion-filled journey he has been avoiding begins with an unexpected friendship and unlocking the mystery and truth of his past. Beyond apologetics, the core of this is a story is of friendship, redemption, forgiveness, love, faith, and many twists and turns.
Are the depth and power of the Catholic faith better received through non-fiction or a captivating human story?
That’s an interesting question. Christ taught wisdom and truth through intriguing stories and relatable characters, so what better model to reach readers who are not yet seeking the many great non-fiction resources out there or those looking to deepen their faith and relationships? I have had far too many responses from readers who said this story changed their lives, gave them hope, or made them rethink their faith and relationships not to believe there isn’t a strong place and hunger for Catholic fiction. One reader told me that reading this story was the first time he let the love of God flow right through his heart. I’ll take that as a yes to the question of receptivity. Non-fiction can tell, while good novels can show.
"Non-fiction can tell, while good novels can show." Catholic Novelist Jim Sano: An Interview Click To TweetIn my experience, deep dives into apologetics are precipitated by a catalyst–some event that leads a person to dig deeper into why we believe what we believe. What drives your interest in Catholic apologetics?
In a world that seems to be increasingly lost, watching so many people (especially young adults) drift away before they had a chance to hear the whys of the Catholic faith became a great motivation for me to dig deeper in learning the beauty and wisdom of the teachings of the Church, the Body of Christ. I started listening to Catholic Answers, reading great non-fiction resources, and taking classes, and I was continually amazed at the depth and wisdom of the faith Christ left us in His Church, a Church that is both divine, The Body of Christ, and very human, a community of sinners. I began to appreciate and see how God’s loving plan is the only answer to our human struggles and alone satisfies our longing for love and true meaning and purpose in our lives. I also realized how right my faith-filled mother was when she would say, “The more you know, the more you know you don’t know.”
Today’s increasingly secularlized culture is very counter to the teachings of Christ and His Church, and Catholic apologetics attempts to understand Christ’s truth and how to share it with “clarity and charity.” Many in today’s culture believe Christ’s Church represents old-fashioned irrelevance to real life, if not a negative institution to be shunned. I felt moved to offer an alternative resource for potential readers to see the faith as actually loving, compassionate, and with an endless depth of wisdom and truth critical to living our lives with freedom and meaning. A story and characters that draw you into life can show how incredibly relevant, practical, and essential faith is to the point of life – a healthy and meaningful relationship with God, ourselves, and others.
Intriguing human stories can get to the heart of life; love, friendship, forgiveness, redemption, healing our wounds and relationships, and knowing our only satisfying source of self-worth, truth, freedom, and purpose comes from God. Great stories can bring the reader into the journey of life, the struggles, the joys, the mysteries, and adventures of each character in a way that makes our faith very real, very deep, and very soul-filled. Hopefully, the stories are also entertaining and thought-provoking. Christ wisely believed a good story could change people’s lives – and I agree.
In your second novel, Gus Busbi, you waded into the minefield of race relations and also intergenerational friendships, important topics if we’re ever to bridge the differences that threaten to divide us. How do you think fiction is uniquely suited to build empathy?
Christ teaches us that life is all about radical self-giving love, and St. Thomas Aquinas writes that love is found in actively “willing the good for the other” as other. Empathetically seeing things through another’s experience is an excellent example of that kind of love and is essential to connecting people of different cultures and ages. Gus Busbi is a story that asks what a fatherless black teen from the gang-controlled South End projects of Boston and a seventy-year-old curmudgeonly Italian man, who has given up on life, can have in common. While Jamiel Russell and Gus Busbi live in the same two-family house, they’ve never met and would have just as soon it stayed that way, but life often has more in store for us than we planned for. Fiction offers a powerful and unique vehicle for readers to enter their characters’ lives,and experience the transformative power of self-sacrificing relationships, love, and forgiveness in this story.
Each character comes to the relationship with a different set of struggles and experiences, and stories can uniquely, dynamically bring us into their worlds, their unlikely bond, and loving empathy. Through mentorship, pushing through societal walls, and sincere friendship, each character can face their challenges and open their hearts to redemption and love. The challenge to the author and reader is to see the dignity in the characters, each made in the image of God and each with an opportunity to develop even the most unexpected relationship with the other—as did Gus and Jamiel.
A common lament of Catholic novelists is that Catholics have little interest in fiction, preferring nonfiction to the extent that they are reaching for Catholic books at all. How have your novels been received by Catholics, particularly in parish settings?
I don’t know if the same demographics apply to Catholic fiction, but women read 85% of general fiction, and only 15% of men, who tend to read non-fiction or not at all. Fortunately, the Father Tom series has appealed almost equally to both male and female readers. While there are many fantastic non-fiction Catholic faith books for those seeking them out, Catholic fiction continues to have room to grow as a sought-out resource for Catholics. The advantage Catholic fiction can have is that the story can pull the reader into a book that can powerfully weave in the faith in relevant and powerful ways.
One thing that has helped is that the Father Tom Series has been endorsed by several archdioceses as a recommended resource for adult faith programs, parish reads, and book discussion groups. The Father’s Son, Gus Busbi, Stolen Blessing, and Self Portrait have been used by a number of parishes and men’s/women’s groups as a basis for two to ten-week programs and discussion groups, and I’ve received great feedback from priests, deacons, and individual readers (Catholic, non-Catholic, and non-Christian alike). One of the great advantages of Catholic fiction is that it can present a more accessible or acceptable opportunity to reach out to our family members or friends who have drifted away or rejected the Catholic faith. While face-to-face conversations or letters can often be challenging and seen as trying to convince or force what we see as a loving gift to others, a good story can offer a less risky or safer opportunity to share the faith. If the reader can relate to and trust the characters and story, they can often feel more open to reading things they’ve never had the opportunity to read or hear before.
Stolen Blessing and Self-Portrait, connected to the previous novels by the character Father Tom, are a different genre: mystery. Did you find crafting this type of story more challenging, and if so, how?
While The Father’s Son and Gus Busbi included a bit of mystery, these two additions would more clearly fall under the mystery genre, and crafting each story was a lot of fun. My wife, Joanne, has been a blessing as my sounding board and first-pass editor of each book. She loves mysteries, so I wanted to write Stolen Blessing as a mystery she could enjoy and be challenged to solve. The format ended up providing an excellent vehicle for Father Tom to be involved more deeply in the lives and relationships of his parishioners, which always goes well beyond the mystery itself.
A good mystery with unexpected twists and turns can help pull the reader into the story and keep their interest, so I’ve enjoyed adding those elements to the series. In Stolen Blessing, the kidnapping of Erick and Addie’s only child, Elizabeth, provides tension and suspense that impact the search for their baby and delves deeply into their marriage, their family relationships, and their faith. Self Portrait pulls Father Tom into another mystery with the theft of Rembrandt’s self-portrait from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and the story parallels for the main characters go much deeper in solving the case. The feedback from readers who have come to love Father Tom, the faith content woven into the stories, and the lives of different parishioners in the St. Francis neighborhood has been both humbling and very encouraging.
What are you working on now?
I’ve been attending Franciscan University for a master’s in Evangelization and Catechesis, a great program that has deepened my faith but has also competed for writing time. Fortunately, I do have three other stories completed, including Fallen Graces, which will be released in the fall by Full Quiver Publishing, run by Ellen and James Hrkach, who have both been a blessing to me and the mission of Catholic novels. As with Van Horn, the intensity and suspense of this mystery goes even deeper, and this story becomes very personal for Father Tom and Detective Brooks.
The other two written stories are The Journey, a fantasy-type story for middle-aged readers, and Joline, another murder mystery for Father Tom, which takes place in the fishing village of Belfast, Maine. Other stories in the works are The Fighter, about a fighter and single parent involved in the underground boxing-gambling ring in Boston, and a much larger project called The Breath of the Wind, a historical fiction story of the main character Samuel’s search for truth and freedom after the end of slavery in Louisiana. As with any writing, I try to keep the story, the message, and especially the reader in mind as I let the inspiration of the Holy Spirit guide the pen.
One thing I know is that I would not be so fortunate and blessed to be writing Catholic novels without the loving support and guidance of my wife, Joanne; my editors, Michelle Buckman and Theresa Linden, my publisher, Ellen Hrkach, the Catholic Writers Guild (God bless them all), and the readers I’ve been blessed to connect with and hear back from.
Jim Sano grew up in an Irish/Italian family in Massachusetts. Jim is a husband, father, life-long Catholic and has worked as a teacher, consultant, and businessman. He has degrees from Boston College and Bentley University and is currently attending Franciscan University for a Master’s degree in Catechetics and Evangelization. He has also attended certificate programs at The Theological Institute for the New Evangelization at St. John’s Seminary and the Apologetics Academy. Jim is a member of the Catholic Writers Guild and has enjoyed growing in his faith and now sharing it through writing novels.
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