Pastor pens Christian romances
by Denise Baran-Unland Correspondent February 8, 2013 1:58PM
"Leah" is Pastor Janet Fears' latest Christian romance novel.
Updated: March 11, 2013 6:02AM
If the love of your life jilted you at the altar, would you take a chance on another man, the former nerdy, latchkey boy from junior high school?
Yet, with God leading the way, that’s exactly what the main character in Pastor Janet Fears’ latest novel, “Leah,” does. To help move Leah past her embarrassment and forward into a new life, Leah’s pastor offers her an out-of-state house-sitting job.
There, Leah encounters her former classmate, now a widower with three children, and in him meets a “real man,” by God’s definition. This is where Fears’ experience as both a pastor and a writer fuse to create a new type of romance novel.
“My books are suited for all ages, pre-teen through adulthood,” Fears of Joliet said. “They will make you smile, laugh and sometimes cry but never blush. You won’t have to hide my books or worry about their words.”
Fears, a retired special education teacher’s aide for Joliet Township High School District, saw firsthand the reading material her students chose and wished their hunger for love stories could be met with wholesome novels.
So after writing and publishing two books of love poems, “Seasons of Love” and “A’More,” the breast cancer survivor decided to compose what Fears calls “simply pure, sweet, uncomplicated Christian romance” books that actively show God working within the main characters’ lives. Fears wished books like hers were available when she was growing up.
She recalls her mother warning her about certain kinds of novels. Being curious, Fears would flip through them anyway, dismayed at the language and descriptions used for love scenes. She was afraid today’s impressionable young people might believe what they read, that these were examples of mature, godly love.
“Kids are looking for love and they want to know about love, but they ask the wrong people and then get the wrong information,” Fears said. “They need to know that God leads people in faith and has a master plan for them in all things, even love. I want them to trust God.”
Fears is also the author of another Christian romance novel, “The Master Plan,” about a woman trying to forget the past after her husband dies, only to meet his identical twin, a widower. Fears is currently writing her third novel. She also composes black folklore and plays.
In addition, Fears, who battles both diabetes and hypertension, has studied diet and nutrition, fiction writing, sociology and psychology and has participated in professional fitness training videos. She also loves cooking and reading.
Fears is the CEO of Grace & Glory Ministry/Heaven’s Child Ministry in Joliet and the publisher of her ministry’s monthly Christian magazine, The Sword of the Spirit.
As someone who married for the first time late in life, Fears hopes her books will teach people of all ages to allow God to guide their choices and be patient enough to wait for the right spouse.
“I want to get my books into churches, schools and libraries,” Fears said. “I’m less concerned with sales than in letting people know that God can work in any situation. It’s when we go out on our own that we mess up.”
Contact her at pastorjanetfears@aol.com. For more information on her books, visit www.janetfearsauthor.com.
