INTERREGNUM

INTERREGNUM
Friday, September 18, 2026 by J.A. Webb

Categories: Friday's Fiction / GUEST AUTHORS

PLEASE WELCOME

J.A. WEBB

FICTION FRIDAY

THE AUTHOR’S STORY

Why don’t guys read?

I hear it all the time, often from wives and mothers frustrated that the men in their lives simply don’t seem interested in books.

And more often—from writers wondering, "How do I get guys to read MY books?"

It's a complicated question, all the more so because the reason is as different as every one of the guys in your life.
With that in mind, let's explore the problem.

For most of us, introduction to reading comes in school. If you're a guy, you remember. For the gals in the crowd, here's what that was like for (many) of us.

A young boy desperately wants to run, climb, wrestle, explore, build things, break things—DO…something.

Now we've taken that boy and caged him behind a desk for hours at a time.

Told him to sit still. (Impossible!)

Be quiet. (Yeah, right.)

And read.

Now, for me—even though the first two were excruciatingly difficult—the third was not. I loved reading. But I was the rare case. For most guys, once made captive, everything that came after that initial insult (including reading) was viewed with the same resentful, passive-aggressive disdain as the cage itself.

Reading became associated with the torture of that captivity. Something they were forced to do. And frankly, probably because of the difference in brain development (studies on the subject indicate this), reading came easier to girls at that young age.

And by the time the boys' brain development caught up, they had already "learned" that they hated to read.

That it was something they didn't enjoy.

Many outgrew this and later decided they DO like to read.

Many.

Even more enjoy listening to audiobooks while doing other things. Driving, working, exercising, mowing the lawn. I guess we never outgrew that “DO-ing” thing.

But yet, a problem remains.

The vast majority of readers are female. Over 80% of book purchases are made by them. Not guys.

Why? Does that mean guys don't read? Or won't?

Instead of asking why guys won't read, perhaps we should be asking this:

"Of all the books in the marketplace, how many are written to-and-for guys?"

Not many.

Because we've created a self-fulfilling prophecy. Most book buyers are female, as are the majority of fiction writers. So we, as an industry, have quite logically shaped our content for that audience.

But having done so, we now ask, "Why won't guys read our books?"

The answer is simple. Because we, as an industry, didn't write for them.

As I mentioned in my previous post here, after coming to Christ I went looking for the kind of fiction I had always loved—speculative fiction, fantasy, adventure, thrillers—but written from a Christian worldview.

And I had a surprisingly difficult time finding it.

I found myself wailing in despair—"Where are the stories written to-and-for adult Christian men?"

Stories that would thrill their souls?

And note this: Simply adding a few explosions to a story written for a female reader won’t solve the problem.

Sure, men like action.

But action isn't enough.

The hunger goes deeper than that.

Men are hard-wired to conquer.

To overcome.

To protect.

To fight for what is right and stand against what is evil.

We want heroes. Real heroes.

And by that, I don’t mean yet another cynical antihero whose principal virtues seem to be that he is more competent and slightly less evil than everyone around him.

I mean men of courage.

Men of faith.

Men capable of nobility and sacrifice when circumstances demand it. Men who accept responsibility rather than flee from it. Men who put themselves in harm’s way to protect the innocent. Men who experience fear—and nevertheless do what must be done.

So if you want to choose a book for a man…or write one…I have a suggestion for you.

Give us a seemingly impossible problem to overcome.

Put us in an interesting setting where survival isn't guaranteed.

Give us something worth fighting for. Someone worth protecting.

Give us evil that really is evil...and good men willing to stand against it.

Now you have our attention.

Those were the kinds of stories I wanted to read.

But because they were nearly impossible to find, they instead became the kinds of stories I decided to write.

It was that desire, and that frustration, which led to the creation of The Seekers Series, an epic tale that follows a cast of characters seeking truth in a world where merely seeking that truth can have deadly consequences.

Much of the series unfolds in wilderness and survival settings, where danger is real and the consequences of failure immediate. But physical survival is only part of what is at stake.

The characters face the loss of livelihood, home, family, and life itself.

And hanging over all of them is something greater still.

The True Text—the Bible—has been lost, along with all knowledge of Him or about how a lost creature might find his way back to Him…to salvation.

If the Word of Creator God cannot be recovered, the consequences are eternal.

These are the kinds of stories I wanted as a reader. Stories that let a man escape for a few hours into an exciting new world, where he can struggle alongside characters who resonate with something within him.

Stories about courage, sacrifice, faith, temptation, good and evil, and the responsibility to stand when standing becomes dangerous.

And yet … stories that illuminate biblical truth along the way.

Not through trite, predictable, preachy sermonettes. Rather, by allowing truth to emerge through the characters, their choices...and the consequences that follow.

So perhaps your husband really doesn't like to read.

Perhaps your son would rather be doing almost anything else than sitting down with a novel.

Perhaps your grandson has already decided that books simply aren't for him.

Or...

Perhaps he simply hasn't discovered the right story yet.

A story written with him in mind.

So…instead of expecting your guy to read YOUR favorite books, instead buy (or even better, write) one created specifically TO and FOR him!

You might discover that he likes stories after all.

He was simply waiting for one that would thrill his soul.

ABOUT INTERREGNUM

The Book of Eli meets Frank Peretti

An Epic Thriller of Deception, Faith, and the Fight for Truth

It’s the year 2158- and the war in heaven just got real

The Seekers are humanity's last hope. Hunted by the Eye of the Eternal—the Order's merciless secret police—these brave rebels have risked everything to find the lost Words of Creator God, banned for generations and lost to living memory.

Now, what began as a quest for Truth has evolved into a desperate struggle for survival as, trapped and cornered, the Seekers must overcome not just their pursuers, but also their own doubts and fears as their faith . . . and even their sanity . . . begins to unravel.

Their beleaguered company threatens to fracture beneath the pressure of constant pursuit and uncertain reward as they ask- Is this quest worth the sacrifice of their lives?

But still, something ancient and powerful calls them forward, promising answers to questions they’ve only dared to whisper in the dark.

Because their search is now not only one of survival, but has evolved into a battle for the soul of humanity itself. And the hunters that stalk them are not all of this world.

The Order has ruled from the shadows long enough. Are you ready to see the truth?

Endorsements for Interregnum

A Gripping Tale of Power, Deception, and the Courage to Seek Truth

Fans of Frank Peretti, Ted Dekkar, and the sprawling worlds of Dune and Atlas Shrugged will be captivated by the pulse-pounding fusion of high-stakes thriller, epic sci-fi, and profound spiritual warfare.

A suspense-filled journey into a world where illusion is law and questioning it means death.

If you love stories of faith, defiance, and the battle against unseen tyranny, this is the book for you.

“A modern thriller that reads like the classics.”

“This thriller has the quality of a dream. Or a nightmare . . . I definitely kept turning pages.”

“I am an avid reader of dystopias and loved reading one from a Christian standpoint, in a world that felt real and gritty, and where 'Christianese' was skillfully (and I imagine painstakingly) avoided.”

“An amazing story that did not disappoint. A fascinating world, relatable and deep characters and amazing themes. One of the best thrillers I have read.”

Get your copy today!

BUY LINK: https://www.amazon.com/Interregnum-Christian-Suspense-Thriller-Seekers-ebook/dp/B0G16FQQ5X

MORE ABOUT J.A. WEBB

Genesis award-winning author J. A. Webb is a former atheist and now a devoted follower of Christ, military veteran, husband, father, and business owner writing thrilling Christian fiction from his four acre farmstead on the prairies of the Upper Midwest.

-author website is https://jawebbauthor.com

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