Fans of Christian thriller writer Ted Dekker are to get to spend the day with him next month.

Up to 200 people are expected to attend The Gathering, a Nashville-area, one-day event named after celebrations described in Dekker's "The Circle Trilogy." Participants are traveling from several states and as far afield as Canada.

They will get to join in an autograph party and a panel discussion featuring Dekker and Allen Arnold, senior vice president and publisher of fiction at Thomas Nelson.

The June 7 Gathering, to be held at The Grove event center in Franklin, Tenn., will also feature a preview screening of the movie House, based on the 2006 novel co-authored with Frank Peretti. In addition, attendees will be given an advance copy of Dekker's forthcoming novel Sinner.

The event is being organized by Dekker and his management company, Creative Trust, and follows its involvement in an informal, fan-based effort last year that drew around 50 people.

"The age groups are various because his readers are so diverse," said Creative Trust's Alicia Ferguson, the event coordinator, who admitted to being surprised by the level of interest. "We have moms coming in with their sons because they are big fans. Friends coming together. Husband and wives."

Ferguson said that the Gathering gave members of Dekker's Circle, his online community, a chance to connect in person. Fans appreciated "the raw appeal" of his writing. "The fight between good and evil, the striving to connect with God and the love He has for us ... "

The event also provided an opportunity for Dekker to hear directly from his fans, she added. "He loves the feedback that he gets. He can't always respond to all his fan mail, but he reads them all; he wants to know what they like and what they don't."

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