By Lindsey Hawkins

Former Northeastern President John A. Curry spoke to students and faculty Friday about his new book, “Bless Me Father,” a crime thriller based on the recent sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church.

Curry’s visit was the second event in the “Meet the Author Series.” Curry said that his book allowed him to “comment more philosophically and detailed about the sexual abuse issue as a practicing Catholi,” He then applied it to the “crime fiction venue with a killer of priests.”

However, Curry said he attempted a sense of objectivity in “Bless Me Father,” while trying to avoid being “preachy or conclusive.”

Since his retirement in 1996, he has written three novels, “Loyalty,” “Two and Out,” which takes place partly at Northeastern University and “The Irish Corsicans,” which is a sequel to “Loyalty.” Curry is also planning to release an anthology of short stories and essays entitled, “Some Shots in the Dark,” due out in February.

He said his literary works are fed by all his life experiences.

“I have always had a rich imagination,” he said, adding that his surroundings have a large impact on his writing. “Almost all of my books include Boston’s North Shore.”

As a child, Curry enjoyed books such as “Swiss Family Robinson” and “Great Expectations.” He reads two to three newspapers every day and follows a strict writing routine which includes writing daily from 8 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. He then follows his writing with a meditative run in which he “thinks about the next day’s scene.” He then spends the rest of his day observing and doing research.

Storytelling and imagination have always played a major part in his life. He said that through writing, he has realized that he possesses a “strong sense of nostalgia.”

He also said he is always in a state of observation — always ready to extract for upcoming stories.

To account for the religious overtone of “Bless Me Father,” he described himself as someone who “would be lost without some aspect of spirituality.” He also said that he is “very proud to be a Catholic.”

Curry said that he already has three projects in mind for the future, including the aforementioned anthology, a novel about Lynn, Mass., where he grew up, and “the germ of an idea for another crime fiction novel.”

“Bless Me Father” was published by First Books and can be purchased at most bookstores.