An Inspirational Interview

Welcome back to another inspirational moment from historical Christian romance novels.

Today’s inspirational moment is a little different. This past week I had the opportunity to sit down and talk with author Julie Lessman about her newest book A Dare and A Prayer. If you ever get a chance to meet Julie you will soon discover she is an amazing woman of God filled with her own inspirational stories, which she packs into her novels. I’m sure you’ll walk away inspired by her interview.

Before we jump into the interview, I just wanted to take a moment to remind everyone that both Julie and I will be donating to two great anti-human trafficking groups with every copy of A Dare and a Prayer that is sold. Julie will be donating a portion of her book sales proceeds to Project Eden. I will be donating a dollar for every copy of A Dare and Prayer sold in October to Destiny Rescue. So be sure to get your copy before midnight tomorrow October 31, 2023.

Now let’s dig into this inspirational interview with award-winning author Julie Lessman!

What was your hope or desire for your readers as you worked on A Dare and a Prayer?

Wow, without question, it was the theme of trafficking, child trafficking. I didn't really expect to go there. I mean, this is a romance. And the hero is kind of a funny character. So, I mean, it's kind of a lighthearted book. I was actually God that told me I had to do it. I was not even contemplating doing a serious subject like that.

But I was in the middle of writing a scene. I mean, I was a good part of the way through the book. And all of a sudden, you know, in the scene where this little girl is supposed to run, you know, she's run through the streets, and she just runs into Henry’s legs. I was only going to put that in there to show how he picks her up and what a tender heart he has.

But when I was writing it, it's like, all of a sudden, my mind's eye, I saw this evil looking guy chasing this little girl. And I felt like God said, this is your theme. It's going to be child trafficking. And I'm going, this is World War II. I mean, I know it's prevalent today, okay? But I didn't think it was back then. And the other thing was it's a Japanese internment camp. And in my head, I thought Japanese were always very family oriented, very noble.

And so, I kind of bucked and thought, gee, a romance with a child trafficking theme, that doesn't sound like it's going to fly. But he would not let me go. I had to do it. And then while I was writing the book, I saw Sound of Freedom. I don't know if you've seen that movie or not.

It's Jim Caviezel and it was actually finished like five or six years ago. But Disney owned rights to it and would not release it and they did that on purpose. They didn't want to release it and Hollywood pretty much closed the door in these people's faces. So, they went into crowdfunding and they got it out on their own.

And wow, I think it's made well over 200 million by now. And it's just a powerful movie. And that really impacted me because, you know, I mean, Melissa, we hear about child trafficking for a couple of years now we've heard about it, you know, but you hear so much that you almost become numb to it. You don't think about it. And that movie brought it front and center again.

And that was like a confirmation to me that what I was doing was right. After I saw that movie, I went, yes, this is what He wants me to do. So back to your question, I wanted to jolt people and make them aware that this is just a heinous tragedy that's going on and it's really prevalent. And it was prevalent in World War II. It's been going on for centuries, okay, but it's really coming to the foreground now.

I think I did shine some light on it because I had a number of people say to me, you know I didn't really focus on this until this book. They said it was difficult to read but they thought I did a decent job. So, I mean, you know, that's kind of what I was hoping to accomplish. I think I did to a degree.

How have your readers received Henry's story?

I think mostly well, you know. I have a 4.7 rating on Amazon with 62 reviews and a 4.7 on Goodreads, which is hard to do. Usually, the Goodreads number is much lower because people, they feel like they can be more honest on Goodreads however I got 4.7 on both of them. So, I'm really, really thrilled about that.

You know, I was worried in the beginning because a lot of my diehard bloggers that review my books, a couple of them that have never given me a four star in my life, I mean they've read every one of my books and given me a five star, gave me four stars and I started seeing that and I thought, hmm, I wonder what that's all about. So anyway, but I think that seems to have changed now, it looks like the five stars are really rolling in a lot more so, I'm grateful.

So, I also am really curious because I love all of your books on the O'Connor family. Will there be more for the O'Connor family? Or do you feel like this is going to be it?

Oh no, no. Well, when I went into the Cousins O'Connor, my whole concept was, now there are 28 cousins. So obviously I'm not going to do them all, but the ones that we know. Like we knew Henry and Hope, okay, I mean, we were exposed to them, you know. Then of course, Collin and Faith’s, three girls. Then even Lizzie and Brady's first three, okay, I'm kind of thinking, I mean, I know that I will do Collin and Faith.I love Luke and, but they've got eight kids.

So, I'll probably do the first three of each of them. And I'm trying to do it in chronological order. Because like, for instance, Henry and Hope, you got to see in these books, you got to see Winnie and Julia, which are the two younger sisters and I just don't, I'm not crazy about Winnie. And I have to be.

I'm an emotional writer, Melissa. I have to be passionate about what I'm writing. And if I just kind of feel a little hum about it, I don't want to go there. So, I'm not sure. Maybe I'll do Julia and Winnie next, or maybe I'll just move to Faith and Colin. There's lots of O'Conners down the road here coming. And especially with the Christmas novellas.

I have two more to do. I have to do Stephen and Annie and I have to do Gabe and Alex. Then, what I'm going to do is in the next couple of years, I'm going to get them in there and then I'm going to do one final Marcie and Patrick Christmas novella. I'm going to put them all together in an anthology. It'll be the O'Connor Christmas anthology and you'll have a Christmas story for each of the couples and it'll end with Marcy and Patrick.

Can you give us a little insight then, you kind of already did actually a little bit, on what your next book might be for your readers.

Well, actually, this is going to surprise you, I think. I have never been at a point in my 15 years of writing where I didn't know what I was going to write next. I have always known, because my books are such that I can springboard. I get to love somebody in a book, and then I want to do a book on them. And that's kind of what it's been all along. But I'm stymied.

I told my husband, I actually kind of went into a little mini depression, not depression, but I mean a malaise because I go gosh, Keith, I, for the first time in my life in 15 years, I don't know what to write next, because I have to have passion.

My Silver Lining Ranch series, has a final book in it that I just am dragging my feet on. I've already got the story. It's The last sister and she's kind of a tomboy. And you read all those, so you know the twins. I was going to bring both of them back for Dash, the brother, and then the young tomboy sister, and just do one story with them. But I'm just not motivated. So, I don't know about that.

And the other thing I was thinking of is I kind of... a long time ago, I came up with this idea about doing a story in Charleston, South Carolina, right after the Civil War. It's going to be this woman who is, she's very classy, kind of a lot like, have you read my Heart of San Francisco series? Okay, Caitlin. She was just a very kind, loving, mature, beautiful person. Older, you know. I'm thinking of doing that with a woman who is the head mistress of the top school for girls on the East Coast. Because back right after the Civil War, there was a lot of that in Charleston where schools were starting up and stuff like that. And then the, not the sheriff, but the police chief would be her love interest. So, it would start out, which is unusual for me, start out with a middle-aged, late 30s, older couple and that would be their story. Then she's got all these teachers in her school, and I could do stories with that too and she's got a real wicked past.

It is a little bit tied in with trafficking believe it or not. So anyway, I'm thinking of that and that's called A Candle in the Dark.

I do have my devotional that God told me to write last year. I got halfway through it and I just wanted to start Henry's story so bad. God gave me the go-ahead on that but now I feel kind of like the fact that I don't know what to do and where to go is God. Both my daughter and my husband confirmed that. They said, He wants you to finish that devotional, Julie, and you're just dragging your feet.

I know I am. I don't like nonfiction. It’s a novel devotional. I utilize scenes where I teach my characters lessons that I have learned. And so, the devotional is going to be the lesson I learned, how I learned it. And then it's going to be the scene where I teach them.