Dreams That Won’t Let Go Blog Tour & Giveaway
Learn about the Jubilant Soul Series
How did you choose the name for this book series?
The Jubilant Soul series is named for the fictional setting for the three novels in the series – Jubilant, Texas. Jubilant is a metaphor for happiness, and for the reality that many of us routinely search for happiness and contentment “somewhere” else, rather than looking within. That’s what each of the main characters in this series finds themselves doing.
Tell us briefly about each book in the Jubilant Soul series.
The first book in the series is “The Someday List.” This novel features Rachelle Covington, a stay-at-home mother of two and wife of a prominent surgeon. On the surface, life looks picture perfect; but Rachelle finds the courage to accept that she’s simply been going through the motions. A friend challenges her to make a list of goals or dreams that she’d like to someday accomplish, and when Rachelle can’t get past No. 1 on the list, she knows she needs to reclaim her life. A summer visit to her aunt and uncle’s place in Jubilant, Texas helps.
Book Two in the series is “Worth a Thousand Words.” This novel focuses on Indigo Burns, the younger cousin of Rachelle, whom readers meet a few days after her college graduation. Indigo is pretty and smart and has a promising future. She has her life mapped out to the T, but the summer she spends at home before heading off to grad school throws her for a loop. She’s faced with tough choices that will determine the kind of woman she’ll mature into and whether she’ll live to please others or honor the truths in her heart.
Book Three is titled “Dreams That Won’t Let Go.” The novel opens with Indigo expressing frustration over her brother Reuben’s return to the family (similar to the Prodigal Son story); however, the book is mostly about Reuben’s return Jubilant in an effort to smother demons from his past. While he and Indigo dance around their hopes and dreams, their younger sister Yasmin decides to realize hers, regardless of the cost. This book shows the bonds between members of a family and how secrets can often hurt more than they heal.
Quite a few of your characters are in all three books. Do you have a process for remembering details for each character?
Yes, I wrote what I call character sketches about each pivotal character, and referred to it while writing each novel in the series. It might contain the character’s full name, birth order, month and year of birth, likes and dislikes, etc. I can do my best to make those facts line up in each of the books in the series.
Can readers read a book in this series out of order? For example, if they desire to read Dreams That Won’t Let Go, would you recommend they read the first two books first?
Although the books are part of a series, each of the novels, features a different main character, and a different plot; so readers are free to start in whatever order they prefer. They won’t be lost or feel like there are gaps in the story.
Do you have a favorite character from the series?
Yes – like many readers of the series, I love Aunt Melba! She’s the single, older aunt of Rachelle, and great aunt of Indigo, Reuben and Yasmin. She owns Hair Pizzazz, a salon in Jubilant, that serves as a sanctuary of sorts, a place where Aunt Melba’s clients and her family can come for no-nonsense, loving advice. I love this character so much that I’m doing a hair salon book tour in “honor” of what she represents.
What were some lessons you personally learned from developing the characters in this series?
This is a great question, but a tough one! As a writer yourself, Rhonda, you know how the characters often “take over” and begin to tell their story through you. That happened often with this book, and in the process, I learned, or more accurately I was reminded, that God gives us our dreams for His own purposes – sometimes to grow us up, sometimes to bless us so we can bless others, and sometimes to help others pursue their purpose.
What lessons do you want readers to come away with after reading the last book in the series, Dreams That Won’t Let Go?I’d like readers to come away with several messages: 1) If God gives us a dream, He will bless it in His own way and in his own time; 2) God doesn’t call us to control each other, but to learn how to love unconditionally; and 3) Sometimes the independent perspective of a third party (a minister, a counselor, a trusted friend) can help us heal and grow.
Dreams That Won’t Let Go GIVEAWAY!
WIN a set of signed books from the Jubilant Soul Series AND a free one-hour session with Helena Nyman, an executive coach.
Answer one or more of the following questions in the comment section to be eligible for the giveaway.
- Share one or two paragraphs about the state of your dreams.
- Have you read Dreams That Won’t Let Go? How did this novel inspire you to reclaim or pursue your dreams?
- What was your favorite book in the Jubilant Soul Series?
About the Author
Stacy Hawkins Adams is a nationally-published, award-winning author and speaker. Her contemporary women’s fiction novels are filled with social themes and spiritual quests that take readers on journeys into their own souls.
She holds a degree in journalism and served as a newspaper reporter for more than a decade before turning her full attention to penning books, speaking professionally and writing freelance articles.
Stacy lives in a suburb of Richmond, Virginia with her husband and two young children. Visit Stacy online at stacyhawkinsadams.com.
