Gail Priest joins the Spotlight this week to discuss her latest novel, Soul Dancing

Author Name: Gail Priest

Book Title: Soul Dancing

Book Genre: Cross Genre: Women’s Fiction, Paranormal Romance

Release Date: May 7, 2024

Publisher: Red Adept Publishing

Welcome, Gail! Please tell us about Soul Dancing.

Ninety-year-old Shirlene Foster is given more than a second chance at motherhood when she finds herself in the body of a twenty-year-old in a hospital delivery room giving birth. To grab her second chance at love, she must resolve the past by forgiving herself for her son’s death and accepting her husband’s spiteful vasectomy.

What sparked the idea for this book?

Soul Dancing was a true gift from the universe. The idea of an elderly woman getting a second chance by ending up in a young woman’s body just popped into my head. At first I thought the novel was about Shirlene finding her soulmate. Would her true soulmate be her elderly husband (Stan) or the young man (Cameron) who is caring for his brother’s newborn. As I wrote, my two main characters (Shirlene and Cameron) revealed that they could experience true love more than once. That if they could forgive themselves and resolve past pain, a second chance at love was possible for both of them.

What drew you to writing women’s fiction?

It sort of found me. When I wrote my first novel, Annie Crow Knoll: Sunrise, I didn’t worry about genre. I just wrote. Later in the process, I had to select a genre. Although the romance between Annie and Packard is significant, I realized that the emotional journey that they both take fits in the Women’s Fiction category. So all three of the Annie Crow Knoll novels and Eastern Shore Shorts, my collection of short stories, are Women’s Fiction. A Collingswood Christmas leans more toward Romance, although I could argue for the characters’ emotional journeys. When I wrote Soul Dancing, I really couldn’t pigeonhole it into one genre. It includes emotional journeys, romance, and a soul moving into another body. I didn’t know what to do with that last element, but after researching definitions for various genres, paranormal fit best. I don’t like labels, but cross-genre is the best way to describe Soul Dancing.

If you were speaking to someone who hasn’t read your writing before, why should they want to read Soul Dancing?

The paranormal twist in Soul Dancing puts the characters in extraordinary circumstances. These circumstances raise the stakes for the characters and add additional internal and external conflict. Readers might also want to read Soul Dancing because it was selected as the 2024 Fiction Book of the Year by the American Writing Awards. It’s also received some wonderful reviews that mention the story’s themes of forgiveness and second chances, complex characters, and imaginative and fresh approach.

A captivating look at motherhood and romance with a unique twist.

–Kirkus Reviews

A charming, pitch-perfect ballad of forgiveness, second chances, and romance. The unique premise and memorable characters will captivate readers, and stay with them long after the last page is turned. 

–Christine Nolfi, bestselling author of The Secret Library of Hanna Reeves

Gail Priest’s latest novel SOUL DANCING offers an imaginative and fresh story that seamlessly blends complex characters, a deep understanding of humanity, and a great story all with a paranormal twist. I read it quickly!! 

–Ann Garvin, USA Today Best-selling Author of There’s No Coming Back from This

What do you hope readers will take away from this story?

I hope readers will embrace the possibilities for self-forgiveness, healing within families, and second chances. I hope they will relate to the characters and find peace within their own lives.

Any words of wisdom you would give to a new writer?

I’d say to trust your instincts. Don’t worry about writing what you think the market or agents or publishers want. Write what is in your heart. Also listen to your characters. They will guide you. Lastly, to understand that publishing and marketing your writing is a business. It requires determination, education, and a tough skin. The good news is that if you finish a piece, you have already earned the chops to move into the business end.

What are your interests outside of writing and reading?

Theatre has always been a passion of mine. Although I no longer act or direct, I still teach acting and theatre education as an adjunct faculty member in the Theatre and Dance Department at Rowan University in NJ. My husband and I enjoy birding (bird-watching) and spending time on the Jersey shore and the Chesapeake Bay. Annie, our Havanese dog, keeps us very busy.

Are you working on a new project? Please tell us about it. 

I am currently writing a novel based on a screenplay that I wrote many years ago. The working title is A Thing with Feathers. It’s set at a wild bird rehabilitation center in Cape May Point, NJ, which is a hotspot for birders and one of my favorite places. There is a dual timeline covering the main characters in their twenties and in their forties. Circumstances derail their relationship in 1980, and the revelation of a hidden pregnancy from 1980 cause the characters to cross paths again in 2000.

What was the last book you read? What did you think of it?

I’ll share the last two books I recently finished. The Lighthouse Café by Bebe Reed is a sweet story, and a great escape from current political concerns. I also read Battle Annie: The Queen of Hell’s Kitchen by Trish MacEnulty. The story is inspired by the historical figure, Annie Walsh. I enjoyed this gritty historical fiction novel.

Where can readers find you? 

Website:   https://www.gailpriest.com/

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorGailPriest

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1082473521820141

https://www.instagram.com/gailpriest_author/

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2745949.Gail_Priest

The audiobook of Soul Dancing releases on April 15, 2025.

On April 28th at 8 pm EST, I’ll be visiting with award-winning author, Tina Hogan Grant on A Cuppa & A Natter (Live Chat) https://www.facebook.com/Tina.Hogan.Grant.Author

On April 29th, I’ll be doing an Author Takeover on Read More Books-Tina Hogan Grants Readers’ Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/887991798227197

On June 28th 11am-1pm, I’ll be signing books at Browseabout Books in Rehoboth Beach, one of the settings in Soul Dancing.

Thank you, Gail! Soul Dancing is out now.

Soul Dancing

When ninety-year-old Shirlene Foster dies, she is shocked to wake up in another woman’s body. Even more astonishing, she’s in a hospital delivery room, about to give birth. Fearing no one will believe her, she attempts to hide her true identity, but acting like a twenty-year-old proves impossible, and she realizes she must tell someone.

Cameron Michaels vowed to raise his niece after his brother abandoned his pregnant girlfriend, Rain. But after Rain has the baby, she changes… drastically. When Shirlene confesses she is inhabiting Rain’s body, Cameron hesitates to believe such a wild story, but it does explain Rain’s complete transition.

While adjusting to her new life and relishing her second chance at motherhood, Shirlene struggles to keep her growing attraction to Cameron in check. But Shirlene soon discovers that her new body may not belong to her for long.

Author Bio:

Gail Priest has a passion for women’s fiction. Her degrees and work in theatre, education, and counseling psychology inspire her stories of healing from trauma and secrets within families. A dash of romance and her love of second chances are always in the mix. The settings of her novels are influenced by her time spent on the coast of New Jersey and the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

Gail’s most recent novel, Soul Dancing, was selected as 2024 Book of the Year by the American Writing Awards, and it placed first in the BookFest Awards for Paranormal Romance, Women’s Fiction, and book cover. It was a Kindle Book Awards semi-finalist for Romance and an American Fiction Awards semi-finalist for Women’s Fiction. Firebird Book Awards awarded it first place in Cross Genre and second place is Women’s Fiction. Gail’s hometown and her fondness for the winter holidays inspired her romantic novelette, A Collingswood Christmas. The American Writing Awards awarded it First Place in their novelette category. Gail is also the author of the Annie Crow Knoll trilogy which includes Annie Crow Knoll: Sunrise, Sunset, and Moonrise. The final novel was a Kindle Book Awards semi-finalist. Eastern Shore Shorts, her collection of short stories set in various Eastern Shore towns, was a finalist in the International Book Awards Short Story category.

Gail is a member of The Women’s Fiction Writers Association, The Authors Guild, Eastern Shore Writers Association, Novelitics Writers Collective, and the South Jersey Writers Group, where she was named Writer of the Year.

Gail lives in New Jersey with her husband and their Havanese dog, Annie. When she’s not writing or teaching, Gail can be found reading or looking for birds and sea glass along the beaches and bays of the East Coast.