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So, your next album will be a pop album?

St. JamesYes, absolutely. I'm already starting to write and explore ideas.

You mentioned writing a book. Tell me about that.

St. JamesIt's called SHE, and it's coming out this fall (Tyndale House). SHE is an acronym standing for Safe, Healthy and Empowered. For years, I've had a passion to write a book for women, addressing some of the pressures we feel as women in the 21st century. How as Christian women do we handle life biblically? I've had this idea for at least three years. And I wanted to write it with an older author, someone more experienced and with a different life experience from mine …

[Right on cue, Rebecca's cell phone indicates another caller at this point. It's Lynda Hunter, a noted Christian speaker and author—and Rebecca's co-author for SHE. Rebecca doesn't take the call, but laughs at the timing.]

St. JamesCan you believe that? She calls right when I'm talking about her! I'm leaving tomorrow for Colorado Springs to spend six days with her work on the book some more. She's just awesome. Some time ago, we spent some time in a cabin in Breckenridge, Colorado, asking God for some direction for this book. We said, "God, we need a title. We don't have anything we feel completely great about." We went out to dinner and still had no title. We prayed some more. Back at the cabin, we threw around some more titles, and SHE just came to mind. We liked the simplicity of it, and we knew right away it was the right title.

Tell me a little more about the book.

St. JamesWe mapped out nine different subjects, three under each of the titles of Safe, Healthy and Empowered. We asked, "What are the lies that culture has tried to make us believe, often successfully? And what is the truth that combats those lies that Satan has sewn through culture?" Hopefully, it's going to be a real impacting book. I really pray God uses it.

Your previous book, "Wait for Me," was targeted more to teens. Is "SHE" part of a bigger plan to reach an older audience, especially as you head into your late 20s?

St. JamesI don't think so. I'm not seeing it that way. As I get older, obviously my audience will shift some, but I think my primary heart is for the family, with an emphasis on young people. And on my next album, my music, if anything, is going to get younger, more edgy, more rock. So, while this book is targeted more at young women, there will be a follow-up "SHE" for teen girls about six months later.

Last fall, you played a role in the rock opera !Hero, sort of a Broadway-type thing. I hear you enjoyed that so much that you're hoping to do more acting gigs.

St. JamesEver since I was about six years old, when I saw The Sound of Music in Sydney, I've wanted to do that. I wanted to be in The Sound of Music.

You wanted to be Maria?

St. JamesNo, Greta, the littlest one. I would lead my friends around the playground singing "Do-Re-Mi." I was really into it! And I did a few musicals at my church. With my music career, I really haven't had much time for acting, but it feels a very natural thing for me. I especially enjoy coupling the acting with the singing, like in !Hero.

What's your next acting gig?

St. JamesI'm in a VeggieTales video called An Easter Carol. I play a music box angel named Hope. You'll have to check it out!

Rebecca St. James' latest release, Worship Live: Blessed Be Your Name hits stores February 24. Visit Christianbook.com to listen to sound clips and buy her music. For more information on Rebecca, including an archive of previous interviews and reviews, visit our artist page for her

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