The Lovely Scent of Pride

Pride is an essential ingredient in a writer’s downfall.

Peter Leavell

Last year, the humidity in our home was so low, my body was a crispy flake of static cling. Winter. Sigh.

I lotioned my hands. Shea butter smells good.

That’s when I heard my wife call from the bedroom, ‘Can you help me with this?’ Yup, no problem. I take great pride in helping my wife with tasks around the house.

Our bedroom door was closed.

When I grasped the knob and turned, my palm spun pointlessly around the copper plating.

Ah. 

Um.

I tried with both hands, tightening my grip as hard as I could. Maddening!

The dog looked up at me, and I glared down at him. I’m glad he can’t talk, because he won’t be able to describe me trying to turn the round knob with my elbows.

My dog, Winston Churchill,
watching his master.

What were my options? Call out to my wife and ask her to open the door? Ask my kids to come and open it for me? No. I had my pride.

I lay on my back. At least my feet took some of the lotion off the doorknob.

I sat up and reviewed more options.

My t-shirt I’d gotten a few years ago from the Royal Gorge in Colorado would help me grip the knob, but it was my favorite, and I didn’t want to get lotion on the cloth. Especially since there weren’t that many holes in it yet.

Could my armpit open the door? My mouth? The dog? Knock the door down?

I decided to pray for guidance, so I shifted to my knees.

The door swung open and my wife looked down at me. ‘Are you okay?’

‘Yeah, just um…praying.’

She gave a soft smile. ‘Aw, awesome. Sorry.’ She lifted a bottle of lotion. ‘Hey, can you open this?’

Publishing a novel is a tough door to open, and frankly, we all need help. We’re not going to get through the door with pride. The best advice when I was learning to craft understandable sentences was listening to my editor.

If I didn’t take her advice, I wouldn’t have books published.

And if someone opened that door and offers you a publishing contract before you’re educated enough to rock your manuscript, then heaven help you.

My daughter opened the bottle of lotion.

~~~~~

Peter Leavell is an award winning historical fiction author. He and his family research together, creating magnificent adventures. Catch up with him on his website at www.peterleavell.com, or friend him on Facebook: Peter R. Leavell. 

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Philip Anderson keeps his past close to the vest. Haunted by the murder of his parents as they traveled West in their covered wagon, his many unanswered questions about that night still torment him. 

West for the Black Hills

His only desire is to live quietly on his homestead and raise horses. He meets Anna, a beautiful young woman with secrets of her own. Falling in love was not part of his plan. Can Philip tell her how he feels before it’s too late?
With Anna a pawn in the corrupt schemes brewing in the nearby Dakota town, Philip is forced to become a reluctant gunslinger. Will Philip’s uncannily trained horses and unsurpassed sharpshooting skills help him free Anna and find out what really happened to his family in the wilderness?

May I Have The Pleasure? by Peter Leavell

Every so often, someone mentions I'm a great writer.

The pleasure bounces from the top of my head to my toes and back again.

Pleasure isn't a sin. But what happens next is where it all goes wrong, and I think:

Maybe I am a good writer. No, they said great writer. I’m amazing! The best!

Chest puffed out, chin high, I turn to my computer to write—and fail miserably. 

Where did I self-destruct? In frustration, I turn to God. What did I do wrong?

But I know. God has told me before. He’s explained there's a fine line between pleasure and pride—the joy of a job well done that twists into I’m amazing. And at that point He can’t use me anymore. Because what once pointed fans to Christ, now becomes the Peter Leavell show.

So I pray:

Lord, my pride has done me in again. I’m sorry, I thought better of myself than I am, and now I’m dealing with the heartache of being less than I thought myself. Let me give all good things back to you.

Oh, the joy and pleasure of repentance! Oh, the sweet closeness between God and I, and now I can write the blessed words He gives me!

You know, that was a really good prayer of repentance. I’m really good at repenting. I’m amazing at repenting!  The best!

And…fail.

Thank you to my brother Chris for sharing with me his meditations on pride. Follow my brother's progress as he battles stage IV cancer here: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/christopherleavell

~~~~~

Peter Leavell is an award winning historical fiction author. He and his family research together, creating magnificent adventures. Catch up with him on his website at www.peterleavell.com, or friend him on Facebook: 

Peter R. Leavell.

~~~~~

That Nasty Five-Letter Word—Pride

Thursdays – Dawn’s Devotions for Writers

“A man's pride brings him low, but a man of
lowly spirit gains honor.” (Proverbs 29:23 NIV)

Pride. It’s a nasty five-letter word.

I’m not referring to healthy pride—the kind that motivates a person to do a good job while performing a task. I’m talking about the kind that causes people’s unwillingness to admit to being wrong—the kind that builds walls between people, and between people and God. It’s destructive.

I think most of us like to be right. And we rather be praised than told to do something better—or even over. After all, we’re human. Our pride can make us feel defensive. It can even make us feel bad about ourselves. “I should have done better.”

I was raised to be a perfectionist. Nothing less than my best has ever been acceptable. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve strived to not be so hard on myself, but it’s not always easy to put pride in its proper place.

Recently, I was tested on my willingness to set aside my pride. I had to make the choice of admitting to a client that I had made several errors while editing his work, or keeping quiet. The errors were small—nothing he’d catch—but in good conscious, I couldn’t let it go. I contacted him, explained, and apologized.

Since then, he’s come to me for additional advice pertaining to his work and publishing, and again I’ve had to swallow my pride in several areas. But my honesty has resulted in blessings. He no longer thinks of me as a service provider, but as a friend and sister in the Lord. I cannot tell you how much that means to me. I’m overwhelmed by his trust.

Does pride ever get in your way?

There are writers who leave critique groups because they aren’t willing to receive constructive feedback. They only want to hear praise about their story and writing. The cost? They stop growing in knowledge and skills in the craft.

There are writers who refuse to listen to the advice of respected editors and agents. Their manuscripts don’t sell because they won’t make necessary changes. Pride gets in the way because they believe they know best.

There will always be authors who write better, write more, and have a larger fan base. If a friend or critique buddy progresses further or faster in a writing career than you, will you let pride stand in the way of your relationship? Will you become resentful of that writer’s success?

“He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble” (Luke 1:52 NIV). Lay down destructive pride, and let our Lord lift up and bless you.

The Author's Character Series - Ego-Feeders

Net's Notation Tuesdays

The Author's Character Series

Ego Feeders!

Can I be super honest with you, our dear readers? There’s a reason I’ve had to wait this long before more publication. God’s been working on my character.

This writing thing isn’t all about me. So, isn't it ironic how God uses the journey to refine me?!

I get a charge out of writing. I feel affirmed just in the act of penning novels because it’s so much fun for me to write that first draft. (Some of my writer friends HATE the first draft. To them, editing is best. What planet are they from? ;-} )

I get kudos from writing. My crit buddies always find stuff I could fix in my writing—as it should be. But they also tell me what’s working, and that’s fun! My husband likes my work (though he’ll tell me where it needs help too). And my sisters enjoy reading my works in progress, too.

I get status from writing. Uh-oh, an ego-feeder has surfaced. Like Lock Ness Monster this kind of benefit surfaces mysteriously, bearing shadows. Watch out, chasing it can take us on an unwanted path. If writing becomes the part of my life where most of my affirmation comes from, I might obsess. And then I may even let successes go to my head. Any character in your Christian novel whose ego outweighs his humility is not a sympathetic character, right? Guess what? Same thing applies to your character as the author.

So, be honest with yourself.

Are there ego-feeders in your writing experience? If so, how do you head off their potentially self-focused consequence? (i.e. how do you avoid pride?)

Are there ways you are looking to writing to provide the affirmation God wants to give you? (Perhaps He gives you affirmation through writing. What I’m talking about is idolatry—putting writing above God. If God affirms you as you serve, no worries. That’s His fatherly heart showing.)

Is writing more about you than it is about ministering to others?

Is writing about building your name, your platform, your renown more than it’s about building God’s?

Let’s unite against the ego-feeders and beat them back. God first! Serving God takes precedence over our own desires for fame or fortune. Serving our reader takes precedence over serving ourselves.

This season, as we approach the New Year, I’m going to prayerfully allow God to point out ego-feeders in my life so I can cooperate with Him as He works on this author’s character.