Meet Jeanette Levellie, co-author (with Beth Gormong) of Hello, Beautiful! Finally Love Yourself Just As You Are, hot off the press this week from Elk Lake Publishing. Hello, Beautiful! is an interactive devotional book for women. The book impressed me so much that I asked Jen to meet me here on Faith Songs for a cyber-interview.
As you might guess from that mop of red hair, adjectives like “spunky” and “lively” tend to pop up in descriptions of Jeanette. She’s a pastor’s wife, a prolific writer, and a popular speaker. She has authored five books and hundreds of stories, articles, greeting card verses, and calendar poems.
Interview: Jeanette Levellie with Linda Bonney Olin
Linda: Hi, Jen! Welcome! To start off with, tell us why, in general, you write the things you write.
Jen: Hi, Linda! Thanks for having me today. The goals of my writing are to help others know God as a real person, to bring more laughter into the world, and to offer hope for broken souls.
Linda: You certainly did all those things with your previous inspirational books.
Two Scoops of Grace with Chuckles on Top
The Heart of Humor: Sixty Helpings of Hilarity to Nourish Your Soul
Touchable God: Finding the Lord’s Friendship Through Prayer
But I think your new project is the most special of all. Why did you decide to write Hello, Beautiful?
Jen: I saw that women, even Christian women, did not think of themselves as beautiful. Our self-images are skewed by the world around us and what we were told as children. We need to see ourselves through the eyes of love: God’s.
Linda: So true! As my age and weight keep increasing, I avoid looking in the mirror, because I don’t much like what I see. To be honest, though, I half expected from the subtitle (Finally Love Yourself Just As You Are) that Hello, Beautiful! would be one of those self-empowerment books that tell women they can have anything they want, and do anything they want, and be anything they want, simply by believing in themselves. Happily, I was wrong. Hello, Beautiful! is a Bible-based Christian devotional, not a self-devotional. What religious point of view did you bring to the devotions?
Jen: I am a follower of Jesus Christ as God in the flesh and the savior of mankind. I attend a non-denominational independent Christian church. I’m not a fan of labels, but I refer to myself as a Charismatic in that I espouse the workings of miracles by the power of Jesus within all believers.
Linda: But your book is relatable to all Christian women, not just those with a particular viewpoint.
Jen: Yes! It applies to every believer, no matter what “flavor” or denomination you are.
Linda: The book description calls it an interactive devotional. What’s the “interactive” aspect?
Jen: Each chapter starts with a Scripture, has a story from my co-author, Beth Gormong’s or my own life, then ends with a journaling prompt or coloring page.
Linda: So the reader applies the ideas to her own life by participating in an activity. A lot more powerful than passively reading a sermonette!
Humor is a signature part of your writing. I got a kick out of your stories in Two Scoops of Grace with Chuckles on Top.
Jen: Thank you! Although that first book is seven years old, it continues to sell. I’m so grateful.
Linda: A bit of humor sneaks into your devotions in Hello, Beautiful, too. Tell us about your funny bone and what it means to your writing and to you as a person.
Jen: I think one can learn humor, but in my case it’s a pure gift. My daddy was witty and liked to make people laugh. I think I inherited this trait from him, and God has enhanced it by putting me in lots of situations where I either have to laugh or run screaming from the room.
Linda: Boy, can I ever identify with that!
Jen: I believe humor is a door that helps people relax and receive the message that God values them and wants the best for them. If I can help them laugh, I can help them believe.
Linda: Tell us a little about your “career” as a pastor’s wife.
Jen: As a child I said I’d never marry a preacher because I wanted to be rich! HA! God is still laughing about that one. I love my preacher husband more than chocolate, and am rich in a dozen ways—sometimes I even have money! We’ve pastored five churches in California and one in Illinois, where we moved 20 years ago. The part I love about being a P.W. is the people. The part I get aggravated with in being a P.W. is the people. People have definitely kept me on my knees, grown my faith, and given me many funny and poignant experiences to write about. I also enjoy writing about everyday happenings and the many messes I get myself into that help me grasp how big God’s grace is!
Linda: You mentioned your daddy’s sense of humor. How has your personal background influenced your writing?
Jen: I grew up in an alcoholic home, where I rarely saw my father. Mom divorced him when I was six and married another alcoholic three years later. My step-dad that didn’t believe in compliments, thinking they’d give my brother and I a “big head.” There was also a lot of ridicule, shame, and guilt-heaping in our family. I grew up thinking I was stupid, inept, and anything but beautiful. Because of this background, my relationship with God through Jesus has been the redeeming feature of my self-esteem. All my writing focuses on grace, forgiveness, and God’s bottomless love for his children.
Linda: Those difficult experiences sure equipped you to write Hello, Beautiful. You deal with the issues candidly and compassionately, because you’ve been there yourself. And probably still are there, to some extent, as we all are. That’s why this book is so important.
Jen: Yes, am I still there! These are insights I’m still learning myself every day. When I gain some weight or have a horrible hair day, I need to remind myself of my worth based on Jesus’ love, not how I look.
Linda: On your deathbed, how will you define/measure your success as a writer, and as a person?
Jen: Oh, Linda, if I have introduced even one person to Jesus or helped one person find a sweeter, more intimate relationship with God through my words, all the tears and gray hairs and hours of work will have been worth it.
Linda: What are you doing to reach that goal?
Jen: Praying for guidance. Continuing to learn how to be the best writer I can become. Reading books from others I can grow from. Writing, writing, writing.
Linda: Speaking of continuing to learn, congratulations on your selection to attend the Guideposts’ Writers Workshop in 2018!
Jen: Thanks! That was the biggest thrill I’ve received as a writer. Out of 3,500 stories submitted that year, they chose one of mine (I sent seven!) as a winner, and paid all my expenses to fly to Rye, N.Y. and learn to write for the family of Guideposts magazines. I have never been more excited in my life. It was an honor straight from heaven, one for which I’m very grateful to the Lord.
Linda: Guideposts publications reach a massive audience, so they’re very influential. For books to have an impact on readers, they have to get into the readers’ hands. That brings up the dreaded subject of marketing. What do you do to promote your books?
Jen: I am a speaker for all kinds of groups: women, seniors, church services, retreats, writers conferences, and civic clubs. I sell my books when I speak, unless I’m preaching for a Sunday morning service. I am active on Facebook and post on my blog, Hope Splashes, every week. I also have a big mouth, so I tell everyone wherever I go about my books.
Linda: Good for you! Many writers feel reluctant to talk up their own books.
Jen: I also have several pamphlets with individual stories that I give to everyone I meet—waitresses, checkers in stores, baristas—and those have my books listed on the back. It’s a fun way to promote my work without making it sound like bragging, since I’m giving them a story as a gift.
Linda: Nice idea! What are your upcoming speaking events?
Jen: I am preaching at the Presbyterian Church in Paris, Illinois on May 19 and giving my message “Two Scoops of Grace with Chuckles on Top” to a local seniors group on September 12.
Linda: Will you be on faculty at any writers conferences this year? I remember meeting you at Montrose Christian Writers Conference in 2015. Red hair and all!
Jen: I fell in love with everyone at Montrose. I’m teaching four classes there this year:
1. Writing for Guideposts: The Basics & Winning the Contest
2. How to Start a Speaking Career
3. Writing Compelling Devotions
4. Humor Sells.
I’ll also be giving a morning message that I hope will bring lots of laughs and some memorable insights.
Linda: Last but not least… What question would I have asked you if I had known what an intriguing answer I’d get? Please answer that question.
Jen: The question is: For what would you sacrifice all you own, including your successful writing and speaking career to see happen?
The answer is: My two kids and three grandkids all following Jesus with their whole hearts, in fulfilling careers.
Linda: Amen to that! Thank you so much for taking time out for this grilling, Jen.
Jen: It was lovely to chat with you today, Linda. I appreciate your gracious spirit and kind words. You are beautiful!
Linda: Aww… thanks. Readers, Jen is looking forward to chatting with you, too. ♥ Please post your questions or comments in the reply box.
God bless!
Find Jeanette Levellie and her books
Hope Splashes
Facebook profile
Facebook author page
Amazon author page
Goodreads
Twitter
Pinterest
Hello, Beautiful! Finally Love Yourself Just As You Are
Two Scoops of Grace with Chuckles on Top
The Heart of Humor: Sixty Helpings of Hilarity to Nourish Your Soul
Touchable God: Finding the Lord’s Friendship Through Prayer
Thank you for having me on your blog today, Linda. I’m honored that you liked Hello, Beautiful! And I think it’s great to know our book was more than a “help yourself” book. If I’ve learned one thing, it’s that I can’t help myself without Jesus!
I think the fake philosophy that “You can have it all by just believing in yourself” has done much more harm than good, by setting us up for one more failure to add to our discouragement. Thank God, we CAN do all things through God’s grace.
I agree, Linda! Only by God’s grace can we make lasting changes.
I am very taken by your comments about beautiful women ….it is so apt, we tend not to think of ourselves as beautiful….in fact, we are schooled to think it’s wrong-not nice – to do so.
Many years ago, I was at a table full of great women…some not seen in some time. Someone remarked that a one of us was “as beautiful as ever!”
My wise and wonderful cousin piped up, “We are all beautiful!!” And, looking around, I realized how right she was. We are God’s creation…each one as varied and full of wonder as blooms in a garden.
You said it, Lida! Some of us are a bit more fruity than floral, but it’s all good. 🙂
That was the perfect response from you cousin, Lida!
We’ve been taught to serve others and put them first, both Biblical teachings. Yet Jesus also told us to love others AS we love ourselves. If we can’t see ourselves as valuable, it will be difficult to value others. The key is balance.
Thanks for your comments!
Jen
Thank you for this. Culture,defines beauty in unhealthy ways. We need more messages that we are beautiful as children created from the love of God. Can’t wait to read the book.
Sue, you’ll love the book. Jeanette and her co-author, Beth Gormong, have such a comfortable way of writing, that you feel like you’re sitting at the kitchen table swapping stories and encouragement. It was an inspired idea to add the interactive element too.
Wow, thanks, Linda! That is exactly the feel we were shooting for in writing our personal stories of how God helped us love ourselves. The journaling prompts were Beth’s idea–she’s brilliant! She also designed the coloring pages!
Jen, how did your collaboration with Beth come about? Is this your first time partnering with another author?
I worked with my son on the puppet ministry book I just submitted to Abingdon (prayers for acceptance of the proposal are welcome!). I wrote the text and Jeff did all the illustrations. Working with him was a blast, but I can see how it could easily be more of an explosion if the collaborators don’t see eye to eye.
Linda: Great question. Beth is a great author who had done lots of editing work but not much of her own writing. When the idea for HB came up, I asked the Lord if he wanted me to write it. I’d said “NO more books!” after book #4. God brought Beth to my mind and prompted me to ask her if she’d like to collaborate. She readily agreed. It was lovely working with her. She is easy-going and quiet, the opposite of my fervent and wacky spirit. We are currently talking about our next project.
Yes, I will pray that Abingdon publishes your book!
OH,bless you for saying this, Sue! Unhealthy is the right word for how our culture defines beauty. I hope the book is a blessing to you! Jen
Jen, will you be offering any one-on-one critique sessions at Montrose this year?
HI, Greg. Yes, I will be available to help anyone who’s at Montrose this year. I hope to meet you and chat with you!
I look forward to it.