Janet's Notes

One very cold winter morning, I woke up with a story rolling in my mind. Even before I started my morning prayer time, I needed to get it written down. The words tumbled from my fingertips. A troubled young girl sat on the attic stairs feeling lost and alone. “Why did my mother have to die? You should have saved her God. Didn’t you know I need her?” After five pages, I stopped to rest and pray.

“What is this, God?” I asked. I reread what I had written. Tears poured down my cheeks. Every day that week, I added a few more pages. Then, my life got busy. I had my columns to finish for the paper and a sermon to complete.

Time passed. A month later, I added a few more pages. That became the rhythm. Write a bit and leave it. Eventually, I realized that I was writing a novel and had better learn how. I took some courses and participated in some workshops and kept writing. When Tom and I journeyed to Tennessee, I used the travel time in the car to add a multitude of chapters. Coming home, I congratulated myself on having a novel two thirds written. We stopped at my sister’s in Blenheim. While we were sleeping, someone broke into our truck and stole my computer. Frustration turned to grief when I realized that I hadn’t backed up all of the writing I had done on the journey.

In the end the first draft took nearly three years. After much rewriting, I sent my precious manuscript to a professional editor. With her help, I made more changes. Finally, Fireweed, was completed. It was the best I could make it.

I believe that God wanted this story to be written. In my prayers, I call it our book, because God has certainly helped me every step of the way.

A story of faith, Fireweed presents the age-old questions “Why doesn’t God fix what happened? Why didn’t God prevent this in the first place? What role does God play in our lives?” As they live each day, Steve and Renée deal with these questions. Fireweed will engender much discussion in your book club or study group. Below you will find questions to guide that discussion.

Study Questions for Book Clubs

In order to facilitate discussion by your bookclub, you will find questions below.

1. Review why the author, Janet Stobie chose Fireweed as the title. Did you find moments of encountering the “Fireweed” in the story? Have you had “Fireweed” moments in your life?

2. Fireweed is a “Christian” novel. Name one example of your understanding of “Christian Faith” you found in this story.

3. How is Renee similar and/or different from the teens that you have experienced?

4. Fireweed is more than a mystery story. Underneath the mystery, Fireweed introduces several current social issues.

   • Grief – Have you used any of the strategies that Janet Stobie suggests?

   • Interfaith Dialogue – The teens in the story see interfaith dialogue as one step towards peace. Janet Stobie begins this dialogue with “respect” for other faiths. Does your understanding of Christianity lead you to this “respect”?

   • Forgiveness – What does Fireweed say to you about forgiveness?

5. When we read a story, we tend to identify with at least one of the characters. Which character in the story felt most real for you?

6. The story is told from two viewpoints – Renee’s and Steve’s. How was this helpful for you? Did the two viewpoints present any difficulties for you?

7. Janet Stobie has included two events in the church’s life, the Advent Decorating Potluck and the Tinsel and Tears Service. What did you learn from reading about these events?

8. What will you remember most from Fireweed?