Lorne Oke, Taylor’s head men’s and women’s golf coach, knows that his mother Janette Oke’s stories are characterized by humility and a down-to-earth desire for telling truthful, heartfelt stories about community, family and God.
Janette is the author of more than 75 Christian fiction stories.
Her most famous book,“When Calls The Heart,” also happens to be one of the most popular TV shows on the Hallmark Channel. The book is set in the pioneer era, focusing on the life and hardships of a couple in a small town.
Her work is regarded as highly influential in modern Christian literature.
Lorne said his mother’s motive to write started later in her career, inspired by reflections on her own childhood and life experiences. She had a desire to create works of romantic fiction that tackled questions of faith amid the realities of life, and avoided glorifying the unhealthy elements of relationships that frequently characterize most modern day romance novels.
“Mom and Dad were both born in Western Canada, and she was raised on a farm,” Lorne said. “(She was a) very menial, hand-to-mouth kind of kid … my mom had this farm life growing up.”
Raised with seven siblings in a three bedroom house, Janette attended high school, but when her uncle’s wife died, she dropped out to care for his kids.
Later, she was accepted into Mountain View Bible College in Didsbury, Alberta, Canada, where she met her husband.
“They got married, and the rest is history,” Lorne said. “She would actually tell you she has lived two lives: ‘I lived a life of poverty as a kid and I lived a life of plenty as an adult.’”
Janette’s writing success happened much later in her career, after a variety of jobs and a growing family.
Things began to change in the two weeks following the publication of her first novel, “Love Comes Softly,” in 1979.
“‘Love Comes Softly’ was published and sold so well that they asked her for the sequel,” Lorne said. “There ended up being seven books in that series. So, the writing thing really took off quite fast, and she averaged about three novels a year for 15 years.”
Janette’s writing was aimed toward a mostly female audience.
Lorne came to this realization one day while typing the original handwritten manuscript of “Love Comes Softly” for his mother so it was ready for the publisher.
“Obviously I’m reading along as I’m typing,” he said. “And one day I had more time, so I typed a couple chapters and mom walked by, and I said, ‘Mom, you know I’m not going to read this drivel, don’t you?’ Mom said, ‘I didn’t write it for you.’ She just kept right on walking. ”
Janette wanted her writing to serve as an example to young female readers of what real love, characterized by hardships and questions of faith, would look like.
At the time of publication, a common societal belief was that Christians did not have a role in Christian fiction, much less Christian romance narratives. Janettte’s work challenged the idea that the only books that were necessary to believers were books that focused on how to be better Christians.
“The writing community calls her the grandmother of Christian fiction,” Lorne said.
He decided his mother’s work was a kind of take back, a proclamation that Christians do, indeed, have an important role in creative works that reflect godly love.
Lorne knows his mother is living into the story God has given her. She remained confident about her calling even when others would ask her why she wrote the novels she did.
“Because I wanted people to have something they didn’t have. I wanted them to have a story that said, ‘And how’s your faith going to be when you go through this trial?’”
The movies and the TV show based on Janette’s novels have, in Lorne’s opinion, maintained a central theme in her work, which Lorne described as, “God will walk through it with you.” She has even had opportunities to work with the producers and have small cameos in the show.
As for Janette Oke, she is still writing even as she approaches her 90th birthday. Her next novel is historical fiction about the wife of a young Pharisee during the time of Jesus, set out to determine whether Jesus is the Messiah.
“She has a little afterword written at the end of the book, asking, ‘How are you deciding if he’s the real Messiah?’” Lorne said. “We all have to do that today, right?”
Ultimately, the dream that underlies this creative endeavor is the hope that more Christians will be involved in turning the tide in the entertainment industry and understand it as a medium to display Christ’s redemptive love.
