So You Want to Write About American Indians?: A Guide for Writers, Students, and Scholars

Preface

BOB — University of Nebraska Press / Page ix / / So You Want to Write about American Indians? / Devon Abbott Mihesuah 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 [First Page] [-9], (1) Lines: 0 to 19 ——— 0.0pt PgVar ——— Normal Page PgEnds: TEX [-9], (1) Preface So you want to write about American Indians. Tens of thousands of books and essays about Indigenous people are already on the library shelves, and at the rate they are being published it appears that many more are on the way. That’s a lot of writing, but surprisingly all this investigation and imagining has only scratched the surface of the complexity of Native America. Perhaps your thesis, dissertation, book, novel, or essay will be unique and will assist in educating America about how tribes lived – and still live – and can offer solutions to the myriad problems tribes face. This is not a book that offers detailed instructions about grammar, plot development, or writing mysteries. Many readers already know how to find information in libraries, how to outline essays and books, and how the publication process works. These readers may find some of the information here similar to what they have learned from basic English courses and from their own publication experiences. Others are familiar with how to approach tribes for permission to write about them and how to conduct interviews. Still, I am consistently asked questions about how to write, where to find ideas, how to submit a proposal to tribes, and how to submit essays and book manuscripts to journal editors and book publishers. Even writers with many published books and essays are curious about how others find and organize data. I certainly am. Many more are frustrated by the processes of submitting their work and peer review, and they want to know how they can make their experiences smoother. Therefore,I have tried to incorporate the most common questions and concerns that I repeatedly hear regarding writing and publishing about American Indians. Some readers will notice that I have missed a few aspects of the business, but I hope all readers will find some useful tips. This book contains a chapter on writing fiction. The field of American Indian literary criticism has exploded, and today there are hunix BOB — University of Nebraska Press / Page x / / So You Want to Write about American Indians? / Devon Abbott Mihesuah preface 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 [-10], (2) Lines: 19 to 25 ——— 0.0pt PgVar ——— Normal Page PgEnds: TEX [-10], (2) dreds of Natives and non-Natives writing poetry, novels, and short stories. While some of this work might be considered “popular” writing – that is, the work is geared toward mainstream America and not toward Natives or academics – the process of gathering ideas, finding inspiration, and locating publishers is similar to what nonfiction writers face. Many Native writers (such as Elizabeth Cook-Lynn, Paula Gunn Allen, Daniel Justice, Craig Womack, Gerald Vizenor, and Jack Forbes) are interested in writing both fiction and nonfiction, and their academic and “mainstream” work are inexorably tied together. The most prevalent readers of Native literature are scholars in the academy who make it their business to dissect and analyze what fellow Native writers have to say. This book is as a primer for those contemplating writing about Natives and for those who have already experienced writing success. It offers ideas for research, inspiration, and organization. Also included are discussions of key concepts that every author writing about Natives should be aware of: stereotypes, author bias, the politics of publishing, ethics in research and writing, accountability in research and language use, ethnic fraud, and contract negotiation. This book is for students and established writers,for those who have completed an essay or book and do not know how to find a publisher, and for those who cannot figure out why they are unable to find a publisher for their work. I don’t consider myself to be a particularly good writer, but I am persistent. I have never taken a literature class or a course on creative writing, but both my first nonfiction book and my first fiction book...