Hell Loo and good morning Eddie. How are you doing today? Good?
How are you? Absolutely fantastic. I'm going to thank you for this book
because growing up in Billings, Montana, we didn't have books like this that
told the stories of Native Americans and the lifestyle. What we had we had
history books. And I love the way that you are bringing this Indian kid
into a storybook form where people can say, you know what, I want
to write my own story. I want to be able to get out there
and share the story of my elders as well. Yeah, things to put
the book together. Where did the inspiration come from, Eddie? Because I
mean this, this is stepping out there. Well. My first book was
a collection of short stories and some of some of my experiences from youth were
taught up in it, but they didn't really say it into the story.
I was rying, but I was kind of discovering all these things that have
happened to me as a kid. So I kind of made a side note
of it. And what I finished those stories, I went back and expanded
on the Tissumingo section and I showed my agent and he liked it, and
he goes, do you have you know a lot more these stories of your
growing up, because I can see a memoir here and that's how that started.
And I'm glad that you gave yourself permission to do that because I mean
to so many times people writers especially will hide their material and it's not going
to be released. Because I've sat down with many elders and they've said that
they had saddened their heart because they didn't want to share their stories. And
he says, we're all about sharing stories. That's what the circle is about,
all right, Did you grow up in such a circle? Yeah,
one of the families that I kind of grew up with. And now this
was before our table. TV was just not coming along, so it wasn't
like or streaming wasn't even thought of then, but we would towards the end
of the day, you know, they're at a large family and everyone finally
beat home at night, and everyone want to go around talking about what happened
to them that day, you know, acting out stuff like if they met
someone who had a particular the way they talked or the the way they looked
or whateverthing just kind of act out or whatever happened to you that day in
like story form. Starting in journalism, at such an early age. I
mean, you knew about storytelling way before most people even jump into it.
That usually comes after college. But you knew that it was time to start
sharing stories as a teen, all right. I actually started writing when I
was five or six years old. We lived out in the country in Muskogie,
and then there was you know, like I said, there was no
social media. We didn't even barely had TV. So I did a lot
of reading and then writing. I just kick that cancel on paper one day
and just started doing it. And my grandma saved the first story I wrote
back when I was like five or so. Do you still have it today?
Now? We were looking for for this book, and since I'm in
Minneapolis and all the other stuff back in Oklahoma, I had to ask my
mom to look for it. She couldn't find it, but she did find
a lot of photos, but that particular story couldn't find But I know she
saved it because I saw it, you know, maybe twenty years ago somewhere,
but yeah, she saved it. The importance of this book being released
right now is so huge in my heart and so many other hearts, because,
as the reservation Dogs on Tellivision is coming to an end. People want
more stories about real, authentic Native Americans, and this book right here is
it's it's a part of it. It's it's a part of the new culture
of sharing the stories of those that that that have been hidden away because nobody
wants to talk about it. Yes we do, and that I think that
that's what that will do, is we get more stories coming out that we're
going to shoot down some of these stereotypes about all eighties who live on the
reservation, all naighties go to powout. Uh my grandma poor Blood Creek or
great grandma, you know, she didn't even speak English as a kid,
lived to be around ninety or in her eighties, never went to the powout.
Never She's full blood Indian, and uh that becomes back in her day,
that wasn't a thing. Palos weren't weren't just weren't a thing, you
know. Uh, Any dances were more traditional, right or you know,
and and if you didn't do that, like she married a Baptist creature and
that was crowned upon among the church going set, going to these traditional thought
then so yeah, so she probably didn't even do much of that much left
Powow. What was it like against Powow? I just yeah, I was
gonnay nothing against Palout. I just wasn't raised up going. You know,
I've been and everything. It's just not a something I don't do every weekend
or anything right right right, Learning how to put the thoughts onto paper,
that transition, to be able to take it from short stories into this book
right here, a memoir. I mean, my god, I mean was
that a growing period for you? Was it? How did you make that
transition? Uh? I've written columns before, personal columns for a newspapers,
so I was actually anxious to try to get a to do this. The
only problem I had was a you know, being a fiction writer all in
years, I've come to a spot and I'd say, well, why don't
we just have him, you know, like go back home and come back
that att you know, well, you can't do that, You're just making
stuff up. Like one of my first attempts I started writing about uh that
family, the Tiger family in uh Muscogie. I was trying to write a
non fix a piece about I was going to get the car. It was
a Mercedes bench get it, uh and speak couldn't get it inspected in Oklahoma.
They don't do that anymore. I don't think you used to had the
little stickers on the side. Uh and uh the uh the mechanics straped it
off and said they found a little tiny hole there and uh. And I
was trying to write a straightforward non fiction account, but then I started drifting
off and fictioning again. I started making up quotes and making up for everything
to have it. You just got to walk out for that. But that's
what's fun about being a writer. That's why well, you know, and
that's one of the reasons why I'm a daily writer in a journal, so
that I can get it as it's happening, and then this way I can
always go back and pick up where it's almost like saying, dear future reader.
In fact, that's the way I describe this book to people to about
your book, is the fact that it's almost like Eddie sat down and said,
dear future reader. Yeah, is that what you're thinking about when when
you're when you're writing for ya readers, Yes, thinking about who actually is
going to be reading this and at what age and what hopefully they learn from
it? Is a Native American life in the America right now as so diverse
and it's not just you know, uh, living on a reservation. You're
so right about that, Eddie. Where can people go to find out more
information about your writing? Because I want people to fall in love with your
writing in the way that I have, and that it really is a story
and there is a journey here. Well, they could start with my first
book. It's called Shyanne Madonna, a book short story, Black Sparrow Press
out of Boston. You can get that at bookstores or online and uh obviously
by this Indian kid, which is also there was book book shops and online
through Scholastic. I can't wait to talk to you more and more in the
future, sir, because I love what you're doing with your writing. I
appreciate it. Er excellent. Will you be brilliant today? Okay, sir,
we'll do it neat as well. Thank you,