Broken Fields (Soho Crime, Mar.) is the author’s fourth Indigenous crime novel following Ojibwe amateur sleuth Cash Blackbear as she tries to solve disappearances, murders, and other mysteries happening around her—all-too-common occurrences in Native American communities. Rendon, who is a member of the White Earth Nation and the first Native American woman to receive the McKnight Foundation’s Distinguished Artist award, spoke with PW about Indigenous representation in media, portraying hard-hitting issues in fiction, and storytelling from a Native perspective.
What has Cash Blackbear taught you over the course of this series?
When I was initially trying to write crime novels—because that’s what I like to read—I was failing at it. So I began writing other things, but then it was almost like Cash Blackbear appeared to me. As long as I was listening to Cash and telling Cash’s story, I could tell it was working. So I’ve learned to pay close attention to the characters rambling around in my head.
What inspired you to amplify the issues affecting Native communities, such as the missing and murdered Indigenous women crisis?
I live in and am part of the community, and it’s just part of our lives. I have daughters and granddaughters, so there’s a constant consciousness about where they are and ensuring their safety. This issue is so prevalent, and honestly there doesn’t seem to be much effort or energy put into addressing it. There’s more happening now—Minnesota and North Dakota both have [missing and murdered Indigenous relatives] task forces—but it’s still a really difficult issue.
Why is it crucial that Native stories are represented across all literary genres?
Because we exist across all genres. Native people read books and watch movies and television, and it’s crucial for us to see ourselves represented. We’re not locked in the past. We didn’t disappear. That’s one of the primary things I’m trying to say with all of my writing—that we still exist. And we exist in all of the multiplicities of who human beings are. We’re not just in history or academia or wandering in the woods looking at plants. We’re so much more than just that.
How do your Indigeneity and lived experiences influence your work?
I don’t have another identity to draw on. Years ago, when I first started writing, I tried to write a children’s play where there was no cultural identity, so it could be played by anyone. When it was read by a group of kids, it was so clear that it was a Native story with Native humor—and I had literally been trying not to do that. That’s why my crime novels are set here in Minnesota. I write Minnesota Native stories because I was born, raised, and have lived my entire life here. I couldn’t write books set in New York or France.
What does it mean to you to be part of a new Native renaissance?
It’s really exciting. Throughout my lifetime, we’ve seen Native stories come into the spotlight every 20 years or so, but this time it seems like it’s going to be longer, deeper, broader, and more sustainable. Growing up, I didn’t have any [Native] books. My kids and my grandkids have more to draw on than we ever had, with so many more books written by Natives representing Natives as we exist today. There’s no reason why any kid shouldn’t be able to find a book that creates a mirror for them.
Kate Nelson, an Alaska Native Tlingit tribal member, is a writer and editor living in Minneapolis.
