21 Indigenous Writers You Should Know

Indigenous Peoples’ Day (October 13) is an official holiday in several cities that celebrate and honor Indigenous American peoples and their histories and cultures. It began as a counter-celebration held on the same day as the U.S. federal holiday of Columbus Day. This holiday is celebrated as an alternative to Columbus Day, due to the lasting effects of Columbus’s colonization of the Americas.  

On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we honor the many Native storytellers whose words and visions continue to shape our understanding of land, history, and belonging.

In Texas, Indigenous identity is layered and complex. Writers from Lipan Apache, Carrizo-Comecrudo, Tigua, and Coahuiltecan communities stand alongside Chicano and borderlands authors whose work is equally rooted in Indigenous heritage. Most Mexicans and Chicanos have Indigenous roots, descendants of Native peoples of this hemisphere who carry their stories and traditions through mestizaje.

This list doesn’t claim to be complete. Instead, it highlights a living continuum of Indigenous voices—from poets and novelists to playwrights, screenwriters, and children’s book authors. Some are citizens of tribal nations, while others identify through ancestry and community ties; all contribute to an Indigenous literary presence that is as vast and varied as the lands we walk on.

You can celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day by reading work by adding some titles by these authors to your bookshelf!

Texan Voices

1. David Bowles (Mexican American with Nahua heritage, South Texas) – Children’s and YA author blending border and Indigenous storytelling. They Call Me Güero and The Smoking Mirror celebrate bicultural identity.
2. Norma Elia Cantú (Chicana, Indigenous roots) – Scholar, poet, and fiction writer. Her memoir Canícula: Snapshots of a Girlhood en la Frontera is a classic of borderlands literature, weaving Chicana and Indigenous heritage into everyday family life. Cantú’s scholarship and poetry continue to shape Chicano/Indigenous literary studies.
3. Isaac Cardenas (Tap Pilam Coahuiltecan) – Playwright and cultural leader. His works reclaim San Antonio’s Indigenous history, including collaborations narrated by actor Jesse Borrego.
4. Xelena González (Tap Pilam Coahuiltecan descent) – González is an author whose picture book, All Around Us (illustrated by Adriana Garcia) has won national acclaim for its Indigenous cosmology and visual storytelling.
5. Stephen Graham Jones (Blackfeet Nation) is a prolific horror and literary fiction writer known for blending Indigenous perspectives with genre storytelling. His novel The Only Good Indians became a modern horror classic, and My Heart Is a Chainsaw launched his acclaimed slasher trilogy. 
6. Darcie Little Badger (Lipan Apache) – Darcie Little Badger writes speculative and YA fiction that places Texas at the heart of Indigenous futures. Elatsoe and A Snake Falls to Earth blend Apache storytelling with fantasy and science fiction.
7. Enrique R. Madrid (Jumano Apache, Big Bend region) – Historian, storyteller, and keeper of La Junta de los Ríos, the ancestral homeland of his Jumano Apache and mestizo family in the Big Bend region of Texas. Madrid’s essays and oral histories bring the Rio Bravo borderlands to life. 
8. Jesse Manciaz (Carrizo-Comecrudo / Esto’k Gna) – Tribal member and oral historian. His storytelling and activism preserve the voices and traditions of the Indigenous people of South Texas.
9. Christa Mancias (Carrizo-Comecrudo / Esto’k Gna) – Writer, activist, and Tribal Secretary. Her work defends sacred South Texas lands and highlights Indigenous leadership by women.
10. Cynthia Leitich Smith (Mvskoke / Muscogee Nation; based in Austin) – Author of the classic children’s book Jingle Dancer and curator of Heartdrum, an imprint at HarperCollins dedicated to Native children’s and YA stories.
11. Carmen Tafolla (Chicana, Indigenous roots) – San Antonio’s first Poet Laureate and a former Texas Poet Laureate, Tafolla is a poet, performer, and children’s book author whose work draws on Indigenous, Mexican, and mestizo traditions of story. Books like Curandera and Rebozos honor women’s voices, healing, and cultural survival.
12. Margo Tamez (Lipan/Jumano Apache) – Tamez is a poet, scholar, and activist. In Raven Eye, Tamez writes the history of land theft, borders, and resistance in the borderlands. Her latest book Father | Genocide explores how her father grappled with masculinity as an indigenous Texan man.
13. Juan Tejeda (Coahuiltecan Pajalate, Tlaxcalteca, Chicano/Xicanx) – Musician, educator, and publisher.  His memoir, Mi Carnal Frank (2024), tells the story of his brother​ Congressman Frank Tejeda while his music and writing celebrate Indigenous cantos, corridos, and mestizo identity.

Screenwriters

1. Sterlin Harjo (Seminole / Muscogee Creek) – Sterlin Harjo is a Native American filmmaker and writer, best known as the co-creator and director of the acclaimed FX series Reservation Dogs (2021-2023), which was groundbreaking as the first television series written, directed, and starring all Indigenous people.
2. Bobby Wilson (Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota) – Bobby Wilson is a writer and consulting producer on Reservation Dogs. He brought his experience and perspective to the show’s writers’ room, contributing to the series’ authentic portrayal of contemporary Indigenous life and helping craft the show’s distinctive blend of humor and heart that resonated with both Native and non-Native audiences.
3. Dallas Goldtooth (Mdewakanton Dakota / Diné) – Dallas Goldtooth is an Indigenous actor, comedian, and activist. He’s best known for playing Spirit (William “Spirit” Knifeman) on Reservation Dogs, the quirky and lovable character who works at the Indian Health Service clinic, and his performance brought both humor and depth to the beloved series. Beyond acting, he’s also recognized for his environmental activism and work as a content creator focusing on Indigenous issues and representation.
4. Tazbah Chavez (Paiute / Diné / Apache) – Tazbah Chavez is a Native American filmmaker and writer. She served as a writer and co-producer on Reservation Dogs, contributing to the show’s authentic storytelling and representation of Indigenous experiences. She has also directed episodes of the series, bringing her unique perspective to both the writing and visual storytelling of this groundbreaking show.
5. Sierra Teller Ornelas (Diné / Navajo) – Sierra Teller Ornelas is a television writer and producer. She served as a writer and co-producer on Reservation Dogs and has an extensive background in comedy television, having previously worked on shows like Superstore, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and Rutherford Falls (which she co-created), making her one of the prominent Indigenous voices in contemporary television comedy.
6. Blackhorse Lowe (Diné / Navajo) – Blackhorse Lowe is a Navajo filmmaker and writer who served as a writer and producer on Reservation Dogs. He’s an accomplished independent filmmaker in his own right, known for his contemplative films about Navajo life and culture, and he brought his distinctive artistic sensibility and deep understanding of Indigenous storytelling to the series.
7. Chris Eyre (Cheyenne / Arapaho) – Chris Eyre is a groundbreaking Native American filmmaker. He’s best known for directing Smoke Signals (1998), the first feature film written, directed, and co-produced by Native Americans to receive a wide theatrical release. He also directed episodes of Reservation Dogs, bringing his decades of experience in Indigenous cinema to mentor and support the next generation of Native storytellers.
8. Sydney Freeland (Diné / Navajo) – Sydney Freeland is a Navajo filmmaker and television director who is also a prominent transgender voice in entertainment. She directed multiple episodes of Reservation Dogs and has an extensive television directing career, including shows like Grey’s Anatomy, The L Word: Generation Q, and Echo. She’s known for her feature film Drunktown’s Finest (2014), which explored contemporary Native life and LGBTQ+ themes with authenticity and nuance.

This list could stretch on forever. Indigenous literature isn’t static; it is growing, evolving, and redefining itself every day. On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, let these writers be your entry point. Read their books, request them at libraries, stage their plays, teach them in classrooms, and share their stories.

Because Indigenous stories are American stories. They are human stories. And they are not finished yet.

Watch this space for part two coming soon!