Hello All! I need help writing a story and maintaining respect for Indigenous People's
Hello Everybody! I hope this is the correct place to post this.
As the title suggests, I'm in the early stages of writing a fictional novel, and I fear my plot might be disrespectful to the Indigenous Peoples of the USA. I was hoping for some help/perspective/advice in telling the story I want to tell, while still maintaining utmost respect.
A Brief Summary of My Book
My novel will follow 5 Immortal people as they live through all of human history. I have one specific character, nicknamed Napoleon, who will serve as the "Bad Guy" of the story. His entire character is a metaphor for toxic nationalism and toxic masculinity. A character who views power and influence as the goals of life. Imagine that whole Andrew Tate/Pete Hegseth ideology. His character is not necessarily evil, but instead flawed by modern societal norms.
In my story, I want Napoleon to join the Vikings when they brought the first Europeans to North America. I want Napoleon to have the goal of creating a fascist dictatorship in North America. I want him to fail for centuries, but eventually succeed in creating a dictatorship over all of North America, subjugating the indigenous people in the process.
In my novel, I want Christopher Columbus to sail to the Bahamas. But instead of being the oppressor, I want Christopher to find a technologically advanced society waiting for him on that Caribbean Beach.
As the main conflict of my novel, I want the technologically advanced North American Dictatorship to wage war against the rest of the world. My 4 other characters are going to challenge Napoleon in his conquest. Their plan will be a much more altruistic approach, honoring global cultures, showing that a globalized world can develop without colonization or taking advantage of other cultures. That will be one of the main themes of my book.
I'm sure you can already see the problem with my plot.
I hate the idea of telling a story of colonialism and conquest with the Indigenous People of North America as the victims of Napoleons Dictatorship.
Unfortunately, larger themes of my story are tied to this plot point, so I'd really like to keep it in the book. I'd have to completely rewrite my book to take Napoleon's Dictatorship out of the story.
It's worth mentioning that Napoleon will clearly be the "bad guy" of my novel. In telling his story, I plan to challenge his ideologies rather than supporting them. My Book will not glorify conquest, colonization, or anything of the sort.
Yet still, it feels wrong to be writing a book where I have the power to change the story. But instead of doing things differently, my book retells the same atrocities that haunt the history of the USA to this day.
Please comment with any advice you may have, or any thoughts you want to share. I really appreciate it! Thank you!