It's time for another installment for the Insecure Writer's Group, hosted by Alex J. Cavannaugh . If you'd like to learn more about this fantastic group, please click on the aforementioned link. The controversy surrounding J.K. Rowling's depiction of marginalized cultures in her latest book made me nervous. I haven't read the story, so I can't say whether the contents are offensive to Native Americans. However, given her reputation as a writer, I doubt she'd purposely insult an entire culture. Unfortunately, in this case, her intentions don't matter. At the end of the day, her works do--works that had an unintended effect. This brings me to the reason I'm feeling nervous. I'm in the throws of writing a YA Fantasy, set on the Indian reservation in Lame Deer, Montana. My MC is Native American, as are 99-percent of the characters. After living in Oklahoma for several years (a state with strong Native American ties), I always wanted to ...