Fund a grant that promotes Indigenous storytelling

This Fundraiser will be open for donations from June 15, 2023 to December 31, 2023

What We're Asking For

History Through Fiction and author Colin Mustful invite readers and community members like you to contribute to an Indigenous Writers Grant. Our goal is to raise $10,000 to help one Indigenous writer pursue their own form of historical storytelling. We strongly believe actions like this help breakdown the legacy of historical and present wrongs perpetrated against Native peoples.

About

History Through Fiction is an independent press founded by Minnessota-based author/historian Colin Mustful. Mustful's work includes four novels related to the complex transitional period of Minnesota history when Native lands were seized, often illegally, by American hands. His newest novel, Reclaiming Mni Sota, is an alternate history of the The U.S. - Dakota War of 1862 in which the Dakota and Ojibwe people join forces to defeat the U.S. army and exile the white population, making Minnesota into Mni Sota Makoce, a Native-held and governed land. The intention of the novel is to illuminate the wrongs done to Native peoples by imagining those same wrongs done to the white settler population. It’s meant to engender empathy.

The novel will be published by History Through Fiction on October 10, 2023.

 

Doing Something Actionable

Instead of just telling people about history, Colin Mustful and his press, History Through Fiction, want to do something actionable to dismantle the legacy of historical wrongs that have had real, long-lasting effects on Native American people and cultures. That's why, Colin Mustful and History Through Fiction invite you to contribute to the Reclaiming Mni Sota Indigenous Writers Grant. We believe that by giving financial support to Indigenous storytellers, we empower them to write their own stories thereby reclaiming the narrative.

Our Pledge

History Through Fiction will contibute $1 from the pre-sale and sale of every copy of Reclaiming Mni Sota (through ALL distribution channels, in-person and online) from June 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023.

Colin Mustful will contribute 100% of his speaking fees to the grant that are booked prior to December 31, 2023.

History Through Fiction will donate 100% of our member fees to the grant.

We invite and encourage readers to make a contribution to the grant. No donation is too small.

 

Grant Advocates

Michael A. (AmikoGaabaw) Loso, an enrolled member of the Mille Lacs band of Ojibwe

Simily 

Afton Press 

Nodin Press 

FatherBaraga.org

Parkway Pizza

 

Who is Eligible for this Grant

The awardee of the grant will be chosen through an application process. The awardee must be an enrolled member of a tribal community within Minnesota. Applicants will submit a personal essay along with a sample of writing. Applicants must be able to demonstrate a clear intention to share narratives, fiction or nonfiction, about the past through creative writing. Once the successful applicant has been awarded, they may use the award toward the advancement of their creative writing projects, education, and career. For more details, or to apply, please visit the Grant Application Page.

 

Details and Disclaimers

This grant is an effort of Colin Mustful and History Through Fiction and is supported by its contributors and advocates. It is not directly affiliated with any other person or organization.

The full award will amount to the total earned through the GoFundMe campaign less fees and taxes. Therefore, the final total may not be equal to $10,000.

The fundraising period for this grant begins June 15, 2023 and ends December 31, 2023. There will be no further contributions made after December 31, 2023.

The application period begins June 15, 2023 and ends December 31, 2023. The awardee will be chosen through a reviewal process by Colin Mustful, History Through Fiction, and Indigenous Volunteer Judges. The awardee will be selected and notified no later than January 31, 2024. The grant will be awarded by check at a public event or banquet on a date to be determined, but shall be no later than May 1, 2024.

The awardee must be an enrolled member of one of the eleven federally recognized Indian Tribes in Minnesota.

The awardee agrees to provide the History Through Fiction and Colin Mustful bi-yearly updates on how the grant funding is being utilized. Colin Mustful will publish the updates on his blogs and newsletters. The awardee shall provide four total updates.

 

Thank you for your help!