James Welch

I am definitely a storyteller, but probably not a traditional Storyteller. ↗

— James Welch

#definitely #i #i am #probably #storyteller

I do believe in the viability of Indian spiritualism. ↗

— James Welch

#i #i do #indian #viability

I think ethnic and regional labels are insulting to writers and really put restrictions on them. People don't think your work is quite as universal. ↗

— James Welch

#i #i think #insulting #labels #people

I used to object to being called an Indian writer, and would always say I was a writer who happened to be an Indian, and who happened to write about Indians. ↗

— James Welch

#always #being #called #happened #i

I wrote a lot in study hall to while away the hours. ↗

— James Welch

#hall #hours #i #lot #study

In a lot of Indian societies, spirituality has been lost, I think it's still the best way of looking at the world for Indians - better than any organized religion in this country. ↗

— James Welch

#been #best #best way #better #country

My poems were just kind of all over the place. They had no focus, no location, nothing. Kind of a series of images that could have been set anywhere. A lot of the poems were just exercises for myself. ↗

— James Welch

#been #could #exercises #focus #had

Our literature is in great shape. ↗

— James Welch

#literature #our #shape

Richard Hugo taught me that anyone with a desire to write, an ear for language and a bit of imagination could become a writer. He also, in a way, gave me permission to write about northern Montana. ↗

— James Welch

#also #anyone #become #bit #could

The title of the poems was The Only Bar in Dixon. We sent it out to The New Yorker on a fluke, and they took them and printed all three in the same issue. ↗

— James Welch

#dixon #fluke #issue #new #new yorker