I'm unsure if there are better subreddits to ask about this topic, but this was the first place I could think of. If there is a sub someone knows of that will have a more reliable perspective on cultural feelings and representation, I'd highly appreciate it if you could direct me there.
Essentially, I'm trying to write a novel that has an absurdist take on oldschool treasure hunter adventures, and part of the quest involves bumping into a township, near where the fabled "lost temple" supposedly filled with Indiana Jones traps and treasure is supposed to be.
Though the world my story is set in is fictitious, I have previously been advised that making a culture like this look "generally indiginous" could lead to some uncomfortable sideways glances, due to issues concerning homogenisation. In which case, if I were to select a specific group for aesthetic influence in terms of clothing and buildings etc, I'd go with the Maya. Wondered if anyone could recommend sites detailing reliable accounts on these topics? One thing I found that I thought could be counted on for reference for clothes is this artist's rendition: https://www.deviantart.com/kamazotz/art/Postclassic-Maya-of-Yucatan-Set-Females-297302232 They provided sources (though you gotta squint to read them), so should assume this is reliable?
The main part these locals would play into the story is briefly providing lodgings for the protagonists, and the protagonists might learn some life lessons and the sort while they're there. Otherwise I wasn't planning to go into detail on local traditions or anything (I was going to avoid any "they're so unlike us!" tropes if I could catch myself).
But eventually, they'd feature into the climax, with the central villain coming to take something, and they and the protagonists team up to take him down. I want to be careful to avoid falling into a "white saviour" trap, so I figured it was necessary to present the victory as a group effort.
If there's some basic pointers I've failed to consider, I'd be happy to hear about them
Hi there - we're happy to approve your question related to your creative project, and we are happy for people to answer. However, we should warn you that many flairs have become reluctant to answer questions for aspiring novelists and the like, based on past experience: some people working on creative projects have a tendency to try to pump historians for trivia while ignoring the bigger points they were making, while others have a tendency to argue with historians when the historical reality does not line up with what's needed for a particular scene or characterization. Please respect the answers of people who have generously given you their time, even if it's not always what you want to hear.
Additionally, as amazing as our flair panel is, we should also point out that /r/AskHistorians is not a professional historical consultation service. If you're asking a question here because you need vital research for a future commercial product such as a historical novel, you may be better off engaging a historical consultant at a fair hourly rate to answer these questions for you. We don't know what the going rate for consultancy work would be in your locality, but it may be worth looking into that if you have in-depth or highly plot-reliant questions for this project. Some /r/AskHistorians flairs could be receptive to working as a consultant in this way. However, if you wish for a flair here to do this work for you, you will need to organize this with them yourselves.
For more general advice about doing research to inform a creative project, please check out our Monday Methods post on the subject.