Editing Paul Laurence Dunbar (section)

===Writing career===
[[File:Howard Univ., Washington, D.C., ca. 1900 - class picture LCCN2001705793.tif|thumb|Howard University 1900 – class picture with Dunbar in the rear right]]
At the age of 16, Dunbar published the poems "Our Martyred Soldiers" and "On The River" in 1888 in Dayton's ''[[Dayton Herald|The Herald]]'' newspaper.<ref name=Wagner75/> In 1890, Dunbar wrote and edited ''The Tattler'', Dayton's first weekly African-American newspaper. It was printed by the fledgling company of his high-school acquaintances, [[Wright brothers|Wilbur and Orville Wright]]. The paper lasted six weeks.<ref name=howard >{{cite book|title=Wilbur and Orville: A Biography of the Wright Brothers|author=Fred Howard|publisher=[[Courier Dover Publications]]|year=1998|pages=560|isbn=0486402975}}</ref>

After completing his formal schooling in 1891, Dunbar took a job as an elevator operator, earning a salary of four dollars a week.<ref name=Wagner75/> He had hoped to study law, but was not able to because of his mother's limited finances. He was restricted at work because of racial discrimination. Dunbar was an elevator attendant in the same building in which [[Eva Best]]'s father conducted an architect's office, and she became acquainted with Dunbar and his literary endeavors through seeing him in her father's building. She was among the first persons to recognize the poetry of Dunbar and was influential in bringing him before the public.<ref name="TheDaytonHerald1925">{{cite news |title=Woman Writer Succumbs With Long Illness |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-dayton-herald-woman-writer-succumbs/146845196/ |access-date=8 May 2024 |work=The Dayton Herald |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |date=18 April 1925 |page=9 |language=en}} {{Source-attribution}}</ref>

In 1892, Dunbar asked the Wrights to publish his dialect poems in book form, but the brothers did not have a facility that could print books. They suggested he go to the [[Church of the United Brethren in Christ|United Brethren]] Publishing House which, in 1893, printed Dunbar's first collection of poetry, ''Oak and Ivy''.<ref name=howard /> Dunbar subsidized the printing of the book, and quickly earned back his investment in two weeks by selling copies personally,<ref>Wagner, 76.</ref> often to passengers on his elevator.<ref name="Alexander, 38">Alexander, 38.</ref>

The larger section of the book, the ''Oak'' section, consisted of traditional verse, whereas the smaller section, the ''Ivy'', featured light poems written in dialect.<ref name="Alexander, 38"/> The work attracted the attention of [[James Whitcomb Riley]], the popular "Hoosier Poet". Both Riley and Dunbar wrote poems in both standard English and dialect.

His literary gifts were recognized, and older men offered to help him financially. Attorney Charles A. Thatcher offered to pay for college, but Dunbar wanted to persist with writing, as he was encouraged by his sales of poetry. Thatcher helped promote Dunbar, arranging work to read his poetry in the larger city of [[Toledo, Ohio|Toledo]] at "libraries and literary gatherings."<ref name="poetry"/> In addition, psychiatrist Henry A. Tobey took an interest and assisted Dunbar by helping distribute his first book in Toledo and sometimes offering him financial aid. Together, Thatcher and Tobey supported the publication of Dunbar's second verse collection, ''Majors and Minors'' (1896).<ref name="poetry"/>

Despite frequently publishing poems and occasionally giving public readings, Dunbar had difficulty supporting himself and his mother. Many of his efforts were unpaid and he was a reckless spender, leaving him in debt by the mid-1890s.<ref>Alexander, 94.</ref>

On June 27, 1896, the novelist, editor, and critic [[William Dean Howells]] published a favorable review of Dunbar's second book, ''Majors and Minors'' in ''[[Harper's Weekly]]''. Howells' influence brought national attention to the poet's writing.<ref>Wagner, 77.</ref> Though Howell praised the "honest thinking and true feeling" in Dunbar's traditional poems, he particularly praised the dialect poems.<ref>Nettels, 80–81.</ref> In this period, there was an appreciation for folk culture, and black dialect was believed to express one type of that. The new literary fame enabled Dunbar to publish his first two books as a collected volume, titled ''Lyrics of Lowly Life'', which included an introduction by Howells.

Dunbar maintained a lifelong friendship with the Wright brothers. Through his poetry, he met and became associated with black leaders [[Frederick Douglass]] and [[Booker T. Washington]], and was close to his contemporary [[James D. Corrothers]]. Dunbar also became a friend of [[Brand Whitlock]], a journalist in Toledo who went to work in Chicago. Whitlock joined the state government and had a political and diplomatic career.<ref name="DaytonLibrary">[http://home.dayton.lib.oh.us/archives/dunbar/DSeries3.html Paul Laurence Dunbar, Printed Material<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060203151339/http://home.dayton.lib.oh.us/archives/dunbar/DSeries3.html|date=February 3, 2006}}</ref>

By the late 1890s, Dunbar started to explore the short story and novel forms; in the latter, he frequently featured white characters and society.