In the late 1960s, Marks assumed a false Native identity, claiming to be Cherokee, used the name “Jamake Highwater” for his writings. As Highwater, he wrote and published more than 30 fiction and non-fiction books on music, art, poetry, and history. His children’s novel Anpao: An American Indian Odyssey (1973) received a Newbery Honor. His book The Primal Mind: Vision and Reality in Indian America (1981) was the basis of a PBS film documentary about Native American culture.