What Inspired The Author To Write 'Indigo'?

The inspiration behind 'Indigo' seems deeply personal, almost like the author poured their soul into it. I read somewhere that they grew up near a coastal town where folklore about sea spirits was common. The protagonist's struggle with identity mirrors the author's own experiences with cultural duality—being torn between two worlds. The vivid descriptions of the ocean and its hidden depths feel too authentic to be purely fictional. There's this recurring theme of transformation that suggests the author might have gone through a significant life change before writing it. The melancholic yet hopeful tone makes me think they were processing some heavy emotions during creation.

From what I've gathered through interviews and analysis, 'Indigo' was born from multiple fascinating influences. The author has mentioned being obsessed with colonial-era maritime history, particularly ship logs documenting strange phenomena at sea. This explains the novel's meticulous attention to historical detail in its nautical settings.

The supernatural elements appear inspired by lesser-known African diaspora myths about water deities, which the author researched extensively while traveling through coastal communities. There's a clear parallel between these forgotten legends and the novel's central mythology.

What's really interesting is how personal trauma shaped the narrative. The author lost a sibling to drowning years prior, and 'Indigo' explores grief through its themes of submerged memories and resurrection. The way characters emotionally drown yet find ways to resurface feels therapeutic. The blue color symbolism throughout the book mirrors the author's description of their depression during that period.

After binge-reading everything by this author, I noticed 'Indigo' marks a clear turning point in their work. Earlier novels were urban crime stories, but then they took a sabbatical in Indonesia where locals told them about the Bugis people's gender fluidity traditions. That cultural shock sparked the novel's exploration of fluid identities.

The writing process was apparently chaotic—the author kept dream journals for months, harvesting surreal imagery that became the novel's signature hallucinatory sequences. Their fascination with bioluminescent sea creatures led to the 'indigo glow' motif representing hidden truths.

What sealed it for me was learning they wrote parts during insomnia episodes at 3AM, which explains the novel's eerie nocturnal energy. The protagonist's sleep deprivation scenes feel too visceral to be imagined.