During a book talk at Rivermont Collegiate on October 19, 2006, Green shared that the idea of Takumi's "fox hat" in "Looking for Alaska" originated from a Filipino friend who wore a similar hat while playing pranks at the school. He also noted that his inspiration for the possessed swan in Culver Creek derived from a similar swan he remembers at Indian Springs. The two pranks that occur in the book are similar to pranks that Green pulled at school, but Green emphasizes that while the setting is based on his life, the novel is entirely fictional.