Looking for Alaska is based on John Green's early life. Growing up, Green always loved writing, but when it came to his middle school experience, he classified life as a middle schooler as "pretty bleak".[6] As a student, Green describes that he was "unbearable" to parents and teachers; however, he always worked hard to fit in with his peers.[1] Green's situation did not improve after his transition to high school, so he asked his parents if he could attend Indian Springs School, a boarding school outside of Birmingham, Alabama. His parents agreed, and he spent the remainder of his time in high school at Indian Springs School forming valuable relationships with teachers, relationships that Green says still exist today.[6] Green's experience at boarding school inspired him to write Looking for Alaska. Many of the characters and events that take place in the novel are based on what Green experienced at Indian Springs,[6] including the death of a central character in the novel.[7]
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.[8]
As a child, Green became infatuated with famous last words, specifically those of John Adams. His fascination with last words led him to finding other famous last words, including those of Emily Dickinson, Oscar Wilde, and Simón Bolívar.[9] Green passes this love of last words onto the main character, Miles, and uses Bolivar's last words to inspire a search for meaning in the face of tragedy for the characters of his novel.[9]
