Was there a particular book or story that first inspired your interest in the GL genre? Or did the desire to tell GL stories come naturally as part of your journey toward becoming a comic artist?

Before the age of twelve, I loved shōjo manga. Then, I moved on to shōnen manga, and later became passionate about BL manga. At the time, when submitting my work, I categorized it under shōnen manga.

One time, I was creating a manga adaptation of a TV drama script, and for some reason, two female friends were crying over a terrible man. I thought, Why not just be together instead?

I didn’t usually read GL manga, but my ex-girlfriend introduced me to many titles. That’s when I realized that, at the time, there weren’t any commercial works of this genre in Taiwan. Unexpectedly, The Pink Ribbon became the starting point for my journey into yuri storytelling.

When portraying the bond between young girls, how do you tap into the mindset of characters at that tender age? Is there anything that helps you reconnect with that emotional world?

I attended schools with mostly female students throughout my middle and high school years. The relationships between girls were sometimes close yet ambiguous, as they were in a stage of exploring themselves. I believe these experiences have indeed helped me depict the bonds between young girls.

They explore, feel anxious, and are surprised by different sides of themselves or others. They go through the bittersweet struggles of youth that most adults have experienced, and in the end, they grow. This is the aspect I aim to capture in my storytelling.

The story carries a beautifully poetic atmosphere, with layers of symbolism woven throughout. What kinds of imagery or personal experiences influenced the symbolic elements in the narrative?

The "sea" is an important element in this manga, starting with the works created by the protagonist, Kewei. I collected many photos of waves in different forms. In Chiao-jung’s story, you can feel a subtle sense of melancholy.