Calahan Skogman crafts a sensational tapestry imbued with the most intricate elements of grief, nostalgia, and those unexpected forms of healing in his debut novel 'Blue Graffiti'. 

With Blue Graffiti, the journey follows Cash; a beautifully layered protagonist with a fractured past attempting to overcome his demons while also experiencing the rush of nostalgia as he navigates through his hometown. 

It all changes when a woman named Rose walks into his favourite bar. What's rest is a tale of self-introspection, love, exploration, friendship, and much more. 

From the first page, the reader is ensnared into the fascinating world of Blue Graffiti further transcending into the profound impact of camaraderie, broken past, and the essence of discovering one's most authentic self.

With Blue Graffiti being his debut novel, Skogman already echoes the ethos of transforming into the next writing maestro with this contemporary literary offering. Skogman perfectly amalgamates poignancy with the sense of comforting nostalgia as Cash follows around in diverse landscapes often immersing himself in things that might bring him reminiscence of his upbringing and heal his inner child. 

While Skogman has been familiar with the world of literature, Blue Graffiti marks his official debut as an author under his true name. 

We chat with Calahan Skogman about all things Blue Graffiti. 

Thank you for joining me! I obviously would love for you to take me back to those initial phases of your phenomenal literary debut offering 'Blue Graffiti'.

What was the original inspiration behind 'Blue Graffiti' and how did you realise this was a story worth penning down and transforming the concept into a book? 

Well, first of all, thank you for saying that. I appreciate that. Blue Graffiti was born out of a time a few years ago following the filming of the first season of Shadow and Bone and the pandemic hits.

It was just a time- a very unknown, chaotic unsure footing period of life where I had to figure some things out. I left Los Angeles because I wanted to be with my family during this time. So, I went back to the Midwest for the first time in forever for an extended period of time. 

And it just allowed me to kind of reset, get my feet on the ground, breathe fresh air, spend a lot of time with my family and best friends that I hadn't gotten the chance to connect with in quite some time as well as return to what was essential and important during a time that kind of pressed us into really reflecting on that. 

So, I just used that time to get back to my roots, but also to dive back into literature and poetry and a lot of those things that were always important to me but I hadn't had a lot of time to really dive into before that.

At least over the course of the five years prior to that, it was the first time I really got to sit with it all. So, I dove back into some of my literary heroes and just started getting really inspired from a writing standpoint. 

I was ruminating a lot, reflecting, diving into nostalgic things and themes about my own life. And that's when I figured I could try my hand at the novel thing.

I'd written a lot of screenplays and hundreds of poems, but, I had never tried the form of a novel. And I also believe it was reading those B-generation writers and, you know, some of my other heroes, whether it's Hemingway or Fitzgerald or Salinger, I was getting very inspired.

It was kind of a perfect storm. I had the time, I had the inspiration and I just dove in. And four weeks later, I'd written the first draft of Blue Graffiti. 

Blue Graffiti is officially your literary debut as Calahan Skogman but you have released certain projects beforehand under a different author name. 

So, what was it that made you realise this was finally the perfect moment to release a book under your own name rather than a pseudo-pen name as you did with your work prior to Blue Graffiti? 

That's a great question. I believe that when I first wrote it, I never had any conception of releasing it widely to the public. I wanted to write it for my family, my best friends, and that was kind of it. It was kind of a love letter to them, the place that I was from.

It wasn't one of my ambitions to get it out to the world. So, I think using a pen name when I was putting it out online was more conducive to that. But also, back then, I think for whatever reason, I was interested in having a separation between me as the actor and me as the writer.
And I thought that I wanted to let the book just be the book and not have any kind of other influence on it that might come from myself or from my acting career, Shadow and Bone. I just wanted the book to be the book and that was fine with me. I didn't care if a lot of people read it. So I just was like, 'Okay, I'll do it under a pen name'.

It wasn't until later, a year or so after that, that I really started to consider getting it published in a real way. And then it became not only to become less important to me to have a differentiation between myself as the writer and the actor, but it became actually essential to me that they be attached as a writer and as a person.

I looked at it in a way that a lot of the artists that I admire and respect so much are very vulnerable with their work and very transparent about their craft. 

They just put their heart and soul into their creative process. They stand bravely by it and they don't worry about all the outside noise, perception and everything that can follow that.

So, I fell in love with that notion and thought that it was absolutely necessary for my name to be on it because I wanted to be attached to it in that way and to say, 'Hey, here's a window into my soul, my creative process, my dreamscape, and hopefully you can see your reflection in it as well'.

This book has a lot of instances where Cash immerses himself into those little, intricate moments like being at his favourite bar, gazing at the constellation, or watching the snowflakes, those ambiences are particularly affiliated with some sense of comfort and nostalgia.

So, pertaining to that, is there any kind of setting that you personally find comfort in when it comes to reading or writing or you find yourself luring towards when you need some self-introspection or perhaps just to heal your inner child?  

Wow, that's a great question. I love a lot of the places that you just outlined. I think when I go back to the Midwest, there's a great deal of pleasure in being just in the land in general; looking up at the sky at night and seeing the stars and just the kind of infinite feeling that that has always been instilled in me even as a really young child.

And the feeling of the cold and cool grass beneath your feet on those same evenings and just the air, the country air and really a revitalizing feeling that I still crave constantly and go back home when I can. 

And the feeling of rain and the water, the rivers and the lakes. And these are all things that are so entrenched in me that bring me a great deal of peace and comfort when I need them and when I need to be reset in a way. Because on one hand, I crave that kind of environment. And I think I do a lot of good reflection and dreaming in those spaces.

But there's a whole other side of me that really craves kind of the chaos of life as well. And so that's why it's nice that I can go off to Los Angeles or New York or London or wherever these cities are where I can kind of immerse myself in a million different things at once. And there's a level of peace that I gain from that as well, because it takes me outside of my head. 

I think when things really slow down, sometimes I can get myself in a little bit of trouble because I get so – I start vibrating almost like I have too much energy and thought and kind of always have this propulsion forward. You know, that's why it's so nice to be in Los Angeles for stretches of time. 

I love writing everywhere. I wrote all of my books in a different city. So I like going somewhere new and kind of having a level of isolation, but at the same time, being able to write all day and then go out and explore a new place, a new city, or a new feeling. 

I just love being immersed in all sorts of different areas of the world, so, I think that really informs your creative process.

I do believe some of my favorite places are those places back home where I can really feel attached to who I am, who I've always been, and who my ancestors were. And then when I gather enough of that energy up, I kind of explode back out into the world again.

Kindly walk me through the writing process for this novel. Are you a fan of a more flexible writing style and wrote as you went on or did you already have an established narrative and plotted arcs in your mind that you further branched out on and wrote your sequences around?

I wasn't attached to anything as far as the process and the end result went. I wasn't attached to any of that. I just wanted to see what unfolded. The only thing I was attached to was allowing myself to be as spontaneous as possible and to commit to following the story wherever I impulsively and intuitively wanted it to go.

So I knew the character. I knew Cash. I knew where he was at the start. I knew who he saw when he looked over across the bar. And from there, I just needed to make sure that I kind of got out of the way as much as possible and tried to channel almost a subconscious dreamscape world that kind of rides beneath all of my overbearing analytical thinking, which is useful in the editing process, but it's not really useful for me in the first initial process of writing. 

I want to basically write as fast as possible with as little editing, as free-flowing, and as spontaneous as possible and then later hopefully when I return to it, I can let that analytical scientific brain get to work and kind of get its paws all over the initial burst of creativity and I think that's a good process for me so I'm sticking with that. 

That's also the most pleasurable artistic experience for me as well. So I think that's important and that's the way I love to write.

I would still choose to do it that way because I think as an artist, a lot of times you're chasing that feeling when you're creating it as well in this kind of inspiration. So I think that seems to be the sweet spot for me. 

Did you face any challenges while trying to write Blue Graffiti? Perhaps a sequence that looked so fascinating during its visualization but when it came to writing that particular scene down, you just couldn't figure it out? 

See that's the thing. For better or worse, I was really able to get myself out of the way as far as I could. I didn't really stop myself so if I had an idea and I had an impulse, I had some kind of level of innate intuitive storytelling capability where I would be steering burst of spontaneity, just to follow it, write it, and put it down on the page and only worry about its usefulness, its goodness or its effectiveness later.

And so that way I can put it all down. I can get the book done, you know, and whether or not it's, uh, whether or not it's any of those qualifiers that I just listed, it's a problem for the future. At least you have the book written and it's a lot easier to deal with it, um, in retrospect, rather than stopping yourself so much along the way.

So my struggles really were just narrowed down to those things as far as daily trust and daily commitment. And there were plenty of times when I didn't know how the hell I was going to get to 4,000 words in a day but I had committed to that. 

So there was a sense of willpower that was useful as far as 'No, I'm here and I'm going to write it. I'm going to finish it and even if I think this is trash or if I'm judging it from the outside as I'm creating it that's fine and I'll deal with the consequences later and that was just the daily kind of mantra that allowed me to finish the book so quickly and do so in a way that felt passionate and enjoyable. 

And is there any sequence that's so memorable for you that you would absolutely love to know everyone's reaction to? 

It's really hard for me to choose one versus the other as far as passages or sequences go. I think the ending of both of the parts are particularly poignant and beautiful. 

I loved writing the end of the first part upon the first draft so much as well as even going back and revisiting it and then also closing the book out. 

I think stylistically I'm so thankful for it because I was able to dive into a very poetic style mixed with more terse dialogues and I wanted to capture the mundane minutiae slow pace of the world in which he was in through.

Like some poetic wandering but also the just, the truthfulness of the characters there and so I really enjoyed exploring those stylistically as well. 

I think for a reader to experience it is quite something because I believe your form is informed so much by all of your life, and all of the people that you've read. And to see how a writer goes about tackling a novel stylistically is always so fascinating to me.

So, I hope people can get a taste of what I was going for there, enjoy it, and kind of be along for the ride. And hopefully, that's like a little wave that carries you throughout my book. 

For your acting role especially most recently seen in Netflix's 'Shadow and Bone', you went through a lot of physical training in order to get into the physique of the character but do you think you personally go through any such similar training but mentally as a writer in order to get yourself into the mindset of your characters before actually beginning to craft the story? 

Yes, I personally love that process. It's one of my favorite things about both art forms. I love escaping into or travelling into different mindsets, worlds, and ways of thinking. It really feels relieving to me to hop into someone else's life or imagination for a second.

I love doing that with characters, acting, and the feeling that I can be somebody else for a little while. And you go about that in so many different ways- whether it's transforming your body, your mind, filling journals up with character backstories. All of that is incredible as an actor. 

I believe it's a similar process for a writer as well. Essentially, you go back to that kind of imaginative brain that we all have as children; it's like where you don't try to get the consciousness, the analytical controlling part of your brain outside as much as possible and just be free and just believe. 

I also think a lot of it is that belief. You believe you are the character, you believe you are in these circumstances, and then your mind and your creative mechanism can do a lot of things that are pretty special if you can kind of inhabit that space and have enough freedom to let it come out. 

And we've been doing it since we were kids. We're all able to play these games, and pretend we're something else without any judgment. So, we really can get into it. I think I loved that growing up as well. 

So, it's just about commitment. It's about freedom. It's about work in the sense of spending time in that dreamland and just kind of wondering about who this person is, why they do what they do, how they go about doing it, what they want, and how they go about getting it. It's a similar process for both actually. 

As mentioned before, you had certain books released under a pen name prior to the launch of Blue Graffiti, but this is your first book under your official name. 

So, what was that anticipation period like for you, knowing people are finally about to indulge themselves in this beautiful and intimate piece of work, knowing that it was you who penned and crafted it? Any nervousness or pressure you felt before the release?

There's a level of personalisation that you have to be able to accept; otherwise, it can be a very crippling thing; I think that's kind of the deal you make as an author, especially when you're writing fiction and stream-of-consciousness storytelling that seems to originate from a place that is very familiar to the author itself so it’s like you're going to have people naturally assuming things about the character, about the book, and even associating it with your life even if you want them to or not. But I think that's the kind of the responsibility that I wanted as a writer to be able to say, 'Hey, here's a window into my soul, my dreams, my ruminations.', or 'This story in this world that I wanted to create'.

It's a willingness. You must be willing to allow people in there to peruse and have thoughts and opinions because people always do, and to know that that part of the process doesn't matter.

You have to be able to separate the two or have a kind of bravery about that. I have my experience with this work. I know what it was to create it, what I felt like to make it, and what I intended for it in creation. Still, as far as other people consume it, that is so far outside of your hands and is an entirely different thing that is not associated with the artist's experience of the work. 

You have to be able to separate the two and be like l, this has nothing to do with my intention or the pleasure with which I created the thing, and it's just for my consumption.

However, I want to take it. Suppose I want to read it or read reviews, fine. Whatever it is, it's just a different thing. And so, I'm comfortable with people getting that insight into me as a creative person. 

I want the book; I want everything I do as an artist to be a conduit for me to spread light and love in the world. That's really what I'm more interested in. I know what my intentions were with this novel and all of my work. So, at the end of the day, I'm passionate about that. That allows me to put one foot in front of the other and then stand my ground and be like, 'Here's my book. I hope that you love it.' 

How has the reception been? The book has been out for more than 20 days, so are you enjoying the response you have received so far on Blue Graffiti? 

Yeah, that's crazy; it's like three weeks now. I can't believe that the reception for it has been pretty spectacular. I think that anytime someone's read the book, period, it's still a surprise to me, let alone when they say beautiful things about it or they seem to have resonated with it or they love the language or even if they don't like it stylistically but they think the words are beautiful. Whatever it is, it's all a surreal kind of process for me still, but I am trying to ride the wave as much as possible, embrace it and not attach too much of my self-worth to the results-oriented culture that we can kind of sometimes slip into as people and as artists, of course. 

I think that it's just to sit back and enjoy the prospect of the book being out there and believing in its soul, believing in the fabric of what I tried to instill into that book, what I'm trying to instill into the world and standing firm behind that. Whether millions of people read it or ten people read it, the book will be what the book will be. 

It will blossom in the way it wants to blossom and how people want it to blossom. So, it's just about being appreciative and grateful for the whole gamut of possibilities and the process and like I said, riding the wave and staying thankful for the entire thing regardless, and just signing hundreds of copies of the book. I took many moments in that day to sit there and kind of process it. It's significant and I'm very grateful for that.

I don't know if I'll quite wrap my mind around it for a while, but now the book tour is done, I'm back and I can breathe, I think that I'm slowly starting to feel its magnitude.

Straying the conversation slightly away solely from the book, you also just wrapped up your Blue Graffiti book tour. First of all, huge congratulations on that! What was it like meeting your fans and showcasing your book on such a massive stage with such talented authors? 

That was sensational. I couldn't believe I was in these iconic bookstores with such genuine, passionate, authentically kind people who were interested in hosting me and thankful to have me, as I was grateful to be there with them. 

The number of people who attended my book tour events is mind-boggling. I was prepared for maybe five people at an event, and there ended up being hundreds. It's just something special. 

When I'm in those rooms and with the people that showed up for the book and for me; you have to be in the room to know what it is, but it's a dream come true because those rooms were filled with the kind of energy that I'm interested in putting out into the world; so kind, so loving, so passionate and free and supportive and just together a togetherness truly and I think that that's that is the energy and that's the power and uh light that I'm interested in representing in the world.

I believe the world needs that as much of as possible so to be in this collection of cities throughout America and feeling that kind of momentum and charge of goodness in each different city was just something I was so humbled by.

And I'm still, like I said, wrapping my mind around it. I'm just so thankful for the people that believe in me, in the story, and believe more so ultimately in this movement of gratitude, love, and taking care of one another. It's like we're in this thing together and I like that feeling. I believe I'm interested in connecting all of us as much as possible so that's always going to be my main passion; the hopeful result of any art that I try to contribute to the world. 

A lot of authors usually try experimenting with other branches of literature as well and I know you have showcased your knack for quotes and poetry to your fans on your social media platform. 

So, are there any plans to publish and try out a different genre of book or perhaps craft an official poetry collection in the future? 

I would love to get one of my poems and my poetry out into the world in a published form. I think that I will do that at some point. The problem is I keep writing so much more poetry that I keep on having to revise the collection and then it's just hard to decide which poems are going to make the cut or not. 

I've written two other books since Blue Graffiti. So, the second one is going to be a prequel. Cash is in eighth grade. And then the third one is in a universe altogether itself. I want it to be a staple of my life forever. And of course, I'm willing to explore genre. 

I think I want to write like a pure romance book. The third book that I wrote which I'm not going to give away the title of just yet explores genre more. It's still very realism but it gets into mystery, horror, and drama a bit more. And so, I love that. I'm down to explore whatever. 

I love writing. I don't think about it so much as a genre thing. It's not until afterwards that people kind of tell me exactly what type of novel I've written. Primarily with Blue Graffiti, people will label it as romance or lit-fiction or whatever they put on it. 

Personally, I get why that's important for some people or why it's just exciting or worth the study. But for me, oftentimes I'm just like- I don't like labels in any capacity. I just feel like it shrinks things.

It sometimes makes me uncomfortable, so we'll see but a lot of my writing will be varied. I'm excited to explore. And hopefully people continue to want to read things that I put together, and as long as that's the case, I'll keep going, but honestly if that weren't the case, I'd still keep writing anyway because I love to do it

Ending Note: Thank you so much for taking out the time to talk to me, I'd like to wrap up our beautiful conversation by asking what's next for you, Calahan?

I know you just recently announced your involvement in "A Big Bold Beautiful Journey" starring alongside the wonderful Margot Robbie, so what's the recent update with that and anything else you're currently working on? 

Yes, 'A Big Bold Beautiful Journey' will be out May 9th, which I believe is the scheduled release. So, we got a little while there, but obviously, I was very fortunate to participate in that in some capacity. 

I'm still writing every day. I have those two other books I want to get moving along with in that process. 

I’m auditioning a bunch like any other aspiring actor. It's a great process, you know. It's one that's filled with a lot of opportunity and moments where you feel very close to something that can be very life-altering. And that's very exciting.

And, of course, it's also a profession where you deal with massive amounts of failure but more so rejections or 'no's' or whatever you want to label it as. But I'm trying to not attach myself to even thinking about them as no's, failures, or rejections as much as possible and just being like it's all part of the process.

Although, I have a good feeling that something special is on the way. My mantra is just that I will get my opportunity and I'll be ready for it. I've never been more ready so I'm just looking forward to diving into my next acting project; whatever that might be and I'm going to keep the writing coming in the meantime. 

I'm also training like a madman. I'm going to do some fitness competitions later in the year. I box a lot, and I water ski. I keep myself busy. So, it's just all part of the same kind of thing. 

I love exploring my life and diving in more profound ways which is spreading love and kindness. I think that's all I'm interested in. So, let's keep it rolling. 

Blue Graffiti is currently available to be purchased at:- https://www.unnamedpress.com/all-books/p/blue-graffiti