1) A kernel for the idea of GIVEN TO THE SEA was planted a very long time ago when I was a child. I loved the TV movie of IVANHOE with Anthony Andrews. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivanhoe_(1982_film) There's an amazing scene with Sam Neill and Olivia Hussey where she's locked in a tower and he comes to see her. She thinks he's there to force himself upon her and she gets up in the window and says she'll jump if he comes a step closer. He's a decent guy who means her no harm, so he manages to talk her down but it's a very powerful scene. It stuck with me (even though I didn't understand all the implications until I was older). Elements from that scene have found their way into SEA at various levels - the girl who doesn't want to be touched, a boy in a power position who *could* take advantage if he wanted, a girl who's pride is so strong she'll die before she submits.
2) This is my first fantasy, and I went into it reminding myself that I had complete creative freedom. This is my own world in which I can do anything that I want. The life forms don't even have to be carbon based if I choose. It came time to make up some woodland creatures and for the life of me the only thing I wanted to populate the woods with was huge feral housecats. So I took all my freedom of creativity and made big tabbies.
3) Likewise, I had this idea that writing fantasy would be easy because I get to make up all the rules, no research required. Not true. In a contemporary your audience already knows, in a sense, what the setting is. If I say the main character attends a poor public school, you get the idea and I don't have to do all the world building - it's implied. In fantasy, nothing is a given, nothing is assumed. I have to do a lot of explaining... and keep that interesting. I've written post-apocalytpic, historical, contemporary, and now fantasy. Fantasy is by far the hardest.
4) Part of the idea for Khosa's pre-disposition to dance into the sea is based on a book I read about Huntington's disease, which is what killed Woody Guthrie. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huntington%27s_disease) It's a hereditary disease that causes spasmodic movements that make it appear that the sufferer is dancing, however the movements are outside of their control. I wondered what it would be like to be trapped in a body you can't control, headed toward the sea, while onlookers simply let you go because they think you are doing this willingly. *shudder*
5) The Indiri twins, Donil & Dara, are my favorite characters in the book. I know I'm showing my age here, but part of their creation comes from the dancing baby off Ally McBeal. I thought that was just about the creepiest thing I had ever seen in my life. But then I thought about a baby that could have that kind of body control, what it could learn early on about coordination and movement. That baby could become one heck of a fighter... and so a long time ago I had this idea in my head about a culture where babies are "born knowing" - able to speak, walk, process logic - all from birth. They don't have to spend the first few years of their life learning how to feed themselves, or the alphabet. They'd be way ahead of everybody else.