The writer considered making the crow into a raven. He had never seen a raven. He got online to see if they were common in his area.

He also tried to get into the mind of the crow, wondering if a college-educated crow who'd had to turn to pimping in the city would be quite so cool about it. He wrote:

Jasper had a smooth style that belied his own frustration. He knew there was more out there and that he deserved to have it. He'd worked to rise up above his background. He deserved more. He sashayed down the sidewalk thinking about it all.