Simplify changing the background color of each page on InDesign

[Elaina36288325ij7n]

On Adobe InDesign I have experienced issues with changing the background colors on individual pages without losing half of my work. Whenever I try to create a new layer and draw a colored rectangle to change the background color, all of the text I put on the screen disappears. I am no longer able to select any text in the text box and it does not matter what color the text, the box, or the background is, it just disappears. I can change the paper color of the entire document, but this is an issue if I do not want every page to be the same color. This is more frustrating than words can describe because this should be the most simple function imaginable, right? Changing the background of each page can be done in the paint program that comes on my computer, so why is it like someone is pulling all of my hair out with duct tape when I try to do it on a program as advanced as Adobe InDesign? This should be part of the page editing tab. This function only pulls up very limited options currently. Those opitions should include page background colors and a swatches panel with an adjustment for transparency/how light/dark the color of the background is. An "individual page background color" button or "adjust page background" and an option of which pages to change and a preview of the color change. Please make this change. Just drawing a rectangle and sending it to the back is not working as well as creators apparently think and it would be nice not to have an entire document in the same page color (or the paper option would work well...perhaps being able to change the paper color on each individual sheet/paper would also work--but currently that does not work either). 

[kglad]

in the future, to find the best place to post your message, use the list here, https://community.adobe.com/

p.s. i don't think the adobe website, and forums in particular, are easy to navigate, so don't spend a lot of time searching that forum list. do your best and we'll move the post (like this one has already been moved) if it helps you get responses.

<"moved from using the community bugs">

[James Gifford—NitroPress]

Unless I am missing a step in your process:

• Use Parent pages for your background color, unless it's more than perhaps half a dozen. This will give you a central point of control for the colors and let you change and adjust them easily. (You can also, if it's more colors, assign an Object Style to the color rectangle and have the same considerable master control over all pages of each color.)
• On either Parent or document pages, send the color rectangle to the back of the virtual stack (Object | Arrange | Send to Back).
• Then lock the color rectangle (press Ctrl-L while the rectangle is selected, or right-click | Lock). This will prevent you from being able to select the color rectangle as you work with other objects on the page. (You can unlock it and do other things to make it accessible, but this is an excellent example of something you probably want to place, lock, and never touch again in a layout.)

Those procedures should make it a lot easier to work with background color frames.

[Robert at ID-Tasker]

@Elaina36288325ij7n 

Small update to what @James Gifford—NitroPress suggested - use Layers:

https://helpx.adobe.com/uk/indesign/using/layers.html

There are a lot of free and paid courses availabe online.