Smoke and Key by Kelsey Sutton: Sutton’s Top Ten Addictions

Kelsey was born in Tucson, Arizona. Shortly after this her mother moved them to Minnesota, where she’s remained ever since. There has never been a time when Kelsey was not writing. As a child she would come home from school, pull out her plastic bin full of markers and paper, and arrange everything around herself in a circle. She would then fold some paper in half, staple the side three times, and proceed to fill the white spaces with words and pictures.

The first novel Kelsey ever finished was so thick it could have served as a doorstop. The story was about Victorian vampires. It was 2008 and she was sixteen years old. Kelsey did research on how to get a book published and discovered what a literary agent was. She promptly sent a query to one.

Understandably, that awkward, snail-mail query received no reply. As the days turned into weeks, Kelsey reconsidered her approach. She concluded that maybe this manuscript wasn’t the one she wanted to show the world. So she took another year and wrote a completely new suspense novel. It was 2009. Kelsey was seventeen and on her own.

By this time she had realized that agents accepted e-mail queries and there wasn’t only one of them in the world. Kelsey sent off a new query to several agencies; Beth was among that list. After a long, enlightening journey, she again shelved a manuscript. Time passed. Kelsey graduated high school in 2010 and immediately afterwards ran off to California. She wrote another novel. Then she came back to her beloved Minnesota and got responsible, enrolling in college and finding a job.

And in the beginning of 2011, Kelsey queried Beth again. She was eighteen years old with a story that was new, strange, and exciting. She had written it during a time when she was living with people she didn’t know that well, in a place that was a little frightening, during a time when absolutely nothing was certain. Beth quickly got back to her. The subject of the e-mail read, RE: Query: SOME QUIET PLACE.

The rest, as they say, is history.

1. Pacific Chai Vanilla Latte

There was a time in my life where I was trying every single Chai brand the grocery store sold. That’s how I came across this. I can’t tell you how many cups I’ve had since then—the number probably rivals the numbers of stars in the sky—but it’s safe to say I have an addiction.

https://www.chaidirect.com/product-chai-tea-p/pacific-vanilla.htm

2. Urban fantasy

This is a more recent addiction, but when it comes to my reading choices, I’ve been inhaling every urban fantasy title/series I can get my hands on. I’ve discovered some of my favorite authors because of it. Patricia Briggs, Ilona Andrews, etc.

3. Parks and Rec

I have now seen every episode so many times that I really shouldn’t still be laughing at the jokes, but I do. This is probably my favorite TV show of all time, and to say I’m addicted to it would be putting it lightly. I have this show on in the background constantly.

4. Red lipstick

There must be some kind of magic or science behind this, but I can be having the worst day ever or feel like the most unattractive person ever, but one coat of bright red lipstick changes everything.

5. Jordan

It may seem weird to refer to your partner as an addiction, but I thought he probably belonged on this list. He’s one of my favorite human beings on the planet. Spending time with him doesn’t feel like expending energy to my introverted self. He’s been there through so many of my highs and lows, and I know he’ll support me no matter what. (You know, short of murder or something.)

6. Dogs

I have more pictures of dogs on my phone than I do of anything else. I own a pet sitting business, I foster for two rescues, and I have two fur babies of my own. I live and breathe dogs. They are not an addiction; they are a way of life.

7. Instagram

I spend way too much time on here. Way, way too much time. I run four accounts. There are so many stories to watch, pictures to see, people to talk to. It’s become a sad reality of my life where I have to deliberately try to reduce my screen time every time, or I’d just be on Instagram every free moment. So, yes, this is definitely an addiction.

8. Being home

I am very much a homebody and an introvert. There’s nothing I love more than coming home after a trip, or after a long day at work, or after an outing in which I talked to a lot of people. Home is safe and warm. Home doesn’t expect anything of me. Home is where my books and my laptop are. Home has two sweet dogs and a man I love. I know getting out is good for me, but yes, I’m addicted to being home.

9. A clean house

Is there any better feeling than having a clean house? It feels like I am constantly cleaning. We also have a wonderful woman who comes over once a week to help us manage the mess. (Typing this, I honestly have no idea how we’re such disasters. I’m sure the parade of dogs doesn’t help.)

10. Saving

This may seem a weird “addiction”, but it’s such a rush for me to save money. I love the feeling of logging into my bank account and seeing that I’m okay, and I will be okay if anything were to happen. This may just be a normal thing for a person, or it could be a result of someone who was once homeless as a teenager. I have no idea.

Thank you so much for having me on Feed Your Fiction Addiction!