| Kelsey | |
| Killer Wildcats
| |
|---|---|
| Gender | Female |
| Hair color | Brown |
| Episode Eliminated | "Jalaica Farewell" |
| Place | 2nd |
| Relationship | Graham |
| Family | Parents, older brother |
| Friends | Christian, Frances, Graham, Miles, Roald, Rachel, Suvir |
| Enemies | Erica, Kaitlin, Whitney |
| Fear | Failure |
| Talent | Debating, writing essays, philanthropy |
Kelsey, labeled The Go-Getter, is a contestant on Total Drama Lakeside. She was placed on the Killer Wildcats.
Biography[]
Kelsey grew up in Southern California and attended a prestigious high school, where she was instantly embroiled in academics. By the end of her senior year, she was leading the school's debate team, editing the school newspaper, running cross country, learning French, keeping a 4.0, and getting absurdly high scores on every standardized test under the sun. Unsurprisingly, she got into a nationally renowned college and continued her intense focus on academics there. Somehow, this rarely comes at the expense of social interaction for Kelsey, since she surrounds herself with friends who are just as overachieving. She pretty much runs like a machine, but is completely self-aware about it—which lets her gives off a "chill" exterior, without taking into account the crippling anxiety consuming her at all times. There are points where she'll completely shut down, fall off the face of the earth, then show up again a week later, ready to throw herself into rigorous work again. Her secret goal is to move to Europe after college and completely reinvent herself, but after keeping up this stylized, unrealistic image of herself for so long, she knows it’s no more than a fantasy.
Kelsey wants to have a "laid-back" summer, not involving studying abroad in China or interning in DC for US senators for once, so she... signed up for Total Drama.
Total Drama Lakeside[]
Audition Tape[]
Kelsey is sitting on a bench in front of a rocky lakeside, one that looks rather familiar.
"Hey!" she begins. "I'm Kelsey. My school's hosting a competition to win a spot on this show, since I guess you're filming right nearby, and I gotta say... I'm into it. So here I am." She laughs slightly uncomfortably. "First of all, I know this place very well. I know the ins and outs of the college campus, the lake, the shittiest dive bars, everything. I could even tell you the best places to cry. If you're looking for experience in that department, well..." She laughs again. "Anyway, speaking of experience, I have a ton of it. Have I been to China? You bet. Have I interned for a US senator? Absolutely. Have I worked the social game at this Big 10 party school for the past three years, all while keeping up a 4.0? You guessed it—I have. And even if this all makes me sounds super lame, well... I am super lame, but I'm also fun! I promise! You guys are gonna love me. Plus, it'll look amazing on my resume. Okay." She pauses and looks up at whoever's behind the camera. "All good?" The camera nods up and down. "Great. Bye!"
The tape cuts out and makes way for camera static, which soon leads into another, more shaky and sneakily-filmed video.
Kelsey is sitting behind her laptop at a desk in the campus library, her makeup running, her eyes bloodshot and wide. "God, I'm so screwed," she stammers. "Why am I doing this? Why am I still awake? Emma, it's—it's 4 am. I have to go to bed. I know you do too. Did I text Mom?" She starts digging through a backpack hanging on the empty chair next to her and throws out her phone, then checks it. "10 missed calls. Okay, okay, I can't answer those right now. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, you really don't have to see this—wait, I forgot I still have to film that audition thing tomorrow morning, Jesus—I'm so glad you're editing my video, Darb, because otherwise I'd look insane—hold on—Emma, are you filming this? I'm gonna kill you if you—" she gives another shaky laugh, then looks closer. "Wait, you are, aren't you? Holy SHIT—"
She reaches across the table right before the tape cuts out.
Trivia[]
- Kelsey was initially based on certain people I met at a party while visiting an old friend at her college. They were incredibly smart, accomplished, and charismatic, but had a slight (yet unmistakable) awkwardness. Despite being complete strangers, they were some of the most instantly endearing and interesting people I had ever met. I spent an amazing night with them and knew I needed to write about it in some capacity.
- A few of the accomplishments detailed in Kelsey's bio were inspired by things my aforementioned old friend did in high school and college. Aspects of Kelsey's attitude and inner thoughts were also inspired by my own.
- Kelsey was also partially based on Alison Raybould from Survivor: David vs. Goliath. This wasn't intentional at first, since I started writing Lakeside well before DvG aired, but from the second the cast was released, Alison reminded me of Kelsey to an alarming degree. I later incorporated a few references to Alison and her quirks into Kelsey's character.
- Although I had planned to write a sixth story for years and had more than enough characters and ideas swirling around my brain, creating the character of Kelsey was what finally pushed me over the edge to do it.
- There was never any doubt in my mind that Kelsey would be the main character of Lakeside, thus she obviously had to make it to the end, but for a while, I wasn't sure what place she would get:
- Considering most of my past "fallen angel" 3rd placers were likable fan-favorite brunettes (Chrissy, Ari, and Flora), Kelsey seemed to fit in well with that group. She would've been voted out right before the finale, presumably by Frances, for being a threat, but that didn't seem like a satisfying resolution to her plot.
- Then, I thought why not just let her win, but knew that wouldn't work because her whole arc was about dealing with failure. So 2nd place was perfect. Also, her placing barely seemed to matter because the whole story was ultimately about her anyway.
- She and Frances were intended to be foils, illustrated by their similar outfits and positions in the final two. Kelsey is extroverted and bubbly on the outside but anxious on the inside, while Frances is quiet and observant on the outside but overzealous on the inside.
- Giving Kelsey a relationship wasn't something I thought of at first. I wanted her plot to be about more than just romance, but after writing the first few chapters, pairing her up with Graham seemed incredibly obvious and too perfect to pass up.
- Needless to say, Kelsey meant a lot to me. She was by far my favorite character to write for, not just in this story but in any of the stories I've written on here. Not only was she funny and lovable, but her plot was very near and dear to my heart, especially since parts of it were inspired by my own inner thoughts.
Gallery[]
