Bookish Founder Spotlight: Meet the Face Behind Fable Grounds Coffee
Image courtesy of Fable Grounds Coffee
Image courtesy of Fable Grounds Coffee, the Founder, Katelyn Smith.
“I actually hated reading when I was younger,” Katelyn Smith tells me. Not exactly what you’d expect from a fantasy-obsessed founder of a bookish themed coffee company, and soon to be published author. Grab a cup. Of course, there’s more to the story.
“Okay…so actually, I was not very good at reading. I'm a math person,” Katelyn explains. “I'm an accountant by day. I like numbers. So when I was younger, I was about three grades behind on my reading level.”
While it wasn’t until college that she began “diehard reading,” a few books from those early days of reading left their mark.
“I remember the Graceling series, I became obsessed with that,” she replies. “The Hunger Games like everybody else, and Harry Potter, of course.”
Her brother worked at a Borders bookstore (RIP) at the time, and on one occasion, she remembers he brought her a bunch of fantasy books. “I started reading them, and…I became obsessed…I have been reading ever since,” she says.
Thanks big bro. Fable Grounds Coffee might not exist today if not for him bringing those books home to a young Katelyn–which would be a travesty. If you’re not on Bookstagram, you might not know about this fantastical shop with coffees and handmade stoneware mugs themed around your favorite fandoms.
How does an accountant with a love of fantasy and historical romance novels get the idea to launch a bookish themed small business? For Katelyn, it started with joining Bookstagram in 2019 and following some of the big bookstagrammers like @myfriendsarefiction, and @darkfaerietales_: “I didn't have any friends who read books at all…Well, they read books, but not fantasy. So it was a whole new world. And I was like, ‘Oh, wow, there's actually a lot of people on here that read the same books as me.’”
She decided to create a Bookstagram account with a goal of meeting people and maybe joining a book club, which she did for a while. It’s a familiar story for a lot of us book nerds. But the idea for Fable Grounds Coffee came soon after.
“I love coffee, obviously…I started seeing all these…shops that would sell book themed things, which I thought was so cool, because you don't go to the store and see that kind of stuff. And I saw a lot of tea ones…But I don't like tea, really…I was…desperately searching for coffee that was themed around the books. I couldn't find any.”
“Fine…I’ll do it myself.”
So, naturally, she started researching how difficult roasting coffee would be, and even taught herself the ins and outs of roasting. She says she got lucky finding an incredible local roastery close to her in Maryland to partner with: “They're literally five minutes down the road.
“I called them one day just to kind of talk about it. And they said, ‘Oh, well…you know…we can roast coffee for your business.”
And Fable Grounds Coffee was born. She works with them to create her own unique blends and flavors finding little things specific to a book or character.
Image courtesy of Fable Grounds Coffee
“So for example…my Lord of the Rings coffee is probably my most popular and it's a breakfast blend…called ‘second breakfast,’” she shares.
Occasionally, flavors don’t work out. Like her original From Blood and Ash flavor: “I tried to do like a chocolate strawberry flavor one time. And when I got all the samples in from…the roastery I was like, ‘This is terrible. Like this does not taste good.’ So I had to ditch that,” she says with a laugh.
“Most people like the flavored coffee,” she explains. “And then the night court one is also really popular. That one is a Kona blend…that's probably my second favorite roast.”
Not that I stalked her instagram or anything, but I did notice a teaser for some Jamie, from Outlander themed coffee, so of course I have to ask about it.
“That one is sweet whiskey flavored. And it's like an Irish cream-type flavor. It's really good…yeah, I'm excited for that one!” Katelyn shares.
But the moment she realized this was growing into something larger was when she launched her first set of stoneware mugs, including an A Court of Thorns and Roses inspired night court one, and they immediately sold out.
“People were so angry that they didn't get one. And I was like, ‘I don't know what's happening!’ It was like, three minutes [and] they were gone…That never happened with the coffee before. I was not prepared.”
She credits the Ren Faire as inspiration for her expansion into the book themed, stoneware mugs. “Every year I go to the Maryland Renaissance Festival…I've been going every year since like…2005 or something. And every year they have a stoneware mug that has…their Renaissance Festival logo on it…I love them.”
About a year into her adventure in selling coffee, she looked into creating her own for Fable Grounds, and once again delved into research to find a partner. The process to choose glazes, shapes, and work on designs is lengthy, but she says she loves the designing process. And since they’re all handcrafted, there’s a limited supply. They. Go. Fast.
I should know. It took me months to finally get my hands on her Throne of Glass stag version that I’m currently sipping scalding coffee out of. I ask her about any upcoming mugs we can look forward to. Her eyes light up, and she shares that a Gild one is coming this year, along with some others in October.
“That one was approved by Raven [Kennedy] herself. So I'm really excited about that. And it's gonna of course be a golden color,” she says.
“And then [in] February of 2023, I have a Hades and Persephone one…that everybody voted for. I also have…a Valkyrie themed mug coming up, and A Court of Silver Flames…and I'm working on a couple more.”
I am clearly not the only fan. Claire Koleske, one of my favorite book cosplayers from Seattle, was the first person I remember talking about Fable Grounds Coffee. She’s still just as obsessed as the rest of us, telling me: “Their coffee is amazing, but my favorite thing they sell are their mugs. [It’s] my favorite way to have my morning coffee–they make me feel like I’m off on adventures with my favorite book characters.”
If you’ve tried to get one of the mugs and it’s been sold out, you’re in luck. Katelyn confirmed she’ll be restocking some favorites, including the night court, The 13, and The Lord of the Rings. I’ll be fighting you for that one.
But of course, being an accountant, and bookish entrepreneur couldn’t possibly be enough to keep her busy, so she’s also in the process of publishing an adult, dark fantasy novel, The Lust for Blood. Okay, spill. What’s it about?
“It’s not for the youngins,” she says with a laugh. “It’s very gory…So if you're not one for like, blood and guts, you might not like it. But you know, it's not excessive…it basically is a reimagining of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde…And then it sort of is like The Witcher…So the guy character is a demon hunter. So it…brings those two together in a[n]…intense action-packed situation.”
She’s been working on the book since 2020, and wrote the initial draft pretty quickly, and says, “I've been writing stories since high school…I started maybe like three or four other books, and I just never finished them. And all of a sudden, this idea just came to me.”
Once she finished the draft she began querying, and it got picked up by Phantom House Press, and releases on November 1st, 2022. I can tell she’s still processing as she says, “It's pretty crazy. I still…can't really fathom that it's actually going to be like out in the world eventually.”
It’s also not set in our world, so I can’t wait to see another beautiful fantasy world map, which she mentions she’ll be teasing soon. And yes, there will be some themed coffee and a stoneware mug to go along with the novel. But I can’t get her to spill the beans on the flavor just yet…
Rapid Reveals:
Where you can find Katelyn:
@Fablegroundscoffee and @balancingbooksandcoffee
Anywhere people can taste IRL first?
For those in Maryland, you’re in luck. In October, there’s a Book Fest happening and Fable Grounds Coffee will be doing tastings.
Current Read:
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
Last Reread:
The audiobook of A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
Books on her bedside table:
The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne
City of Dusk by Tara Sim
Coffee order:
Black coffee, OR when she’s feeling “fancy” a Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew.
Last book you read that you’re recommending to everyone:
An ARC of Autumn of the Grimoire by J.L. Vampa, it comes out September 2022.
Books she’s most excited about this year?
Glow by Raven Kennedy
Kingdom of the Feared by Kerri Maniscalco
Saint by Adrienne Young
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