Taking the High Road with Wosar: October 2022 Author Spotlight

   L.D. Wosar is a name I've grown familiar with in the indie urban fantasy industry, specifically due to the supernatural and preternatural creatures in her writings. I first met her while reading her vampire series. Wosar has undergone challenges in the indie author community that are a sad truth about the world. 

  Currently living in Las Vegas, Nevada, Wosar has two pen names - L.D. Wosar and Mina Skye (her YA pen name). She was born in Olympia, Washington but was raised across the globe. 

  "Being a Navy brat, I grew up all over," stated Wosar. "Brainstorming in fifth grade sparked my interest in writing. If there was a story floating around in my mind, I'd write it. I've wanted to be a writer since I was a child, and have been writing ever since."

   In June 2019, Wosar published her first book, Island Stream. "I spent 30 years writing it," remarked Wosar. "I lovingly call it the hot mess. It is now known as the Fickle Butterfly."

   Wosar did her research, looking into both traditional and self-publishing routes. Ultimately, she chose to go with self-publishing. She stated, "it [writing] was a hobby, which I wanted to see come to fruition. Of course, the book wasn't edited or formatted. So, lessons were learned there." 

  When asked what her favorite book is that she's written, Wozar stated that she is particularly fond of four. Her

Jagged Little Hood: Capot Adventure Series Book 3, Relic, Jaded Vamp: Belluomo Vampy Saga Book 1, and Chrome Poppies are near and dear to her heart. 

   "I have to say, hands down, that Kaysee Goad-Belluomo is my favorite character," Wosar commented. "She was a foul-mouthed girl turned vampire but took a huge arc during the series [Belluomo Vampy Saga]."

   Currently, Wosar has between 30 and 40 WIPs (work in progress) that she plans to release by 2026. Recently, she released Cascade Duck, on October 25. 

  Cascade Duck is a paranormal romance with a motorcycle club twist. I read the book and found it hard to put down. I didn't fully know what I was getting into when I started reading Cascade Duck. I'm not big on mafia romances and the motorcycle club theme worried me that I might not enjoy the book. On the contrary, I became hopelessly devoted to the story. 

   As mentioned above, I've read Wosar's vampire series but it didn't
prepare me for the complete awesomeness that was Andi Cascade. Wosar is an expert at writing strong, stubborn, female leads who have do-or-die attitudes. Andi Cascade is no different.

   Andi is the daughter of a human mother and a demon father. It's her destiny to take souls and up her power enough that she eventually will become a full demon. However, she has a conscience and a heart meant to love, which tends to get in the way of Lucifer's plans for her.

   Andi is the owner of Cascade Duck, a motorcycle bar, and she wants to live a normal human life, but her demonic side is threatening to destroy everything she loves. Cascade Duck has drama, death, steam, and a demented serial killer demon set on securing Andi as his wife. I gave this book a solid 5 stars. 

   On November 5th, Wosar is showing her holiday side by releasing a contemporary Christmas short romance. The story will be included in the Run, Run Rudolph anthology. 

  "The hardest part of becoming an author was finding an audience," stated Wosar. "I don't write to market and I am a non-conformist, so finding readers is the hardest part for me. The best part has been sharing my stories with readers. I love when people talk about my stories and their fave or not-so-fave characters. That brings me great joy."

    For newer writers and authors, Wosar says, "it is hard, there are always challenges, but never give up on your dreams. Be patient. I don't have millions of pages read or thousands of sales, but I know my time will come." 

     One of the first decisions a writer makes when they decide to publish is what name will be on their covers. Some choose to publish under their legal names, others prefer animosity and create a pen name, and still, others have several names for different genres. Wosar has two active pen names and has recently retired a third. 

  "For me, the pro of having multiple pen names was letting my actual name rest since it was a trigger. The cons were having to start over. A lot of readers and authors thought I was a brand-new author. Mina Skye is for YA, so I can have the smut and clean books separated. Cerise Rose was a safety net for me, but since I came back as L.D. Wosar, I retired that one."

    Bullying is something I've touched on before in another author's spotlight, and it's a topic I think will eventually earn its own write up. There are a lot of amazing authors and readers out there, but there are always a few bad apples in the bunch. Wosar has not been personally bullied by readers but has been on the receiving end of bullying by another author.

  "Since I have never been bullied by readers, it's hard to advise on that one. It's hard to ghost a reader or do anything irrational for fear of your name being spread around negatively by other readers. I look at it this way, you are only in competition with yourself, no one else. My advice is don't let the bullying affect you, but that is pretty hypocritical of me to say since it hurt my sales for over a year and I fell into depression because of it. I was mentally and creatively drained for quite a few months. In this business, it's par for the course, and you can either take the high road as I did or feed into the negativity, which only makes matters worse."