Members of the Cast is set in 1959 and follows a 17-year-old girl’s year in a new high school. Margo suffers all the angst of a high school student, and yet her experiences are not the same as a student attending high school in today’s world. There is no first sex, no drugs, and no drinking. (Yes, kids had sex in 1959, drank, and swore, but not in my books.)


Members of the Cast is not a love story, but there is love.
• It’s not a romance, but Margo thinks her first kiss is romantic.
• It’s not a mystery novel, but a family mystery is solved.
• The book isn’t about bullying, but two bullies make life hard.
• It’s not a ghost story, but two deceased women have powerful influence—and one of them was a bully! 
• It’s not about alcohol, but alcoholism rears its ugly head.
• It’s not a humorous book, but Sharon tickles readers. (We all need a Sharon in our lives.)
• I certainly never set out to create a sad book, but poignancy tugs at the heart. (It may be maudlin, but I have become misty reading portions of the book.)
• The book is not about Maggie being homesick; it’s about finding a home. (Yes, Margo becomes Maggie.)

Now that you have as much information as I have, what keywords would you use to attract Amazon (KDP) readers? The image below shows the works I used, but when a book is purchased, you don’t know how a reader happened upon the book.

I confess I am a bit underwhelmed with KDP Keywords when finding Members of the Cast. Keywords locate books, but due to the sheer number of books on Amazon, the chances of someone finding my book are slim. When I put in Young adult wholesome coming of age historical I found my book on page three. I doubt many searches will be that specific.

For fantasy writers, there is good and bad news. The good news is that most of the books listed before Members of the Cast were fantasy. The bad news is that there are many YA fantasy books, but that’s OK because kids love fantasy.

Next time, I am going to discuss the age old question: Who is reading Young Adult books?

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I spent my life teaching 6th graders. We have always been involved in church. Now I spend my days in an old stone house, wandering our four acres, and writing.