Got up this morning at 7:30 with the short kid, went back to sleep on the couch and didn’t get up til 10:30. But why is the day gone? *g*

And where’s Kate? I keep getting that stupid Total Search page.

Back to TSTL heroines. The reason I’m so annoyed that it’s thrown around so easily is that it stands out in comments and reviews. If I’m reading a review and they’re carrying on about how they don’t like secret babies or red-headed heroes or whatever, that’s all skimmable. But TSTL is right there, in your face. It’s all caps. TSTL.

We’re trained to absorb everything we need to want to buy a product in 30 seconds or less. When wading through a paragraph of personal opinions, we come out of that with an impression, but not a strong enough one to keep us from buying a book. But something succinct like TSTL will stick in the consumer’s mind.

Nobody likes a true TSTL heroine. The ‘word’ is short, too the point, hard to miss, and stays with us. And when one reader thinks a heroine is TSTL, other readers who are maybe having a hard time articulating why they didn’t sympathize with a particular heroine will jump right on that bandwagon and label her TSTL, too.

I just think it’s the single most damaging thing when it comes to turning an intelligent reader away from a certain book. And I’m tired of seeing it thrown around because it’s an easy shortcut for a lazy typist.

And I’m missing Gone In Sixty Seconds, darnitall.