As we inch closer to 2021, several friends, family, and clients have continued asking me, "Are we supposed to write it as New Year's or New Years?" The quick answer is ... New Year's (with the apostrophe). Please, for the love of Pete, do not write "New Years." Why is it New Year's? Using an apostrophe shows possession, which is important when you're talking about New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, a New Year's resolution, a New Year's greeting, etc. In all instances, you're ref

Let's squeeze in one more quick grammar lesson before the end of the year, shall we? In today's post, I want to talk about writing New Year's or New Years. Which is it, and why? The short answer is that you always write it as New Year's (with the apostrophe). Using an apostrophe 's' shows possession, which is important when you're talking about New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, a New Year's resolution, a New Year's greeting, etc. In all instances, you're referring to something

The world can be a grammatically incorrect place sometimes, but in everyone's defense, it's not like the English language does us any favors. Honestly, it's all so confusing. Take homophones, for example. These are words that sound the same but have different meanings and spellings. Words like roll and role or compliment and complement make even the savviest of us writers and editors slow down and, at times, do a double-take to ensure the content we are working on is clear an

Welcome to another Edit This® grammar lesson. In today's blog post, we will be talking about the difference between It's and Its. Do you know when to use each one? The idea for this post came up recently while my wife and I were on a date. We stopped into a new restaurant, and though the food, service, and ambiance were great, there above the archway leading down a hallway was an inspirational quote with a massive grammar flub in big lettering. They had written it's instead o

As we inch closer to 2019, several friends and clients have asked me, "Are we supposed to write it as New Year's or New Years?" Great grammar question! Here's the quick answer from Edit This®. It's New Year's (with the apostrophe). Don't write New Years. Here's why: Using an apostrophe 's' shows possession, which is important when you're talking about New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, a New Year's resolution, a New Year's greeting, etc. – because all instances refer to somethin

We'd all love for everything we write to be error-free. Unfortunately, grammar mistakes happen even to the best of us, whether it's in a text message, social media post, article, or you're a business owner working on your next blog, press release, or newsletter. As a writer and editor at Edit This® who works with companies every day on written copy, I can promise you it's always good to have an extra set of eyes looking over your material. There are, of course, plenty of long

I got an email recently from a reader who was kind enough to point out an error I made in an old blog. The post, which I wrote in March, focused on why you don't use apostrophes to pluralize last names. Somehow, I used one incorrectly in a closing example. Ugh! Major fail on my part!!!! I think the reader even joked around and said something like, "I was about to give you an 'atta boy' until ..." It was a fun exchange that I was completely open to and one of two conversations