It's versus Its - It is a quandary

Working on final edits for the editor - until she finds all the things I've missed (hopefully). As I comb through my checklist and read for continuity, etc., my SmartEdit program is kicking out those commonly misused words.

We all know that grammar nazi, the one who jumps up to point out we've used the wrong "they're/their/there," "affect/effect," "you're/your" etc. Generally speaking, I get all these words right (although I'm definitely not perfect). My biggest downfall is knowing when to use lie/lay, probably because lay is a verb tense of lie. With that being said, today's contemplation is its versus it's.

At the day job several years ago, I still remember someone completing a report, copying and binding it and then she stopped, because as she was flipping through the final product, she found "its" had been misused. It's/Its is commonly overlooked. Sharp eye, that woman. So she took the report apart, went back to correct the error and inserted the correction into her final copies. How do you know if you've got the right one?

While I'm writing, I often stop to ask myself "it is," or "belonging to it." This is one of those break-the-rule things, where possession does NOT include an apostrophe - "its". In its contraction form - it is/it has - "it's" gets the apostrophe to account for the missing letters. Easy enough, but also easy to confuse, since the rule for possession inserts an apostrophe. NOT THIS TIME.

As for my lie/lay, borrowing from Merriam Webster to show you why it continues to trip me up.

Here's lay in context in tenses that show its principal forms:

I was told to lay the book down. I laid it down as I have laid other books down. I am laying more books down now.

And here's lie:

I was told to lie down. I lay down. I have lain here since. I'm still lying here.

The English language in all its confusing glory!

Targeting a June release for the next EPITAPH installment! I'll be sending out a newsletter as soon as I have a firm date in case you want to pre-order, so make sure you're signed up!

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