Literary agents estimate that more than half of all nonfiction books credited to a celebrity or other public figure are in fact written by ghostwriters, professional authors who are paid to write other_______ but whose names never appear on book covers.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A) people’s stories
B) peoples story’s
C) peoples stories
D) people’s story’s
The correct answer and explanation is:
The correct answer is A) people’s stories.
Explanation: The phrase “people’s stories” is grammatically correct because:
- People’s is the possessive form of the plural noun “people,” meaning “the stories of people.”
- Stories is the plural form of “story,” indicating more than one story is being referred to.
Now, let’s examine the other choices:
- B) peoples story’s: This choice is incorrect because “peoples” should be “people’s” to indicate possession. Additionally, “story’s” is the incorrect possessive form; it should be “stories” (plural) to match the plural noun “stories” in the context.
- C) peoples stories: This option is incorrect because, as explained, “peoples” is not the correct possessive form. The possessive of “people” is “people’s.”
- D) people’s story’s: This choice is incorrect for two reasons: “people’s” is singular, and “story’s” incorrectly uses the apostrophe for possession instead of the plural form “stories.”
So, people’s stories is the only option that follows the conventions of Standard English, ensuring proper possession and plurality in the context.