Is it Edwards’ blog or Edwards’s blog?

Is it “Edwards’ advice” or “Edwards’s advice”? The first one is correct. OK, then, is it the hostess’ advice or the hostess’s advice? This time, it’s the second one. No wonder everyone’s confused, right? I gave you two opposing answers, but both are correct. The key point is this: “Proper nouns” (names) versus “common nouns” (not names). It’s “no” on the extra “s” for names but “yes” on the extra “s” for ordinary nouns. My way of remembering this is to remind myself that people get to spell their names any way they wish. So if Marie wants to spell her name Maree, that’s OK. It’s her prerogative. In my experience, companies are very touchy about their names—understandably so. It seems to me that most tend to leave off the extra “s,” which happens to be in keeping with Associated Press style. I feel the same way. I myself don’t like the look of “Edwards’s advice.” I don’t know why, I just don’t like it. I prefer “Edwards’ advice.” So … names don’t have to follow the standard rules. That’s how I remember it. My suggestion would be to ask the person whose name you’re making possessive, if he or she is available to you. If not, go with the AP rule. If it’s a company’s name, I’d look on the website for press releases and see how the company chooses to handle it. It really is the company’s choice. Now for the exception: Even with a common noun ending in “s,” don’t add the extra “s” after all if the next word begins with “s.” Under that rule, these are all correct: