All of you self-proclaimed pedantics - I need your help and discussion about one of the most confusing four letter words in the English language -
that.
Specifically...I have been told and have also read in various places that the use of the word "that" is in most instances unnecessary. Problem is, I find myself using "that" all the time! So much, in fact, I often do a find-and-replace on my stories to see if I can't remove quite a few of them. Problem is, I never seem to want to remove them because they seem necessary.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this? And while you're at it, can someone explain to me when you would use "which" instead of "that"?
I'm hoping for some help - maybe someone who tells me it's okay to use "that" as much as I want.
Lynn
