#non-native english

[creativepromptsforwriting]

Hello ! 😊

First of all, I read your Blog etiquette , and I hope I use it correctly. If not, please excuse me, I'm just kinda dense sometimes 😅

I wanted to ask you an advice on writing , if it's okay ...👉🏻👈🏻

I want to write and post Fics on my Tumblr but English is not my first language and I'm HELLA self conscious about my grammar and stuff ...

Do you have any advice for non-native speaker to get started and post stories in English please ?

( BTW, Keep writing : you're awesome 😘)

Hi and thank you for the compliment!

And yes, you've done everything right, thank you for reading it :)

As a non-native English speaker myself, I'll try to help you out with this issue. I have to be honest, I'm not sure when I started writing in English, but I believe it came quite natural to me, because our English classes are mostly like our German ones, so we would have to write whole stories and essays and stuff in English, so it was something I was already doing. And probably not doing it correctly all the time. And that is something that you will have to be ok with.

That there will be mistakes and there will be phrases that sound a little too stiff, sentences that are structured like your native language and words that don't have the same impact in English.

My suggestion would be to just start. Write little things. Don't be afraid to go back in and change a sentence when you later see that it's not exactly what you wanted to say. It's a learning curve and you will become more confident and you definitely will become better at it. For me personally, it was really helpful to read in English, to see how stories look like, how they explain what you want to explain, to find new words to incorporate.

And another advice would be: don't apologize beforehand that there will be a ton of mistakes, because it's not your first language. You can just put "not my first language" if you want people to know about it and if you maybe want feedback on grammar or something. But don't apologize. Even if the reader doesn't want to, it automatically makes them hyper-aware of mistakes. And you want them to enjoy your story, not focus on that.

Also remember: It's awesome that you are able to write in a different language. That is an accomplishment. And also, people make mistakes in their own language all the time. If you keep practicing then your mistakes won't be a distraction for the reader reading and enjoying your story. Even if there still are a few here or there.

I wish you all the best, my friend!

- Jana

[willwillywilliam]

Why is nobody talking about Ninjago: Dragon's Rising and AirJitsu?

They fuking did it. They were flying with their SpinJistu, and we all see that.

The disings were changed, but still. It was.

-

¿Por qué nadie habla de Ninjago: Dragons Rising y el AirJitzu?

Lo hicieron, lo hicieron. Estaban volando con su SpinJistu, y todos lo vimos.

Cambiaron los diseños, pero aún así. Seguía siendo AirJitsu.

[chlorophyllium]

[acnologias-ass]

Gajevy Week 2024 Day 2: Memento

I had no plans to draw anything for this day and then boom, four pages. :')

(please ignore for a moment that canonically dragon scales turn white when they fall off, I remembered halfway through 😂)

[tomfrogisblue]

Big fan of whenever a creator from one of the other languages meets Bad for the first time and he tells them his name is BadBoyHalo and explains it to them

Then they fucking hit it off and later the creator explains to him that no, he is not a bad boy, he is a good boy, he is GoodBoyHalo

[spiritusdei]

Has writing fanfiction helped you guys with your English?

Has writing fanfiction helped you guys with your English? (question to non-native English speakers).

I’m writing my MA thesis about the impact of writing fanfiction on English skills and proficiency, as well as on several individual differences.

Could you take some time to fill out my questionnaire? I would be forever grateful <3 It's a bit long, but I wanted to conduct a comprehensive study.

[flikkerij]

i was talking with my friends about how dutch dirty talk is such an instant turn off for most of us, and i wonder if thats a dutch thing or a general non-native english speaker thing (or a just my friends thing)

tag with your language!

[tastetheblame]

a few months back I found out that lazy town was created by the actor of sportacus to spread the message of fitness and healty living to children which i think is lovely. i'm just in tears because i checked that there are over 1k of sportacus/robbie rotten fics on ao3 and i'm sure that wasn't part of the original plan.

[johnsspacesuittight]

not even kidding a little bit, I miss the Hot Daga all the time, and idk how many years it's even been since it was cut short far too soon, but I know it's been several

[royalarchivist]

[A sad violin song plays over an image of a sad hamster]

Pac: This doesn't have anything to do with me – I wear a blue sweatshirt, you're crazy, this mouse doesn't even have a sweatshirt, this hamster! [Reading chat] Am I a depressed hamster?

[ Transcript continued ↓ ]*

–

Pac: Actually– that's fine! I embrace that idea – of course I'm going to be depressed, are you crazy? [He hits his desk, then starts counting off people on his fingers] Fit is gone, Richarlyson is gone, Ramon is gone, Bagi and Empanada who were always there when we were there are also gone, I haven't seen them! It's just me and Tubbo, and sometimes Philza shows up.

Pac: I lost Chume Labs, I lost the Favela, I lost Murder Mystery, I lost Ilha Chume Labs, it's crazy! Look at how much I've lost, and I've gained nothing! Of course I'm going to be depressed, are you crazy?! How am I supposed to be happy?!

Pac: [Reading chat] "You have us Pac," that's true, thank you. No, that's true, sorry.

* NOTE: Please note that this is an incomplete transcript, as I was primarily relying on Aypierre's translation mod at the time and if I am not confident of the translation, I do not include it. As always, please feel free to add on translations or message me corrections.

[rottenzombrainz]

Average Romeo Interaction

in honor of Romeo Gucci Coochie's birthday

MC: Romeo? You said you needed me for a favor?

Romeo: OMG you're finally here you BB! NGL I was OMW to sending one of my EITS to come get you!

MC: Sorry...

Romeo: Stop apologizing and start being competent, you BB! Also, WTF are you wearing? Go change. I'm tired of looking at your BB face.

MC: I'm just wearing the Darkwick uniform-

Romeo: It looks ugly on you!! Go change! ASAP!!! In fact, just go KYS!!!

[jupiter-lemaris]

Good for other things

Contents: Living Weapon Whumpee, fem whumpee, fem whumper, fem caretaker, backstory revelation, sexual assault (insinuated), dehumanization whump.

"Oh, my, it's such a pleasure to meet you again, my darling Whumpee. Is that your new owner? I hope you're serving her well."

Caretaker stood still, pondering if they had truly understood the meaning of those words. Whumpee and Whumper knew each other, that was a fact, but the nature of their relationship was never cleared.

Whumpee kept silent, with her neutral semblance unbalanced, looking straight into Whumper's eyes.

"So you still know your manners. That's great. You spent some years pretending to be a person, I was worried you'd have started to believe it. I remember you had the annoying habit of answering back, even when I put out my cigarettes on your tongue. Some said I should have cut it, but it was good for other things besides talking."

Caretaker felt all her blood freeze in her veins, staring at the two women with a new horror. Whumper seemed like they were a distraction to her boredom, while Whumpee remained still and unnerved, like she wasn't even listening.

"You... don't..." Caretaker tried to say, but the words were beyond reach.

"The talking was its only ill-manner. It was such an obedient toy." Whumper answered the implicit question. She caught Whumpee's jaw in a hand, forcing their gaze to meet. "If I ask, I bet it would fulfill my wish right here, right now. Oh, but I'm not the owner anymore. I guess it's her order you'll need?"

For a while, Whumpee supported the visual contact without a flinch. Then, she looked at the Caretaker, her watery eyes being the only flaw in the blank mask of her face, a silent but desperate begging.

Please, don't make me do this.

[theorist-fox]

"Theo! I wanna write stories of my favourite fictional characters fighting for their lives, solving mysteries, surviving an apocalypse, finding love, and getting railed into next Tuesday—but I’m not confident in my English since it's not my first language.

What can I do?"

Well—

Have a seat, my sweet, and let cranky ol' Theo take you on a journey to reach (almost) unshakable confidence in your second (third? fourth? fifth? damn 🧐) language.

I’m going to assume everyone here has had a reasonable smattering of English ever since they were young, because yes—I just know that if you’re here and English isn’t your first language, you’ve been studying it ever since you were a kid.

However, if you haven’t, let me introduce you to:

Step 0. Get started!

English grammar is relatively easy, especially when compared to other languages (i.e. Italian grammar is a nightmare, Spanish grammar is a nightmare, French grammar is… my sleep paralysis demon).

There are several sites you can consult to train your English, and the most well-rounded one (I used to steal exercises from it when I helped my niece with her English homework) is BBC Learning English. 

It has videos, subjects are divided into units and each unit has straightforward exercises that are promptly corrected.

Unfortunately, most sites have a paywall.

To keep training your English, Duolingo is still an incredibly effective app. It’s free, packed with exercises, and you can start at any level you want!

Don’t make the owl mad and keep training, even if it's only a handful of minutes a day. Take notes on a notepad as you go, and review them as you would during a normal school lecture. In other words: study the thing!

Step 1. Live English-ly

Go on about your day, but do it in English. 

Consume media like you’re a black hole sucking the Englishness out of everything around you. 

Watch films in English. 

Start easy, and choose animated features—they’re often directed to younger audiences hence the English they use is simple and direct. Put subtitles in your first language initially, and when you think you’ve gained enough confidence, switch to English Dub and English Sub.

Take notes of words you like, and idioms—hell, those work like a charm and make you look more confident in the language!

Keep your phone nearby and type in anything new, or jot it down on paper, on a napkin, wherever—as long as you store it somewhere safe for future reference.

Read books and fics in English

It doesn’t matter if the writer’s first language isn’t English, because you can still learn from anything.

If you don’t know a word, don’t skim over it even if you understand the meaning from the context. Look up the translation online and put it down somewhere you can easily refer to when writing!

When you feel confident enough, instead of searching for:

“XXX translation in XYZ language”,

look for:

“XXX meaning”.

This latter passage is important, because, more often than not, English words can change their meaning based on the context.

Example: “Funny”

“This is a funny joke” = This joke makes you laugh;

“My stomach feels funny” = Your stomach is not being tickled, but there’s something wrong with your stomach.

Read the news in English. 

This will help you develop a more formal language, allowing you to absorb concepts that aren't normally found in a fic/movie/book. Not only that, but the structure of a journalistic article can help you with the formatting. 

The main goal of the news is to give you information that is straight to the point. Most newspapers articles have the best formatting.

Paragraphs are direct and succinct; they contain the information you’re looking for and keep you focused.

That’s what you want to do with your audience: feed intel that keeps them fastened to your story, bit by bit. Paragraph by paragraph.

Step 2. 🎶 MUSIC, MUSIC, MUSIC 🎶

Listen to music in English, but not only for the vibe.

The wonderful thing about music is that singers don’t follow the rules: they’ll sing with their accent if they like (Stormzy, Hozier, Little Simz), or they’ll change where the accent falls on a word just to make it fit the melody.

Catch the words, try to understand the lyrics without reading through them, and then check them out later.

This is a good, fun way to train your ear and learn new words, while also 1) healing your soul because music is beautiful, and 2) having a good fucking time.

Step 3. Podcasts & YouTube videos

While many platforms offer free podcasts specifically designed for learning English, those created for other purposes are another fun way to train your ear and, above all, learn slang.

Now, as a Call of Duty fanfiction aficionado, I always strive to make my British men as British as can be. The British-est of them all.

I watch British YouTubers, I listen to British podcasters, watch movies made in the UK with British actors, and I listen to British artists and British music.

Do the same thing if you’re looking for a specific accent or dialect!

I understand that most YouTubers end up Americanizing themselves due to the dominance of American media, but you’d be surprised by how many keep their roots intact instead!

Step 4. Talk to yourself

Yes you read right.

Your first language isn’t English? We do not care in this household. 

What you wanna do is speak it daily. Talk to yourself, baby. Train that pronunciation.

Pretend you're Sherlock Holmes when you're looking for that thing you lost in the house—bonus if you add "Elementary, my dear Watson" if your pet is nearby!

Pretend you’re a cowboy and say Howdy to yourself in the mirror!

I’ll be honest with you: this is the only way I come up with dialogues. 

I have entire arguments with myself in bed, and sometimes I spontaneously say something that I think would fit X character.

Man, it's cathartic too, in a way. And I always win the argument—big plus, that one.

Step 5. Don’t change to fit in

This is my favourite thing about writing.

I'm just a lil Italian lady, and Italian sentence structure is completely different from the English.

We are chatty, we talk your ear off. Our sentences are long and structured; we could fit an entire concept into a single paragraph without ever putting a period in the sentence.

English, on the other hand, is much more direct. Shorter sentences and no convolutions whatsoever.

I tried to fit in, but alas I am chatty, and while sometimes I manage, other times I simply don’t—and that’s okay.

Weave your first language and culture into your English stories—this can become your signature as a writer!

Step 6. Make mistakes

The most ancient (and hated) tip of all times is “Learn from your mistakes”. 

I know, I know, I am also a perfectionist. I also go through a story at least four thousand times before I post it, and by the time I’m ready to click “Post now”, I hate it with all my guts (hell, this guide has mistakes, somewhere).

You’d be surprised how many people think differently, though

However, sometimes it will flop.

It’ll flop so hard you’ll end up wallowing in bed, ready to quit your hobby for good because you suck and that’s the only reasonable explanation.

When you’re done crying, however, sit down in front of your fic and analyze it.

Was the grammar fucked? Check it again. 

Have you used a trope so niche only three people are interested in it? Well, in that case, it didn't flop, did it? It just reached a small target audience.

Are the “Trigger Warnings” too much for the majority of people to handle? Is the fic too heavy? Too light? Too weird? It's okay! Sometimes your work won't be everyone's cup of tea. Sometimes you'll be the only one who'll like that type of tea.

You’ll flop and you’ll hate yourself and other people for it.

Don’t let it consume you, don’t resent the fandom for not clicking on your story. Don't resent native speakers because you think writing is easier for them—writing is never easy.

Fucking hell, I can’t write in my first language as comfortably as I do in English.

Listen to constructive criticism—ask for constructive criticism. Learn, learn, and learn.

And if some people are mean to you, if they tell you to never write again—flip ‘em the bird.

You’re allowed to say "Fuck You" to assholes.

Step 7. Ask for help

There is a community around you, ask for help.

English is not your first language, but it is for other people.

Be mindful and polite—some people will be open to helping, others won’t, and that’s more than fair. It’s not their job to teach you, but there’s no harm in reaching out.

Literally, conversations with my British friends sometimes go like this:

Step 8. Use resources

Writing resources are all over Tumblr, and all over the rest of the Internet too.

When I don’t want to bother someone because every one of us has a real life outside of social media, the Internet can still be your friend.

These are my favourite places:

WordHippo (Thank you @/void-my-warranty, we all say in unison): rich in synonyms categorized by meaning (much better alternative to TheSaurus)

r/AskABrit: subreddit dedicated to questions you might have regarding the English language and life in the UK. There is a "r/AskA___" subreddit for everything, to be honest—just look for it!

The Cranky Bint’s Guide to Brit-Picking: “A basic guide to Brit-picking your fics. It also explains some common cultural differences, and gives a list of your more basic swear words.” This is my treasure trove.

OneLook TheSaurus (Thank you @/staytrueblue, we all say in unison): allows you to find words based on the description you give it. Wonderful tool for non-native speakers who know the concept, but lack the vocabulary!

Step 9. Read, watch, listen

Writing is grammar, true.

Writing is beautifully constructed sentences that flow like water beneath your eyes and fill you with emotions you never knew were possible.

But writing is also substance.

Think of your imagination as a car—you gotta give it fuel, baby, or it won’t go anywhere.

Your mind can take you to every nook and cranny of the world—the one you know and the ones you don’t—but it won’t get far if you don’t explore the possibilities.

Read books in any language, watch movies in any language, observe life happening around you.

Look at yourself, too.

You are a story, already.

Pick bits and pieces of your life and place them in a character. Remember conversations that tore the heart out of your chest, or those that tickled you just right.

There’s a whole world around you waiting to inspire you. Use it!

Step 10. Have fun, goddamnit!

Theo, I just wrote the most disgusting piece of smut/gore/whatever of my entire life in a fugue state what do I do?

Did you have fun?

Yes

GOOD. Others will have fun reading it, too.

Don’t be afraid. You’re using a damn alias, for fuck’s sake—and so are the people reading your work!

This is your chance to be your unabashed self—but always be kind and mindful to other writers and your readers.

Have fun, pour it all out, and share it with the world.

Enjoy this.

It's a hobby that not only helps you overcome language insecurities, but also uncovers parts of yourself you never knew were there.

Now go, my sweet. You are ready. I say, placing my hand over your head in blessing

Write your heart out, tell your stories, and enjoy the ride.

This is what it’s all about.

With all my love,

—Theoristfox🦊

[cyanityy]

Wait am I just delusional or does Johnny Vincent look a little bit like Elvis 😭🙏🏽 is it just me who can see it a lil

Wait I see it too- maybe you're onto something.

I'm more inspired by Dally Winston's facial features than Elvis though, mainly because I see Johnny as a guy with square features yknow? But I see exactly what you mean lol

[harrowharr0w]

peoplw who learned english as not their first language and post in english are so scary.. how did you do that/pos

[simandy]

Eu acho fantástico que quando eu falo em inglês eu pareço uma princesa da disney mas quando eu falo português eu sou um mano