Writing in your second language

I'm a native swede, but I'm writing this one in English, which is my second language. I am having much the same problems when I'm writing, I think there comes an added bit of uncertainty when you can't lean back and just say 'this is my language, I do with it as I please'. But on the other hand, when I am writing in Swedish i will constantly having to second guess my language there as well, because I am very conscious that I might adopt a lot of English turns of phrase without meaning to. I think this will forever be the curse of straddling two languages, all advice I can offer is to not think about it too much right now, that is what proofreaders and later editing is for. Thinking too much about structure can ruin a good story.

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I'm from The Netherlands, so even though my native language is Dutch, I write my novel in English. I have spent a few minutes just now thinking about why. So here goes:

(1) It gives me some much more to work with in terms of events, characters and places of residence. When writing in Dutch, it comes off as awkward when they are living in New York City, and live NYC lives and have NYC friends, reference Starbucks or FOX news or Central Park, yet they all speak Dutch. So, following that rule, a Dutch book could only take place in The Netherlands and that seriously limits my options in terms of plot and storyline.

(2) Because I don't speak it daily, I think I'm still much more in love with the English language. Therefore, I can really enjoy crafting a beautiful sentence with words I find beautiful like 'momentous', 'accustomed' or 'colossal' instead of having to write them with all-too-familiar Dutch words that look trite and clumsy.

(3) When I read novels, I tend to read popular American or English literary fiction and I'm a bit of a snob, so I prefer to read a novel in the language it was written in. Because of this I am inspired by all these English-language works and I think that's also a reason why I prefer to write in English. It makes it easier to 'compare' myself to great literary works to see what can be improved, adjusted, etc.

But I do feel like my novel will be filled with awkward sentences that may be grammatically correct but read a little silly to someone who speaks English all day. Having said that, perhaps it also gives the novel a touch of personality and character, a unique tone of voice that makes a thrilling read. (He said with such modesty and humbleness)

Who knows? All I know for sure is that I have to shorten my forum replies... >_>

I also ramble on Twitter (though sometimes in Dutch).

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I always write in English - which is technically my third language. I can't even imagine writing fiction in my first language (which is also Dutch) - it may be my first language, but English is the language of my fiction.

Don't worry too much about whether or not the way you write is 'awkward' (you'll probably have a few idiomatic problems, but that's easily fixed when you edit), or second guess every sentence for gramatical errors. The fact that you're a non-native speaker says exactly nothing about your ability to write a compelling story in English. In fact, after spending three years doing a Creative Writing degree in the UK, I'd almost be tempted to say that the opposite is true. ;)

Also, just keep in mind that there have been many great authors before you who have written their masterpieces in languages that weren't their first!

"Prestigious. Often an adjective of last resort. It's in the dictionary, but that doesn't mean you have to use it." William Strunk and E.B. White, 'The Elements of Style'

I was considering it, to practice a bit, but there are a few problems to this. 1) I don't have a keyboard in my second language, 2) I don't have enough experience or vocabulary to write in my second language, my sentences are awkward, short and too formal, and 3) even if I wrote in the Roman form of my second language, I wouldn't type fast enough in it.

But I would just say don't worry about it. I KNOW that a lot of my sentences are awkward and don't work in my first language (English) but editing is for December!

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I was considering it, to practice a bit, but there are a few problems to this. 1) I don't have a keyboard in my second language, 2) I don't have enough experience or vocabulary to write in my second language, my sentences are awkward, short and too formal, and 3) even if I wrote in the Roman form of my second language, I wouldn't type fast enough in it.

But I would just say don't worry about it. I KNOW that a lot of my sentences are awkward and don't work in my first language (English) but editing is for December!

This random message is sponsored by your random local (or not-so local) french horn player.

darn double post >.>

This random message is sponsored by your random local (or not-so local) french horn player.

I am nowhere near fluent enough in any language other than English to even contemplate writing a novel in another language. That being said - if English feels right to you for this project, write in English. So what if it isn't perfect? It's not as though all native English speakers automatically speak and write perfect, grammatically correct English; even if they *did*, you can always revise later.

So - have fun with it, and don't worry about your writing being perfect (when in doubt, go read English-language fanfiction* to reassure yourself that it could be much, much worse).

*Not to say that all fanfiction is bad, or poorly written, but...

I'm debating writing in my second language (German) or in English. I really can't decide, so I've written some scenes in each.

I often think the way I write in English, my native language, is awkward (and also, that "awkward" is an awkward-looking word), but I write far too slowly and poorly in Italian to try it. Though you've inspired me to maybe include some Italian in it. Hm...

Based on your post, though, I'd recommend you not worry about it. I still find it hard to believe that English isn't your first language. If you write your novel like you wrote that post, it'll be brilliant!

First of all, props to you for even trying to write in your second language. I considered for maybe 30 seconds writing in German (I lived near Frankfurt for nearly a year and a half after studying the language through high school and college) but quickly decided against it.

I think it's fantastic that you're comfortable enough in your second language to do NaNo in it.

I am Argentine, and my mother tongue is Spanish. But I just cannot write in Spanish. English comes to me so easily, everything I write is in that language. My NaNo novel is in English. then, if I feel like it, I translate my writings to Spanish.