Many social media consultants will say that you really should write in your own words when you blog. I agree. However, there are some problems that do come up in what is good blogging and what is not.
I am not a grammar Nazi. I actually was one years ago and you know, I really had no right. I am dyslexic and have often spelled words wrong or mixed up wording.
But for others who are in the same boat, you can still write in your own words, but you need to be conscious of your articles. For those who want to reach a lot of people and have several writers, it might be ideal to ask someone to proof your blog post.
If English is not your first language, a lot of people understand, but you can also benefit from getting a second opinion. I used to be married to a guy (we are still friends) who spoke Spanish as a first language and often writes exactly how he speaks. The verb tenses and sentence structure are not the same. I was lucky that I studied Spanish for 8 years before I ever met him because I probably would have never understood why he said things in such an awkward format. A lot of other languages have a somewhat similar story when translating to English.
In doing so will only increase the chances that your blog will be understandable to others who know English as a second, or third, or more language. There are quick dictionaries that are online like Dictionary.com to help with vocabularly issues too.
Remember, your writing just needs to be understandable and be able to provide a way for the reader to connect. It does not have to be perfect. Even in English, it can be hard to find the right words.
Do you sometimes have problems finding the right words? Is English your first language or is it secondary language?
English is my secondary language but yet I'm still learning in order to make my writing better from day to day. I always believe that if you put your effort to learn it, you'll get it right =)
Hi,English is my second language and when I tend to write more causally and spontaneously the influence of my mother tongue are vividly traceable. Just a few days iWoodPeaker was making a comment in my blog pointing out the weaknesses in language. I begged sorry and gave it a second reading correcting those silly mistakes, that I know very well, but skips often.Though language needs to serve its primary goal – be able to communicate your message, but the impression it leaves is bit annoying. Poorly written language tend to impress the reader that the content is not reliable!
Do you sometimes have problems finding the right words? Is English your first language or is it secondary language?
Hmm. I may find it hard to find the correct words to use sometimes. I think it is normal. I have been speaking English since I was a child. I'm not sure which ones of the languages I speak of is primary 'coz I use the three of them.
Yes, even native English speakers get it wrong too. I have messed up on a lot of things when writing. Occasionally I ask someone to check my entry for me and point out the problems.However, there are a lot of people that generally do not care as much as you do. 🙂
I was OK, but had to be more cautious after I was pointed out my one of commenter in my blog
Good Topic, Nile. Well, English is not my first language and i sometime suffer many problems when it comes with 100% English. But i believe what i write in English is maximally understandable. I use Google Translator when i need to find right words/sentence. It does not return 100% same but enough to get an idea. Thanks….