~~ The Non-English Speaking Writers' Society ~~

You're not the only one who wasn't told, OA. What has poor little me done to Enji, Kee and Sei to deserve this?

OK, maybe I shouldn't ask. I do spend a fair amount of my time teasing and annoying people. And those three have definately had their share of Lynx teasing.

Anyway.

Hi everyone who doesn't know me! Like my friends (hrmpf) here - OA, Enji, Kee and Sei - I'm from Sweden. I've yet to post a fic here at JC, but I am currently working on one and have another one constantly bugging me inside my head (came to me in a dream, which should scare you to death if you knew anything about my dreams).

I agree that expressing yourself in English can be very hard sometimes. Like Enji said, nuances are definately a problem.

EDIT: To answer your question, jodiwent, I am very amused by Swedish words being used as character/location names. Fel, Vader and Ben are great examples. Other favorites are also Fett (=fat), Jocasta Nu (=yes throw now. Almost anyway.) and Hutt (not sure how to translate this. Alcohol-related.. always makes me laugh. ).

If someone uses a word in your language as a character name do you find it pleasing, humorus, or annoying?

Their was this scary old hags character in one of Excal's and Jaxx's fic called 'Adira'which means a graveyard in one of my languages-I found it really fitting.


BTW I really could do with a BETA. I tried to avail the beta-readers thread and after PMing three of them(who said they were available) and being refused I just don't have the guts to ask again.

Anyway, it does not disturb me in any way, not any more than the fact that a word like gift has two very different meanings in Swedish and English. (In Swedish it means poison...)

Interesting : In german, gift also means poison ...

It's even more complicated than that in Swedish. "Gift" also means "married".

Yup. You may interpret that as you wish...

I also don't know why names (except nick names) would need to be translated.

well, i I'd create a character with a name which is obviously german-based, what would the english readers think ?

An X-Wing pilot, for example with the name Siebzehnrübl instead of Skywalker or Darklighter ?

I don't even think the people know what my name means - so why should I expect people knowing what a german-based name means ?

Skywalker might have a meaning which is intended to support this char, but people not capable of the english language won't see it. They don't know what a sky is, and what a walker is.

(Note: Siebzehnrübl means seventeen Rüben, where Zucker-Rüben for example are plants from which sugar can be make. )

Whoa! [face_shocked]

I leave this thread for dead for a month and all of a sudden it's full of people! Well, at least it's a good surprise and not a bad one. It's nice to see ones first thread growing some roots

Anyhow, I'll get back to concentrating on the thread topic now by answearing jodiwent's questions:


If someone uses a word in your language as a character name do you find it pleasing, humorus, or annoying?

When I'm reading something in English I am, like Enji, in a sort of "English mode". I usually go by reading the names that are actually Swedish words without noticing they are words in my own language. In fact I hadn't even realized Jag Fel's Swedish meaning, "I wrong", until Enji mentioned it.

But when I do come across a Swedish word that i recognize I find it simply funny to know something that the other, non-Swedish readers don't.

If the name is chosen because of the character's abillities and characteristics I sometimes even feel a bit of proudness because the writer has taken time to research my language a bit. An example of this is the novel "Speaker for the Dead" by Orson Scott Card where a hunter has been named Jakt, which in Swedish translates to the word hunt.

It can also be mentioned that I sometimes use Swedish words for names in my English fics myself. I think that it's a good way of coming up with names for my characters and at the same time it leaves little "hints" for Swedish readers.


How do you deal with reading spelling errors?

If they are only minor spelling-errors I go by reading without noticing them. After all, I don't always know the correct spelling of the words myself. If I get to a major spelling error in a text, such as "netiw" instead of "native" I have to stop for a moment and figure out what it's supposed to say, but then I just keep reading.


Anyways, I hope this thread continiues it's life now, even after I'm back here. And that's all for now

Thanks for the info Obi Anna, I'll take up the offer. Punctuations is my weakest department. I do hope she has the time-cuz my fic is quite long.

Just kicking this up... aren't there any other non-english speaking writers out there? I refuse to believe there isn't any more...

*Raises hand*

Another one from good 'ole Germany. I have rather little problems writing in English (thank the maker!) and most problems can be solved using a dictionary.

I'm not a Non-English writer, but I did want to pop in and say that I think all of you are amazing. I've taken Spanish since I was a freshman in high school, and I would never feel confident enough to write a story in it! I had a hard enough time with the essays I've had to write over the years. I think it's really impressive to be that fluent in another language.

Oh, yes, Spanish ! So many details, so many accents 111 I've been learning this language for some years at school, and I never was very good in it. However, I'm glad I understand just a bit of it ...

Well, Musical Jedi, I don't think you can really compare learning English to learning Spanish. At least here in Sweden we have English around us all the time. We don't dub movies, so every time you watch a film you hear English. 90 percent of the stuff on TV is in English (all right, perhaps not, but it feels like it). Most of the songs you hear on the radio are in English. When you, like me, study att the university most of our books are in English. Adverts often use English, and so on. So we see and hear English every single day, you just can't not learn it!

On the other hand, I've been trying to learn French for 7 years and I still can't speak it as well as I want to... there's no way I can watch a film in French without subtitles and understand it.

But I still feel that English is a very difficult language... why do you have to have so many words for things? I can never learn the nuances...

Well, that makes me feel a little better... I don't know why there are so many words for things where Swedish would only have one. I would imagine that Swedish makes distinctions that English doesn't, and a non-native speaker would never really learn them.

That's an interesting thing: We in Germany believe the people from the Netherlands leran far quicker (and probably easier) English than we do - just because they have movies in TV which are not "dubbed" , but with their original language preserved, and only with subtitles - unlike here in germany.

However, they are relatives in terms of Language ...

You complaining about the nuances in English, Enji? The nuances is the reason I love the language - they've got so many words! Makes me drool - I LOVE words. And nuances...one of the reasons I really want to be able to handle English is that I want to really use the nuances as much as I can.

As to learning languages, I've studies Spanish for a couple of years, like five, and it's still rather a mystery to me...learning English was much easier, much thanks to Star Wars - couldn't find books or comics in Swedish, so if I wanted to read, I had to do it in English. Remember the first comics I did that with...Boy, did that take time! Now, reading is not a problem, talking is fine, writing is good as long as it's not narrative - but I'm working on that. Cudos to my beta, she's a miracle - don't know what I'd do without her.

I was surprised how many words for "Ghost" exist in the english language.

In German, we have only one word: Ghost - Geist .

In English, there are many.

Can someone help me listing them, just for fun ?

- wraith
- ghost
- spirit

Well Kee... I also like the nuances, it's just that it's so difficult learning them! *sigh*

But I guess I just have to keep on writing, and writing, and writing, and keep on learning...

Phantom....

Though I don't like that one...

But learning is fun, Enji! Because the easiest way to do it is to read and write Star Wars...