I would choose...
Moderators: Dimitris, maneki neko2, Lorikeet, Enrico Palazzo, superpeach, cecil2, Mr. Kalgukshi2
I would choose...
Who would you prefer to edit your writing: a non-native speaker of English who is a Professor of English at an Indian (or a Belgian) university, or a monolingual Brit or American who left school with no qualifications at the age of 15?
I've never met any, so not speaking from experience, but I, as a native speaker, would more likely trust and submit my writing to the non-native English professor. But I know a lot about editing, so I could only accept edits if I've been convince of the rationale for them. It would be teamwork. Writers and editors both should know how to write well; editors are just dang good at spotting overlooked mistakes writers should already know. On every edit, the writer should say "Oops" and not "Huh?"
Could you say why?I've never met any, so not speaking from experience, but I, as a native speaker, would more likely trust and submit my writing to the non-native English professor.
I think an "oops" is coming:On every edit, the writer should say "Oops" and not "Huh?"
But I know a lot about editing, so I could only accept edits if I've been convince of the rationale for them.
Well, probably because I don't think submitting it to an untrained high-school student (or adult), whether native or not, would accomplish much. I can edit my own things, as any writer does, before submitting it to fresh eyes, whose eyes should be as sharp, and preferable sharper than mine. The more important the document, the more carefully I edit my own. An untrained high schooler couldn't find much that I hadn't already found, granted I was careful. Someone who is trained would be conscious of a wider array of errors made and violation of writing principles than a high-school student. Of course, the professor could be a dunderhead, which also wouldn't be helpful. A high schooler could also have an early interest in grammar, could have trained or applied him- or herself, and thus could offer advice more valuable or more careful than that of a lazy non-native (or native) professor.Could you say why?
I've seen the result of unqualified adult native speakers attempting to edit things for publication, and I was convinced. I've had experience wasting my own time editing wrong edits and preferring to work with the original document.
