I always notice, but almost never care. I notice simply because I'm trained to edit. I can't read ANYTHING without editing it. It's an annoying habit, but a common occupational hazard. <G> But while truly bad grammar does bother me, spelling differences that I recognize as UK English don't bother me at all. I'm of the opinion that neither is right or wrong - it just depends on the author/situation.
I have a much bigger problem with phrases slipping into dialogue. Clark would never take the lift to Lois' flat, he'd take the elevator to her apartment. That said, I'd say these sorts of examples in LnC fanfic are few and far between. I think the occassional slip is unavoidable and those slips are usually something far less blatant than "lift" or "flat". And I've yet to see an author who doesn't want to fix these slips once they've been alerted.
But then, it sneaks into published fiction too - I find it amazing to believe that editors, if not writers, can't ensure that characters who are members of the English aristocracy in the early 1800s don't sound like contemporary Americans. I mean, young ladies talking about 'fixing' hair? Gentlemen saying they will 'write someone'?
I see this all the time too in published fiction and in movies and it drives me batty. I think it's much worse to have gaffes like this in something that has been professionally edited and published. It's not restricted to time periods or different countries either. It drives me insane to see/watch characters from different regions of the US use slang they would never use. No native of the east coast would ever call soda "pop" and no one outside of L.A. puts "the" before names/numbers of freeways. When I'm in DC I drive on 495 NOT on "the 495". Yet things like this get messed up ALL THE TIME in published fiction and in television/movies. I try to overlook it, but I'd be lying if I didn't say it jerks me out of the story immediately. I go from thinking about the main character's motivation to suddenly wondering where the author is from and why no one told him/her that his/her character would never speak that way.
But in general, my only impression of ESL/non-American writers is amazement that they can do as very well as they do!
Absolutely. That was actually my first reaction to this poll. I'm beyond impressed by the amount of talent we see in this fandom from authors writing outside their native languages. To me, just being able to communicate effectively in another language is something to be admired. The idea of using another language for creative writing astounds me. You all have my respect and admiration, and I promise not to care if you slip from US English to UK English and back again.
Annie
