aaleks's log

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[overscore]

"alanta, try to avoid starting your sentences with Because and And.
Your writing is ok in general. There are some minor mistakes and slips but it’s not the issue. The main trouble is that it has totally Russian syntax and rather big problems with composition. I could say that those are the aspects you should pay more attention."

(alanta is me )

IMO, this text is a great example of a mean remark, among other things, because it was disguised as advice. Unsolicited advice. I wasn't asking how I could improve my writing or anything like that. I was asking a quite specific question about a quite particular phrase. But this text not only didn't answer my question, it didn't provide any helpful information at all.

The first line: "try to avoid starting your sentences with Because and And". First off, I knew that. Second, I knew that it might be important for formal writing, the text we were discussing was a forum post.

"Your writing is ok in general. There are some minor mistakes and slips but it’s not the issue." - again no real information. Just warming up before a blow.

Look at it objectively, she's in the business of selling training hours and effective training goes directly in competition with that. She's not vested in your particular success here.
Ask yourself, "will she benefit monetarily if I fail here?". The answer is "yes".
I personally can't stand that kind of artificial sanitized environment; for Serbian I see it a lot, every other day people are asking about language classes and such, while others are complaining about just how "impossibly difficult" Serbian is on silly youtube videos.
The usual tripe, I don't even find it funny anymore: "jebeni padeži, jebote wahh wahh".

Meanwhile the local Chinatown is all fluent.
Organized education in general is a scam, the fact that Biden will soon bail out 750 billion dollars of student loans is just another indicator of the monumental waste of time it is. Input method and taking control of one's own learning works.

[iguanamon]

But sometimes I recall those words about "totally Russian syntax" and that makes me self-conscious about my writing. Recently I left efl.ru, maybe it'll help (?) . Anyway, this post probably has those old problems with syntax and composition since I haven't paid attention to those aspects.

There are no problems in your post with syntax and composition, none at all. Your English writing is excellent. You have done quite well as a self-learner. You long ago reached a point where resources for learners of English and engaging with other ESL learners is no longer necessary for you. You have nothing to worry about!