Hi everyone! I recently joined Journaly and shared a few short posts here. First, a big thank-you to those who kindly offered corrections and supportive comments — your help has made me feel welcome! As a new user, I'm still learning how to use and I haven't figured out the features. I'll need some more time to explore!
While reading other user's posts, sometimes it's hard for me to feel really interested. Maybe it's because many posts are mainly written for language practice. I also noticed that some interesting posts haven't received any comments yet. >>>> maybe because there's nothing to correct? XD
This made me curious about how everyone uses Journaly:
- Do you usually comment only when you can help with corrections? Or do you also comment if you just like the topic?
- Have you had interesting conversations or made friends here?
- What makes you want to help with correcting other people's posts?
Thanks again for your kindness —I look forward to hearing your thoughts!
Headline image by jannerboy62 on Unsplash
I am using Journaly essentially for language writing practice, so I am mostly just interested in getting corrections. Whenever I post I try to review at least 1-2 posts written in my native language (English) to help others in return, as I think that's the fair thing to do. If the post needs no corrections, I usually give it a 'clap'. Mostly I only make comments if it's to help give corrections, unless, like in this post, someone has asked a particular question. I can't say I have made friends here, but I have gotten to know certain users if they always help correct my posts or I often end up giving corrections on theirs. I find it easier to get feedback on some posts compared to others. For example, I always seem to get feedback on my Korean ones, but I never seem to get feedback on the ones I have tried in Chinese or Icelandic. I think certain language groups are more highly represented here than others, but that's just the way it goes, I guess. Welcome to Journaly, anyway. I hope you have fun exploring the site.
Thanks very much for your sincere reply and help with correction.
First of all, welcome to Journaly! Your English is spectacular.
Do you usually only comment when you can help with corrections, or do you also comment when you just like the topic? Naturally, after using this site for so long, I've gravitated towards certain users and correct their posts as a matter of course. And even when they don't require my corrections — for instance, if they write something in a foreign language I don't know, I'll give their post a like and comment. I'll often let AI translate their posts for me, so that I know what it's about. Also, in general, I'll sometimes leave a (verbose) comment under a post I find particularly interesting when I want to start a discussion.
Have you had interesting conversations or made friends here? Yes and yes! Lots of them. In fact, a lot of the people I've met here are on my Telegram and we chat daily. I also have a YouTube channel for conversational American English and I've directed a plethora of my viewers to Journaly, so we communicate on YouTube too.
What makes you want to correct other people's posts? First of all, I only usually correct intermediate to upper-intermediate writers because I admit that I lack the patience to get into basics. I much prefer to help people who are at a reasonably advanced level and are just looking to fine-tune their English. Also, I don't often enjoy correcting posts that are overly technical, and I can't stand posts that are political. Not only because I hate politics (which I do), but also because I lack the (interest or) vocabulary to offer anything meaningful by way of correction. Aside from correcting posts that pique my interest, I also enjoy recording them upon request. This was started by a veteran user, @edufuga , a few years ago and I think it's an incredibly effective tool. Plus it must be so gratifying for the author to hear their post come to life on the lips of a native speaker.
In closing, thank you for the interesting post and the great questions. I look forward to reading more of you and helping in any way I can. I'm sure I'm joined by the entire Journaly community in once again saying Welcome!
Welcome to Journaly!
I enjoy correcting posts written by high beginner to intermediate learners, though I’ve also helped a few beginners. The biggest challenge for me is not over-correcting to the point where it feels like I’m rewriting the post. I want to make sure the writer’s voice stays intact.
I tend to avoid political, religious, scientific, technical, or philosophical posts—those topics are way over my head! And because I put a lot of time and care into my corrections, I usually skip longer posts (anything that takes more than about three minutes to read).
So far, I’ve connected with a very friendly and appreciative writer here, and I’ve also gotten help from someone who puts a lot of effort into correcting my Spanish—which I really value.
I mostly comment when I can offer a helpful correction, but I’ll also ‘clap’ for posts that are interesting or well-written and don’t need any changes.
I look forward to seeing more of your posts.