How to improve writing skills when english isn't my first language?

[LarryBrown]

Hello everyone! I'm an international student from South Korea, and I've been studying in the US for about six months now. I can speak pretty well—I can order coffee, talk with friends, and follow most lectures—but writing is a completely different monster. My essays come back covered in red ink, and my professor says my sentences are "grammatically correct but don't flow naturally." I really want to know how to improve writing skills to sound more like a native speaker. I understand all the grammar rules from my textbooks, but when I write, it comes out stiff and awkward. Do I need to read more American books? Watch more TV shows with subtitles? Find a language partner who can edit my papers? I'm feeling a little discouraged, but I'm determined to get better. If anyone has been through this journey—learning to write in a second language—please share your wisdom with me! I'm ready to put in the work.

 

[ElisaMartins]

I’m also an international student and that “grammatically correct but awkward” comment is so common. Usually it’s not about rules—it’s about word combinations (collocations) and sentence rhythm.

What helped me the most:

1. Steal sentence patterns, not ideas. Find 2–3 strong essays in your class (or sample papers online), and copy the structure of sentences like:

• “Although X, Y because Z.”
• “One reason is…, another is…”
  Do this for one paragraph, then swap in your content.

1. Build a “natural phrases” list (chunks): plays a role, raises the question, leads to, is associated with, in contrast, for example. Memorizing chunks makes writing flow way faster than memorizing grammar.
2. Use tools to check “naturalness”: search your phrase in quotes on Google (or COCA corpus). If “makes influence” shows few results but “has an influence” shows tons, you’ve found the fix.
3. Writing center + read aloud: if you can’t say the sentence comfortably, it probably won’t read smoothly.

Also: aim for clear first; “native-like” comes later