Writing style: accessibility vs style
Some wonderings about writing styles and feedback.
A recent reviewer for one of my stories said they enjoyed the plot, but felt the sentences structure was too convoluted and hard to understand. However, the most heartwarming reviews for that story, and another recent story have been from readers with english as a second language.
(Thanks very much, forion and Luna-noya-na. Thanks Starling-Night, for that matter)
Positively, this presumably means that these stories were understandable (illegible prose being a peripheral complaint I try to eliminate from my stories). On the other hand, it indicates that the fair distance of my writing from everyday english structures grates on the ears of some native speakers.
Does anyone have advice on how to write lucid prose that doesn't alienate people, without making characters of all kinds talk like any old person from down the pub? Basically, how you make writing accessible, but distinctive?
The fanfic in question (couldn't resist), should appeal to fans of alien conspiracies involving Joan of Arc, Cleopatra and Anne Frank, or Puella Magi Madoka Magica;
http://madokamagica.livejournal.com/57857.html