I didn’t write Your English Is Great, But… to explain myself.
I wrote it because I was tired of translating experiences that so many people already understood — but rarely saw reflected back to them.
The book came from accumulation.
From repetition.
From moments that felt small on their own, but heavy together.
The Phrase That Wouldn’t Let Me Go
“Your English is great.”
I heard it often enough that it started to echo.
At first, it sounded like praise.
Later, it sounded like surprise.
Eventually, it sounded like a reminder — that no matter how fluent I was, I was still being measured.
That phrase became a doorway into a much larger conversation about language, identity, and belonging.
Writing What Didn’t Have a Category
I didn’t see many places where these experiences lived comfortably.
They weren’t dramatic enough for headlines.
They weren’t theoretical enough for academic spaces.
They weren’t loud enough to demand attention.
But they were real.
I wrote the book to give these moments a home — to name what so many people feel but are often told to brush off.
Language as Experience, Not Just Topic
This book isn’t about grammar.
It’s about:
- How language shapes confidence
- How accents affect credibility
- How praise can carry conditions
- How belonging is often negotiated through speech
Language is not neutral.
It never has been.
Writing about it allowed me to connect personal experience with broader systems — without turning either into spectacle.
For the People Who Recognize Themselves
I wrote this book for people who have:
- Been complimented and questioned in the same breath
- Learned to code-switch before they learned the term
- Felt fluent and foreign at the same time
- Been understood without being accepted
If you’ve ever adjusted your voice to fit a room, this book is for you.
Why I Chose Essays
I chose essays because they allow room.
Room for nuance.
Room for contradiction.
Room for reflection.
Not every experience needs a conclusion.
Some need recognition.
The essays don’t argue.
They observe.
They sit with moments long enough to let meaning surface.
Writing as Reclamation
Writing this book felt like reclamation.
Of voice.
Of story.
Of agency.
What once felt like something I had to manage — language — became something I could shape.
That shift matters.
Why This Conversation Still Matters
Every article I’ve written this month exists because the conversation hasn’t ended.
People are still judged by how they sound.
Belonging is still conditional.
Language is still used as a shortcut to worth.
Your English Is Great, But… isn’t meant to close the conversation.
It’s meant to open one.
An Invitation
If these essays resonate with you, I hope the book feels like recognition — not instruction.
And if you see yourself in these words, know this:
You were never asking for too much.
You were asking for belonging.
About the Author
José Martínez is a journalist and author who writes about language, identity, and belonging. He is the author of Your English Is Great, But…, a book exploring accent bias, bilingual identity, and the hidden meaning behind everyday compliments.
👉 Your English Is Great, But… is available now on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Your-English-Great-But-Languages/dp/B0FHBJKJ6R
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