Main reason: it's neutral. That may sound a bit strange as we are talking about the language of the imperialist power no. 1 these days but emotionally for me it is neutral. One can communicate with all kinds of people in English - definitely more than with German. Also for me as somebody coming from an immigrant background - I moved to Germany with my parents when I was three years old beginning of the 70s - German carries a certain baggage concerning identity, nationality and belonging. It's not that I don't like German, I guess it's what I think in, breathe, for me probably as transparent as a language can be (certain murkiness notwithstanding & it isn't even avoidable in any language) - it's just that sometimes I feel that I'm not allowed into the inner sanctum of it or maybe more precise I would have to claim it for me and that is scary and presumptious. With English there is already a tradition of claiming it against all its history of colonialism and repression. That I can identify with. And there is the question who am I writing for? For German speakers? I don't think so. So, yeah, it's difficult.

Learning to ignore one’s unhappiness is a very important lesson, since unhappiness in an inevitable consequence of human existence. Anthony Daniels