Rules of Thumb for Writers
In this practical guide, Jay Silverman et al expose the nuts and bolts of written communication.
The book offers some helpful techniques for finding your voice as a writer. The advice is simple. Write honestly about what you care about. Use plain English that the reader (and the writer!) can understand.
"A great technique for developing your own voice is to read your work aloud. If you do it regularly, then you'll begin to notice when other voices are intruding...in time your sentences will gain rhythm and force. Reading aloud helps you remember that when you write, you are telling something to somebody...another good technique is to visualize a particular person and pretend you are writing directly to that person."
Many writers agree that reading your work aloud to yourself is a great way to hear errors of rhythm and flow, as well as unnecessary repetition. At the editing stage, hearing your own work read aloud -- in your voice or in someone else's -- is a huge help.