A friend made the same suggestion as you. I've found that reading a piece out loud to myself is a really useful tool to catch any "weirdness."
I found this has helped me improve my overall writing. However, my writing process is slightly different. My content is generally inspired by a thought or title.
I will write in my Steemit ideas/Draft note pad on my phone and let the idea grow. After the idea has grown I sit down and write. I love formatting. Having my piece look beautiful helps me finish.
Being visually appealing helps me complete my thoughts. Afterwards, I read out loud once more then choose my tags. I usually draw a blank at this point and refer to older post to remind me of tags I usually like to use.
I find myself more of an impulse writer. I have ideas that overwhelm me. I let them sit too long and it becomes to big of an idea for me to follow through with or require more research then I think is worth it.
However, by participating in the Community engagement challenge I think it has helped me expand my writing and thought process. Since that contest I have been very diligent to respond to all comments and expand my writing to a minimum of 300 words.
@kubbyelizabeth, I would probably be more of an impulse writer if I had more time that was "my own," but I pretty much have to take my writing breaks wherever I can get them... at that's seldom at the moment of inspiration. Hence the extensive note taking.
Visual appeal definitely matters a lot... some of which is a "hangover" from my days of working as an editor and doing layouts for publications and web pages. People are far more likely to actually read something that's visually appealing, as opposed to just a long block of text. And-- for the most part-- we're not writing "White Papers" here!
Yeah, the Engagement Challenge was definitely a good thing... added a bit to my writing discipline... and improved my organization!
When I was in my year book class many moons ago, I never understood why it took so long to write a piece. Now, I understand how time consuming it is top of everything else demanding my attention. Even now, I am at work. Responding to comment in between assignments. I am glad you agree. Overall view of the post must flow like the writing. Do you think you would take the challenge again?