"Paul Dudenhefer has edited several of my texts and has always improved them to a great extent. What sets him apart from others is that he does not only detect even the smallest grammatical blunders, but that he is able to make a text much more enjoyable to read. Even a rather dry academic text becomes entertaining and at times even witty after Paul has laid his hands on it." --Reinhard Schumacher, University of Potsdam

I'm sure you've heard it all before. Be clear. Be concise. Avoid the passive voice (doubtful advice, by the way). I treat those issues and several more in an essay available as a PDF document. But who has time to read that! Here's the short version:

Use short grammatical subjects. 

Use verbs, not nominalizations (noun forms of verbs).

Begin sentences with old information.

End sentences with new information.

Put important ideas before a colon, a semi-colon, or a period.

Let the number of important ideas in a sentence determine how long the sentence should be.

Be concrete.

Use a surprising bit of grammar or syntax to enliven a sentence.