> Somewhat. Through effort I can take on a more objective perspective, but there is no platonic stranger I could pick out. Everyone has his own context and his

> Somewhat. Through effort I can take on a more objective perspective, but there is no platonic stranger I could pick out. Everyone has his own context and his own needs. What I try to do instead is visualize people I know who are not close friends. I think "What would X think if she were reading this?" Writing something down and then ignoring it for a few days is another way to get a fresh view of your writing and see the problems. Not an original idea: one of my profs in grad school suggested it. Best writing advice I've ever received. (Like every acolyte in history I of course ignored it at the time.)