When you are reading aloud and stumble over a phrase, it could be because that phrase does not ring true. I think it's the literary equivalent of the flicker in the gaze which betrays a lie. It's a foible you can put to good use in your work: when you have finished a paragraph or a page or a chapter, if you read it out loud to yourself and note which sentences trip you up, you will usually find that the structure is awkward or the syntax awry, or that you have loaded on too much alliteration. You can bet your bottom dollar that something won't be quite right. It can feel like a self-conscious exercise to begin with, but it's time well spent.
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