Thanks I'm glad you found it helpful... ​ 1. I recommend starting to read aloud. Try perhaps listening to an audiobook and having the kindle version alongside it. As you listen to the narrator say a sentence/paragraph, you may then copy what he is saying in his/her accent. I am very American. I don't have much of an accent. My normal voice is rather monotone/boring. But the second I do an accent, like a Scottish accent, or an English accent; my tongue is forced to activate much more and I find it much easier to add more tonality to my voice. So get experience having to utilize the tongue in excess with different accents, and then try and replicate those movements and apply them to your normal speaking voice. Main focus here is learning to "feel" the tongue and allowing it to move freely without being too stiff that you "lock it" as you say. 2. I'm not sure what you mean by initiating articulation without reason. You mean initiating articulation without much effort? If you mean the second question it comes with a lot of "good talking" where you're fluent. You then speak so much it becomes habit and you don't have to think of any cues.