Ministry of Reader  
For effective reading in church it is important to maintain frequent eye contact with the congregation. I always found it helpful to discreetly use one finger on the page as a reference, permitting eye contact without fear of losing my spot in the passage.  The eye contact must be more than a furtive glance, a nervous, momentary bob of the head.  That is and will appear artificial – the response of a conscientious but unsure lector who has heard about the importance of eye contact but fears losing his or her place in the text.  A reader who buries his/her head in the text is no longer ‘proclaiming’ a message of importance and has lost contact with the listeners.

The Reader At Mass 
In 1964 the American bishops published recommendations for reading the Word of God at mass. 

‘The reader’s tone of voice should be clear and firm, never indifferent or uncertain.  The reader should not draw attention to herself (himself) either by being nervous and awkward or by being obviously conscious of a talent for dramatic reading.  It is the message that should be remembered, not the one who reads.  The voice should be reverent without being unctuous, loud without shouting, authoritative without being offensive or overbearing.  The pace must be geared to understanding – never hurried, never dragged.  By voice, attitude and physical bearing, the reader should convey the dignity and sacredness of the occasion.  Her (his) role is that of a herald of the Word of God, her function to provide a meaningful encounter with that living Word.  Perfection in this mission may not always be achieved, but it must always and seriously be sought.’