The main idea behind this essay is to reflect on different styles of academic writing by giving an account of a single article published in an established international journal. A threefold analysis was performed measuring the distribution of personal pronouns with animate v. inanimate reference, descriptive v. classifying adjectives, and active v. passive sentences. The findings are entirely supportive of the hypothesis that features such as personal pronouns, descriptive adjectives and active sentences assist in making the writer more visible and academic prose more involved. Rather than criticising the dissociation from a detached style of writing as a general tendency in scholarly publications, the text presents a tribute to a healthy dose of author exposure in academic prose.