Don't confuse legibility with communication.
It's not about knowing all the gimmicks and photo tricks. If you haven't got the eye, no program will give it to you.
Invite the reader to participate by deciphering. Chaos can attract and engage.
Just because something is legible doesn't mean it communicates...
Graphic design will save the world right after rock and roll does.
For some reason I have a visual intuition that allows me to design things in an interesting way, and I don't know where that came from. Because I don't have this formal training, I seem to drift in a different direction.