I know what you mean. I’ve fallen into the academic writing trap myself in the past. It’s weird that the two (academic vs. professional writing) are so different. Btw, you may enjoy this related article:

There are a few authors who I think do an incredible job with writing complex concepts in a simple way. I’ve read a lot of stuff from Malcolm Gladwell, and I think he’s amazing at this. A few classic novelists like Raymond Chandler also do a great job of using simple words and sentences in powerful ways. That kind of writing is really inspiring.

Do any writers come to mind for you who do a good job of this? If so, I’ll have to add them to my reading list!