How can one increase the development speed and pace

Additional to the inputs, I would suggest one of the Hidden & Under-Estimated Skill, which most of the MVPs possess, but do not realize :)

TYPE WRITING SKILLS!

It makes you code 10 lines with the same energy of 1 line..
It helps you write an article with the same energy for a para..
SURELY it is a high leverage skill!

Here are four:

1.  Try to keep things simple and don't try to condense your code too much. This makes debugging and maintenance easier.

2.  Keep your methods reasonably short so you can see all the code without scrolling. 

3.  Decide on a sensible naming convention for your classes, variables, methods, controls etc. and stick to it.

4.  Don't try to program when you're very tired. Doing so tends to be counter-productive as you can spend more time fixing the bugs than it took to write the code in the first place!