Speechwriting:
The Basics, and Fast
Michael Long
Georgetown University
703.408.7570
Speechwriting: Philosophy
Nobody wants…
Speeches v. Presentation v. Oratory
Oratory: Mainly emotional
Speeches: Mix of information and emotion
Presentation: Information (Power Point)
Speechwriting
Six Steps 1. Assess the Event and the Speaker
2. Create a Spec Sheet
3. Identify the Big Ideas and Put Them in Order
(“Identify and Prioritize”)
4. Add Evidence
5. Write the Open and the End
6. Make it Better: Social Media, Sourcing &
Loose Ends
Speechwriting
Step 1 1. Assess the Event and the Speaker
2. Create a Spec Sheet
3. Identify the Big Ideas and Put Them in Order
(“Identify and Prioritize”)
4. Add Evidence
5. Write the Open and the End
6. Make it Better: Social Media, Sourcing &
Loose Ends
Collaborative
w/principal (rarely)
w/staff (usually)
Timetables
Iterations
Getting it down on paper
The rule: 1 minute = 100 words
Speechwriting:
Practicalities & Mechanics
Speechwriting
THE
KEY IS
ORGANIZATION
The Big Secret:
The Music Man and
The Custom Garment
Speechwriting Before you write a word, spend
time thinking.
How much time do I have to write it?
How long is the speech?
What form for delivery, cards or text
or other?
Who is the audience?
What is the speech supposed to be
about?
What do you want the speech to
achieve?
How to write
What to write
Speechwriting
Step 2 1. Assess the Event and the Speaker
2. Create a Spec Sheet
3. Identify the Big Ideas and Put Them in Order
(“Identify and Prioritize”)
4. Add Evidence
5. Write the Open and the End
6. Make it Better: Social Media, Sourcing &
Loose Ends
Speechwriting
Prepare Spec Sheet
Mechanics
Speaker
Date
Location
City, building, room
Duration
Text / Notes /
Outline
Audience
Personal connection
Last time there
Personal ties
People to acknowledge
Order
Speechwriting
Prepare Spec Sheet
Content Topic
from before
What do you want the speech to achieve?
also from before
Three main ideas
“The Meeting”
Speechwriting
Step 3 1. Assess the Event and the Speaker
2. Create a Spec Sheet
3. Identify the Big Ideas and Put Them in
Order (“Identify and Prioritize”)
4. Add Evidence
5. Write the Open and the End
6. Make it Better: Social Media, Sourcing &
Loose Ends
Speechwriting
Identify and Prioritize
Write the middle first: Outline the Structure
Nothin’ fancy
Make a list of the big points you need to make
3 or 4 max
No more than that, ever
These will be the tent poles, the tree branches, etc
Speechwriting
I. Opening – DON’T WRITE THIS YET
II. Middle
A. Big Point #1
B. Big Point #2 Main points
C. Big Point #3
III. Closing – DON’T WRITE THIS YET
Speechwriting I. Opening
A. Big Point #1
B. Big Point #2 Here’s what’s coming: bite-size
C. Big Point #3
II. Middle
A. Big Point #1
B. Big Point #2 Here’s what’s coming: bite-size
C. Big Point #3
III. Closing
A. Big Point #1
B. Big Point #2 Here’s what I told you: bite-size
C. Big Point #3
Speechwriting
Step 4 1. Assess the Event and the Speaker
2. Create a Spec Sheet
3. Identify the Big Ideas and Put Them in Order
(“Identify and Prioritize”)
4. Add Evidence
5. Write the Open and the End
6. Make it Better: Social Media, Sourcing &
Loose Ends
The Writing: Structure
II. Body
– Point 1: Subjective assertion • Support: Objective evidence = EVIDENCE
– Point 2 • support
– Point 3 • support
Kinds of Evidence Anecdotes
Personal experiences
Statistics
Facts
History
Jokes
use of humor
Step-by-step logic
Props
Case studies
Speechwriting
Step 5 1. Assess the Event and the Speaker
2. Create a Spec Sheet
3. Identify the Big Ideas and Put Them in Order
(“Identify and Prioritize”)
4. Add Evidence
5. Write the Open and the End
6. Make it Better: Social Media, Sourcing &
Loose Ends
Speechwriting
Write Opening and Ending
I. Opening
A. Acknowledgements (speech only)
B. Rapport/Attention-getting
C. Topic
D. Subtopics (depending on length)
1. Big Point #1
2. Big Point #2
3. Big Point #3
II. Middle
III. Closing
A
R
T
S
Speechwriting
Write Opening and Ending
I. Opening
II. Middle
III. Closing
A. Big Point #1
B. Big Point #2 Here’s what I told you: bite-size
C. Big Point #3
D. Personal remarks (if desired)
E. Call to Action (if necessary)
Speechwriting
Also at the end...
If you want to plant a single take-away message in the
mind of the audience, state it here—clearly!
Make it a simple, memorable sentence or phrase.
Repeat it throughout the talk.
Speechwriting
Step 6 1. Assess the Event and the Speaker
2. Create a Spec Sheet
3. Identify the Big Ideas and Put Them in Order
(“Identify and Prioritize”)
4. Add Evidence
5. Write the Open and the End
6. Make it Better: Social Media, Sourcing &
Loose Ends
Speechwriting Add Polish
Think like a fourth-grader/sound like a PhD:
“talk it out”
Speechwriting Add Polish
Convert to text or turn in an outline
Avoid “leading” interstitial language
Replace weak/placeholder anecdotes with stronger
ones
Add more color, detail and evidence
Revise recognitions/acknowledgements
Look for better rapport/personal connections
Wordsmith/clean up language
Keeping inspired...
Speechwriting Test it by reading out loud
Write for the ear, meaning...
Use
short, declarative sentences
Avoid
STAGE DIRECTION / PAUSES / “WAIT FOR
LAUGH”
“lost in the weeds” detail – consider what a listener can
easily hold in his head, not on paper
Speechwriting: Social Media
• BEFORE
Use Twitter hashtags to ask audience what
they want to hear (as appropriate)
Tweet/FB pithy quotes from the speech
In catchy language, identify
questions/issues you will address
Occasionally countdown to the date
• DURING
Encourage liveblogging, tweeting and FB-
ing as you speak
Offer hashtags to identify the speech and/or
topics
Have someone tweet/FB on your behalf
matching quotes/stories with links to further
information or documentation
Speechwriting: Social Media
Speechwriting: Social Media
• AFTER
Post a short video of the opening on FB; link
to text or video
Post grafs/quotes; link to text or video
Convert to multiple blog entries
Post distilled elements as “Note” on FB
Yes, it’s necessary
The great forgotten task of speechwriting
What if the speaker gets asked later?
Speaker just wants to know
Endnotes, not footnotes
Not mixed in with text
Separate page
Embedding sources in the spoken text
When and when not to / length of citation
“According to…”
Speechwriting: Sourcing
Speechwriting: Sourcing • The Rule:
– The more controversial the fact, the greater
the need to document its source
300 million
people live in
the US
50 million children
in the US go to
bed hungry every
night
“That sounds
right.” “Are you sure?”
The need for sourcing M O R E L E S S
Make Writing Easy on Yourself
The Printing-Proofing Trick (Font &
Size)
Give it a title
Use subheads and/or section marks
One sentence = one graf
White space
Your Questions
How can I write talking points that are
effective, and how can I do it more efficiently?
Talking Points are
phrases,
sentences and
very short paragraphs
that a speaker can use as a basis for an extemporaneous
talk.
Your Questions
Talking Points Keep them short.
Get to the point.
Write for the ear – when possible, use catchy phrases
Alliteration, consonance, assonance, imagery
Use this thinking for writing sound bites, too.
Use white space and labels so the speaker can sort
through the material at a glance.
Also okay: Jumping off points to jog the memory to
further comment
Your Questions
When given a broad topic, how do I narrow it down
to something manageable? (e.g., professionalism)
How do I write quotable, memorable lines – sound
bites?
How do I drive home a line – how do I get reporters
to pick up the line and how do I get audiences to
remember it?
Your Questions
How do I “break into” speechwriting inside the
office?
How do I capture the tone and voice of the speaker?
Your Questions
What are some source materials for commencements,
general remarks and other events that are oriented
more toward mood than toward fact?
“Condemned to Repeat It” by Wick Allison
“This Day in Business History” by Raymond Francis
“Tunesmith” by Jimmy Webb
“Theatre” by David Mamet
“Get some art in you…”
Speechwriting
Review: Six Steps 1. Assess the Event and the Speaker
2. Create a Spec Sheet
3. Identify the Big Ideas and Put Them in Order
(“Identify and Prioritize”)
4. Add Evidence
5. Write the Open and the End
6. Make it Better: Social Media, Sourcing &
Loose Ends