SPEECHWRITING ADMONITIONS

1.Engage early, engage often. The best relationship is one in which a speechwriter writes with the principal, not for the principal. Insist on meeting in person months in advance of an important speech – and determine the theme as soon as possible.

2.Research the audience and theme. Gather and organize information from relevant experts and primary sources. Ground the speech in history and context.

3.Put the theme in writing. Based on early guidance and conversations, draft “topline” messages and review them with the principal before starting to draft the speech. Begin translating the theme into an argument. Get feedback from the principal.

4.Draft the speech. Continuously refine the argument, resolving ideas and putting them in logical order. Express the central idea in a nutshell paragraph that sets the structure for the speech.

4a.Put yourself in the boss’s shoes. Elevate your thinking and write from the perspective of the person responsible for the organization, not yourself.

4b.Nail the mechanical side of the writing. Help the principal focus on substance, not copyediting.

4c.Make the speech better before showing it to the boss. Through constant effort and revision, find something to improve, even if it’s a minor detail. By the time you show the first draft to the boss, exhaust the ways you can make it better yourself.

5.Iterate with the principal, building in time for extensive editing. It takes serious effort to get the big ideas right and to communicate them well. Major speeches often require ten or more drafts.

5a.Focus on ideas and theme sentences. Each paragraph should advance the theme of the speech, and each paragraph should start with a short, declarative sentence. A great speech should flow from theme sentence to theme sentence.

5b.Provide inspiration. Make the speech interactive and personal (give energy as well as information). Weave acknowledgement of those who merit recognition into the speech rather than listing them up front.

5c.Incorporate humor. Make it relevant to the substance of the speech.

5d.Check all facts and verify the accuracy of statements.

6.Don’t just write the speech, read it out loud when it’s nearing completion. Get your principal to do the same.

7.Listen to the principal deliver the speech. You can’t write what you’re not going to hear. Do it in person, if possible, to gain a sense of how the speech was received. Provide a forthright assessment to the principal of the speech as delivered.

8.Share the as delivered speech, if appropriate. Help expand the impact of the principal.

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