How to write a speech

Friday Lessons with Uncle Jay

Did you know writing a speech does not have be a anxious, nail biting experience?

Unsure?

 

Do not be.

You may have lived with the idea you were never good with words for a long time.

 

Or perhaps giving speeches at school brought you out in cold sweats.

However, learning how to write a speech is relatively straight forward when you learn to write out loud.

And that is the journey I am offering to take you on step by step.

To learn quickly, go slow.

Take all the time you need.

 

This speech format has seven steps, each building on the next.

Walk, rather than run, your way through all of them.

 

Do not be tempted to rush.

 

Familiarise yourself with the ideas.

 

Try them out.

I know there are well-advertised short cuts and promises of ‘write a speech in 5 minutes’.

 

However in reality they only truly work for somebody who already has the basic foundations of speech writing in place.

 

Before you start writing you need to know:

WHO you are writing your speech for (your target audience)

WHY you are preparing this speech.

 

What is the main purpose of your speech? What do you want audience to think, feel or do as a result of listening to it?

WHAT your speech is going to be about (its topic)

You will want to have thought through your main points and have ranked them in order of importance.

 

And have sorted the supporting research you need to make those points effectively.

HOW much time you have for your speech eg. three minutes, five minutes . . .

The basic format for writing a speech is simple.

 

It consists of three parts:

1. an opening or introduction

2. the body where the bulk of the information is given

3. and an ending (or summary).

Imagine your speech as a sandwich

If you think of a speech as a sandwich you will get the idea.

The opening and ending are the slices of bread holding the filling (the major points or the body of your speech) together.

You can build yourself a simple sandwich with one filling (one big idea) or you could go gourmet and add up to three or, even five.

 

The choice is yours.

But whatever you choose to serve, as a good cook, you need to consider who is going to eat it!

 

And that is your audience.

So find out who they are before you write the speech. — www.write-out-loud.com