How to write a speech
Before you start writing
So, you’re all set to write your speech. You have a blank piece of paper or a blank screen but where on earth do you start? Well, every speech I’ve written is different but one thing that stays constant is the process. Gleaned from over 20 years as a professional writer – and over 10 running a speech writing service – here are some tips on how to craft a memorable and punchy speech.
What are your aims?
You might find yourself saying: “Oh, next week, I’m doing a golf club speech” or “I’m speaking at our annual awards”. However, to keep the speech engaging and tightly written, you’ll want to make your aim precise.
Ask yourself the following:
- When you stand up, what will the audience expect you to talk about?
- When you sit down, what do you hope the audience will have learned about you or the subject you covered?
- Are the two aligned?
To help with this, imagine you’ve hired yourself then give yourself a brief. For example:
Golf club dinner speech
AIM: Thank the key people then entertain the golf club members with stories from the last year, mentioning as many individuals as you can.
Headteacher’s speech
AIM: Bring the school’s values alive with wit and empathy. Make the parents think “we’ve made a great decision in sending our kids here”.
Significant birthday speech
AIM: Mix milestones with fun stories that involve both family and friends. Aim for one or two heartfelt “ahh” moments.
Speech tip 1: “A crystal-clear brief will help you select then sieve your material. It’s as much about what to leave out as what to include.”
Style and tone
If you are delivering a eulogy or rugby club speech, you’ll be confident of the tone you’re aiming for. For speeches between these two poles, you might not be certain where to pitch things.
I usually start by writing a number of potential lines. One of them often jumps out as being the “keynote” line. It has the right sort of rhythm and tone I’m after. I then try to continue in this style.
The speech writing process
When people listen to a well-written speech, it’s hard not to think it tumbled out of the writer’s mind fully formed. In rare instances, creative works have appeared like this. For example, Paul McCartney dreamed the melody to Yesterday.
However, he didn’t dream the lyrics, so when scribbling down the song, he started with something that scanned: not “Yesterday” but “scrambled eggs”.
It’s the same with writing a speech. You need to start somewhere. And the best way to do this is to open up that Word doc and see what tumbles out of your mind.
Which brings us on to…
Brainstorming
Jot down any headline ideas, stories or reflections that come to mind. Don’t go into detail at this stage and don’t worry whether any of this will make the final speech. You just need to generate as much potential material as possible so keep those thoughts coming.
You might find an insight or story starts to shape itself as you do this. That’s great. Quickly write it out then continue brainstorming.
Speech tip 2: “When brainstorming, there is no such thing as a bad idea.”
Fleshing out
You’ve now got a collection of potential speech material. However, resist the urge to start putting this in order. The next stage is to take some of the ideas or stories that stand out and start putting some flesh on the bones.
So, turn some of those phrases into lines, and lines into paragraphs. I typically write much more material than I need. For a 1,000-word speech, I’ll have at least 1,500 words, sometimes as much as 2,000.
You can then use this material like an a la carte menu – it’s all about choosing your favourite combination.
Speech writing tip 3: “Always write more than you need. You’ll end up polishing your speech not padding it out.”
First draft
At this point, your notes will seem to be no more than a “brain dump”. But actually, this isn’t quite true. You will have already been subconsciously shaping and linking some of the material.
You will therefore find it fairly easy to put it into some sort of rough order. This structure could be chronological or linked by theme. Again, it doesn’t have to be perfect. Just focus on following your instincts.
Speech writing tip 4: “The longer you spend brainstorming and fleshing out, the quicker the first draft will be.”
Re-drafting
This is the fun part. As you’ve now got a rough draft, you can start having a play with it. Some simple pointers are:
- Keep the language direct. Unless it’s your chosen style, don’t be too flowery or ornate.
- Lose the padding. Drop any words that don’t add to the meaning, the emotion or the joke.
- Ensure it flows. Simple bridging phrases can help e.g. “Now that we’ve spoken about A, let’s talk about B.”
- Read it out loud. If your tongue trips over a section, it probably needs tweaking.
You have got your chisel out and are chipping away at your marble sculpting that great speech.
NOTE: In writing this guide, I initially used “comparatively easy” in a line above. On re-drafting, I changed that to “fairly easy”. A saving of 3 syllables!
Speech tip 5: “Writing is re-writing”
Speech writing techniques
When you’re speaking, you’ll want the audience to feel in safe hands without them knowing exactly what’s coming next. So, here are some simple speech writing techniques to add a touch of the assured and the unexpected.
Mix the high and the low
Whether it’s a corporate speech to the power-dressed or a golf club speech to the quite pissed, mixing the refined and the rough is a good tool to use to keep people on their toes. How to do this? Well, I had a stab at it in the first sentence of this section. Other ways are to mix references to highbrow and popular culture.
You could have a birthday speech that’s informal in style but also jokily quotes Shakespeare. If it’s a more serious corporate speech, you could surprise people by quoting a famous line from a film, TV series or song.
Callbacks
What’s a callback? Quite simply, it’s a reference to something mentioned earlier. One or two callbacks in a speech give the sense it has been woven together rather than thrown together.
Ideally, you’d want to seed one earlier in the speech and refer to it again near the end.
Speech writing tip 6: “Use callbacks in passing rather than flagged up as “remember this!”. It rewards – and flatters – the attentive listener.”
Rhetorical questions
And why would a rhetorical question work…?
Well, it can be a good way to start a section without using a signpost like: “Let’s now move on to…”
Example:
“And why would renewable energy prove so popular in Texas?” is more engaging than: “Let’s look at the reasons for the popularity of renewable energy in Texas.”
How to structure your speech effectively
3 is the magic number
It might sound facile but do think of your speech as having a beginning, middle and end. This rule of three is everywhere in the creative world, from the three-act play to the three-word list: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly; “Friends, Romans, countrymen”; “Ha, ha, bonk – a man laughing his head off.”
Here are three (naturally!) examples:
This structure can be expanded. The middle section itself might have its own beginning, middle and end. But the key point remains, when we are listening to a speech, we are hard-wired to expect:
- The set-up
- The main argument or content
- The conclusion
So, do satisfy that expectation.
Speech tip 7: “Remember – the rule of 3 is basically here, there and everywhere.”
Time order
If your speech revolves around key events, don’t be scared to deal with them in chronological order. An obvious example would be an after dinner or corporate review of the year. A Father of the Bride talking about his daughter’s life achievements is another.
The advantage of chronology is that this order already exists in reality.
Thematic
After brainstorming your ideas, you might notice a theme develops. If it neatly fits over a good number of your ideas, great. If you hear the sound of a crowbar as you try to squeeze ideas into your theme, drop it. If it’s hard for you to write, it will probably sound forced too.
Here are some example themes:
Speech tip 8: “A speech theme should feel fun not forced.”
Conclusion
When it comes to writing a speech, there’s no substitute for time and effort. Unfortunately!
As time is always limited, focus on generating as much potential material before you even think about putting it in order. If you get stuck or something isn’t working, refer back to your notes. You might find an unused idea works better or inspires you.
Of course, there is another option – and that is to hire someone who runs a speech writing service! And that’s me, Marc Blakewill. So why not check out my about page or after-dinner page and see how I could help you write a speech for any occasion.
Thanks for reading!
Marc