Master the Art of Public Speech Writing with Our Expert Tips

by Dr. Shanthi Thomas

Carmen was newly elected as the president of the drama club. Her joy knew no bounds. Well, the euphoria did not last. She was informed that she would have to deliver a speech at the general meeting. She tried to evade the responsibility. She said that she did not know how to write a speech. Her friends told her that it was not a big thing. She could do some research on the internet on how to write a speech. It was as simple as that. Sure enough, she was poring over the internet soon, looking for tips on speech writing.

1. Know what to speak

If you are asked to give a speech, chances are that there is a need to tell something to a group of people. Usually, it is to inform the audience of something. It could also be a speech to persuade the audience to do something. Or, it could be just a convention. For example, take this commonly followed convention. The newly elected president of a club gives a speech. Usually outlining her policies for the club.  Whatever it is that you are going to talk about, make sure that you know the topic really well. Research on the internet, ask relevant people or read newspapers and books to understand what you have to say.

2. Consider your audience

Who is your audience? What do they already know? Are they interested in what you have to say? Are they distracted by something? Answers to these questions are of great importance when you prepare your speech. Are they an educated audience? If so, you don’t have to stick to very simple language. Are they not interested in what you have to say? If so, you have to make your speech persuasive and interesting. Perhaps throw in a joke or so. Are they not aware of the issues you are going to talk about? If so, make your talk very informative.

3. Prepare a structure

Be clear about how to structure your speech. A common strategy is to begin with an introduction in which you will introduce the topic and explain it. Then what do you do? You will talk about each component of your speech in a paragraph. What do you call the first sentence of each of your paragraphs? That is the topic sentence. It will describe what you are going to talk about in that paragraph. In conclusion, you will wrap up your speech, reiterating your view point and thanking the audience.

4. Begin with a strong point

Begin with a bang. The beginning of a speech is when the audience is most attentive. Get them hooked with a dramatic question, or a startling revelation. Something that will jolt the audience out of their complacence. For this reason, many good speakers begin their speech with a good joke. You could also begin with some personal detail that is likely to interest the audience.

5. Use concrete details and visual aids

Relinquish abstractions. Use concrete details in your speech. Interesting examples, real life data and visual aids go a long way in ensuring the attention of your audience. Nowadays lots of speakers use PowerPoint presentations to aid their speech. If you are presenting a new product to buyers, you could actually show the product and how it works.

6. Consider rhetorical devices

Have you heard of rhetorical devices? They are memorable ways of using words. Some common rhetorical devices used to attract attention are as follows:

• Alliteration: repetition of the sound of the first word or syllable of each word.
• Anadiplosis: Beginning a phrase with the last word of the sentence that went before.
• Antimetabole: reversing words or phrases in successive clauses.
• Metaphor: comparing something to something else so that the meaning is easy to understand.
• Asyndeton: Omitting conjunctions to highlight an idea.

7. End memorably

Just like the beginning of the speech, ending is also very important. If you are persuading the audience towards a point of view, reiterate your position strongly as you end the speech. If you are advocating for some cause such as environmental protection, end with a call for action. If you are informing the audience of something, summarize the information in the conclusion. Whichever you choose, remember to leave lasting impression in the minds of the people who have been listening to you. Thank the audience for their time, and your speech is done.

Related reading: Public Speaking Tips and Sample Speeches