Principles of Speech Writing

First Principle of Speech Writing: Choosing the Topic

A Speech is meant to impart a Message to Listeners. The choice of topic may be up to

the Speaker but, more often than not, the Speaker is given the topic because it is the
central theme of a program, conference or presentation. In any case, the topic should
be timely, meaning in existence at the present time (unless a historical event is the
reason for the gathering). The topic should be interesting to you (The Speaker), of
course, so that you will be enthusiastic in preparing and delivering the Speech. At the
same time, it should be just as interesting to your Audience so that they will focus on
your Speech and nothing else. If there is a conflict between what you want to say and
what your Listeners want to hear, then it is the Audience who wins. A topic that is new,
that has not been heard of before by your Listeners, is an attention grabber. So is a
topic that is controversial as it encourages the Audience to listen carefully so they can
choose a side.
It must be pointed out that when choosing a topic, the Speaker must ever be mindful of
the culture of the Speaker and Listener, their ages, their gender as well as their social
status and religious affiliation. It is good advice for the speaker to choose a topic that is
at the level of knowledge of both the Speaker and the Audience.

Second Principle of Speech Writing: Analysing the Audience

Before writing down anything about the speech, one must engage in Analysing the
Audience. A Speech for one occasion cannot simply be used for another. There is no
Speech that fits any and all occasions. Each speech has a different purpose and a
different manner of delivery. Si, given the hundreds of thousands of Speech topics
multiplied by the types of Purpose and Types of Delivery, each Speech, even if
delivered by the same person, is unique. Every Speech is specific to the Speaker and
may be characterized by the topic chosen, the time and place of Delivery, and the
configuration of the audience listening to this particular speech:

The Audience is one of the major factors that determined the uniqueness of the
Speech. Just as there is no speech that fits all Public Communication Situation, there is
no single Audience for a Speech. How do you analyse the Audience if you do not know
who the Audience will be?

First, if possible, get or guess the demographic data of the audience: age, gender,
ethnic background, occupation, economic and social status, etc., especially if one is
addressing a business group, a student club, or a community organization. These data
may influence the Audience’s reaction to the Speech. Moreover, the data will
influence the way you will write the Speech- what points to choose, what to leave out,
the words to use, and even what tone of voice will work on them.

Second, it is important to know the groups to which your Audience belongs as these
groups hold certain beliefs and values. You may then be able to ascertain how your
Listeners feel about certain issues without having to talk to each and every Listener or
do a survey among them.

Third, it is just as important to find out how your audience feels about the topic of your
Speech and what they already know about it ( so that you do not repeat it and bore
the audience.)

Finally, you should try to know how they feel about you as the Speaker and what they
already know about you. The Speaker may be able to gauge this from the organizers of
the event and the people who extended the invitation

Third Principle of Speech Writing: Sourcing the Information

This involves seeking out all the available means for finding materials to support the
Speech. Good sources are newspapers, magazines, books, journals, or any reading
material full of useful information. Search engines on the internet such as Google or
Yahoo may also be used. However, the best resource are people. Especially the experts
or those who are involved in the field to which the topic belongs. A speech on “How to
Take Care of Your Heart” may be built on reading materials, but a cardiologist (heart
doctor) may give more accurate data while someone who has suffered a heart attack
can provide real life experiences that a Speaker may use to reach out and affect them
emotionally.

Information for any Speech topic must be relevant, that is, it discusses the topic directly:
must be timely, meaning it focuses only on the present or recent past; and must cover
most, if not all, of the topics. Information gathered must be at the level of knowledge of
both the speaker and the Audience without offending any Listener.

Fourth Principle of Speech Writing: Outlining and Organizing the Speech Content

This makes sense of all the research conducted. With all the information gathered for
the Speech topic, it is quite easy to be overwhelmed. Although one may want to use all
the information gathered, that is not possible, particularly since there is a time limit. The
first step is to sort the information into categories: statistics, testimonies and opinions,
historical facts, etc. Or they may be classified according to the point they are making,
specifically, that part of the topic to be discussed.

The next step is to organize the Speech itself. For this, the best method is an outline.
Even a Manuscript Speech and a Memorized Speech begins with an outline, which is
then filled out with supporting materials. There are different types of outlines that one
can use depending on how the Speech is to be organized:

1. Chronological Outline- A historical/time approach like from the past tot the
present.
Example: Development of Ilocos Region from Martial Law to the Present.
2. Spatial/ Geographical Outline- going from one place to another. From one
direction to another.
Example: The Heritage Churches of Pampanga
3. Cause and Effect Outline- involves a discussion of both cause and effect of an
issue.
Example: The Fish Kill in Laguna de Bay.
4. Problem- Solution Outline- explains a problem and suggests a possible solution.
Example: Cleaning Up Manila Bay
5. Topical Outline- divides the topic into subtopics based on importance or interest
value or simple because the topic requires it, for topics that do not fall under any
of the previously mentioned outlines.
Example: Social Media Have Made Us Anti-Social

Once there is an Outline, it will be easier to know which supporting material to use
where. The outline also helps in pointing out whether a material may be useful or not.

Techniques for Writing the Speech

There are three techniques to actually writing the speech, whether in full form for
Manuscript or Memorized Speeches, or in outline form for Impromptu and
Extemporaneous Speeches. The first technique is to Write the Body of the Speech first,
filling in the content of the Speech later with supporting materials. Then write the
introduction and Conclusion after. The other technique is to Write the Conclusion first,
which many find very helpful because it shows what the Speech ends with. On the
other hand, some use the technique of Writing the Introduction first to guide the speech
in the direction one wants it to go, then filling in the Body and writing the Conclusions.
Remember that for Extemporaneous Speech, only the introduction and the Conclusion
can be written out in full. The Body of the Speech should remain in outline form.

Whichever technique works for you, the Speech, as written, should flow logically from
one point to another. This logical progression makes it easy for the Speaker to Deliver
the Speech whether in full form like the Manuscript or Memorized Speeches or in outline
form like the Impromptu and Extemporaneous Speeches. As a reminder, do not forget
the Audience when writing the Speech. They may have their own ideas and opinions
about the topic that may not necessarily agree with those of the Speaker

It is not enough to carefully preapare and write a Speech. For Public Communication to
take place, the Speech has to be delivered, transmitted from mouth to ear. A Speech
that is never delivered is useless, even when it is finally read later. Remember that a
Speech is specific to the time and place of Delivery. Writing a speech is only half of the
communication process. Therefore, how does one deliver a speech effectively? This will
be discussed in the next lesson.