PRINCIPLES OF SPEECH WRITING
I. The Speech Writing Process
Just like events planning, or any other activities, writing an effective speech follows certain steps or processes. The process for writing is
not chronological or linear; rather, it is recursive. That means you have the opportunity to repeat a writing procedure indefinitely, or produce multiple
drafts first before you can settle on the right one.
The Speech Writing Process
Figure 1
II. Components of Speech Writing
Audience analysis entails looking into the profile of your target audience. This is done so you can tailor-fit your speech content and delivery
to your audience. The profile includes the following information.
demography (age range, male-female ratio, educational background and affiliations or degree program taken, nationality,
economic status, academic or corporate designations)
situation (time, venue, occasion, and size)
psychology (values, beliefs, attitudes, preferences, cultural and racial ideologies, and needs)
The purpose for writing and delivering the speech can be classified into three—to inform, to entertain, or to persuade.
An informative or expository speech provides the audience with a clear understanding of the concept or idea presented by the
speaker.
o It provides information history, theories, practical applications, etc. that can and will help audience understand
something that is unknown to them or already known to them but not yet clearly understood. It is meant to help them
understand a topic in a more in-depth manner by providing new data, data that are not readily available to everyone, or
data already known by the audience but looked in a different way.
An entertainment speech provides the audience with amusement.
o It is not a comedy sketchthe purpose is not only to tell a series of jokes. Neither is it the purpose of the speaker to
have the audiences laughing throughout the speech. To make the listeners smile or feel light hearted after the speech
is enough.
o It must lead the audience into looking at something familiar in a totally different and completely humorous light by
providing comparisons and contrasts. It can also be highly entertaining to engage in a word play like puns, and giving
funny meanings to acronyms and anagrams.
A persuasive speech provides the audience with well-argued ideas that can influence their own beliefs and decisions.
o Its goal is to change the audience’s opinion, attitude, or belief regarding a certain topic (usually controversial) by
providing materials that can or will help convince them.
Table 1
Purposes of Speech Writing
General Purpose Specific Purpose
To inform Grade 11 students about the process of conducting an automated student government election
To inform To inform Grade 11 students about the definition and relevance of information literacy today
To inform Grade 11 students about the importance of effective money management
To entertain Grade 11 students with his/her funny experiences in automated election
To entertain To entertain Grade 11 students with interesting observations of people who lack information literacy
To entertain Grade 11 students with the success stories of the people in the community
To persuade the school administrators to switch from manual to automated student government election
To persuade To persuade Grade 11 students to develop information literacy skills
To persuade the school administrators to promote financial literacy among students
The topic is your focal point of your speech, which can be determined once you have decided on your purpose. If you are free to decide on
a topic, choose one that really interests you. There are a variety of strategies used in selecting a topic, such as using your personal experiences,
discussing with your family members or friends, free writing, listing, asking questions, or semantic webbing.
Narrowing down a topic means making your main idea more specific and focused. The strategies in selecting a topic can also be used
when you narrow down a topic. In the example below, “Defining and developing effective money management skills of Grade 11 students” is the
specific topic out of a general one, which is “Effective money management.”
Table 2
Narrowing Down a Topic
General To inform
Specific purpose To inform Grade 11 students on the importance of effective money management
Topic Financial literacy or effective money management
Narrowing down a Effective money management
topic through listing Effective money management of Grade 11 students
Developing an effective money management of Grade 11 students
Defining and developing effective money management skills of Grade 11 students.
Data gathering is the stage where you collect ideas, information, sources, and references relevant or related to your specific topic. This can
be done by visiting the library, browsing the web, observing a certain phenomenon or event related to your topic, or conducting an interview or
survey. The data that you will gather will be very useful in making your speech informative, entertaining, or persuasive.
Writing patterns, in general, are structures that will help you organize the ideas related to your topic. Examples are biographical,
categorical/topical, causal, chronological, comparison/contrast, spatial and problem-solution.
Table 3
Writing Patterns
An outline is a hierarchical list that shows the relationship of your ideas. Experts in public speaking state that once your outline is ready,
two-thirds of your speech writing is finished. A good outline helps you see that all the ideas are in line with your main idea or message. The elements
of an outline include introduction, body, and conclusion. Write your outline based on how you want your ideas to develop. Below are some of the
suggested formats.
Table 4.1
Table Format
Table 4.2
List Format
The body of the speech provides explanations, examples, or any details that can help you deliver your purpose and explain the main idea
of your speech. One major consideration in developing the body of your speech is the focus or central idea. The body of your speech should only
have one central idea. The following are some strategies to highlight your main idea.
Present real-life or practical examples.
Show statistics
Present comparisons
Share ideas from the experts or practitioners
The introduction is the foundation of your speech. Here, your primary goal is to get the attention of your audience and present the subject
or main idea of your speech. Your first few words should do so. The following are some strategies.
Use a real-life experience and connect that experience to your subject.
Use practical examples and explain their connection to your subject.
Start with a familiar or strong quote and then explain what it means.
Use facts or statistics and highlight their importance to your subject.
Tell a personal story to illustrate your point.
The conclusion restates the main idea of your speech. Furthermore, it provides a summary, emphasizes the message, and calls for action.
While the primary goal of the introduction is to get the attention of your audience, the conclusion aims to leave the audience with a memorable
statement. The following are some strategies.
Begin your conclusion with a restatement of your message.
Use positive examples, encouraging words, or memorable lines from songs or stories familiar to your audience.
Ask a question or series of questions that can make your audience reflect or ponder.
Editing/Revising your written speech involves correcting errors in mechanics, such as grammar, punctuation, capitalization, unity,
coherence, and others. Andrew Dlugan (2013), an award-winning public speaker, lists six power principles for speech editing.
Edit for focus.
“So, what’s the point? What’s the message of the speech?”
Ensure that everything you have written, from introduction to conclusion, is related to your central message.
Edit for clarity.
“I don’t understand the message because the examples or supporting details were confusing.”
Make all ideas in your speech clear by arranging them in logical order (e.g., main idea first then supporting details, or
supporting details first then main idea).
Edit for concision.
“The speech was all over the place; the speaker kept talking endlessly as if no one was listening to him/her.”
Keep your speech short, simple, and clear by eliminating unrelated stories and sentences and by using simple words.
Edit for continuity.
“The speech was too difficult to follow; I was lost in the middle.”
Keep the flow of your presentation smooth by adding transition words and phrases.
Edit for variety.
“I didn’t enjoy the speech because it was boring.”
Add spice to your speech by shifting tone and style from formal to conversational and vice-versa, moving around the
stage, or adding humor.
Edit for impact and beauty.
“There’s nothing really special about the speech.”
Make your speech memorable by using these strategies: surprise the audience, use vivid descriptive images, write
well-crafted and memorable lines, and use figures of speech.
Rehearsing gives you an opportunity to identify what works and what does not work for you and for your target audience. Some strategies
include reading your speech aloud, recording for your own analysis or for your peers or coaches to give feedback on your delivery. The best thing to
remember at this stage is: “Constant practice makes perfect.”
III. Simple Guidelines in Speech Writing
1. Keep your words short and simple. Your speech is meant to be heard by your audience, not read.
2. Avoid jargon, acronyms, or technical words because they can confuse your audience.
3. Make your speech more personal. Use the personal pronoun “I,” but take care not to overuse it. When you need to emphasize
collectiveness with your audience, use the personal pronoun “we.”
4. Use active verbs and contractions because they add to the personal and conversational tone of your speech.
5. Be sensitive of your audience. Be very careful with your language, jokes, and nonverbal cues.
6. Use metaphors and other figures of speech to effectively convey your point.
7. Manage your time well; make sure that the speech falls under the time limit
Each item has two statements, analyze each and determine if it’s true or false and be guided by the directions below.
On your answer sheet, write
A if both statements are correct,
B if both are incorrect,
C if the first statement is incorrect and the latter is correct, and
D if the first statement is correct and the latter is incorrect.
1.
I. Audience analysis is considering the speaker’s belief and attitude towards the topic.
II. Going beyond the time limit to satisfy the content of the speech is acceptable.
2.
I. An outline shall be constructed first before choosing a writing pattern
II. The audience’s values, attitudes and interests is reflected on a dimension of audience analysis.
3.
I. Education and occupation shape the interests of the audience
II. The audience’s principles are reflected in their values.
4.
I. Informing the audience about the effects of a situation is one of the purposes of Causal writing pattern.
II. The introduction is written first, then the conclusion and lastly the body.
5.
I. Editing for variety focuses on the language register that the speaker used.
II. Inclusion of figures of speech is advisable to improve artistry of the speech.
6.
I. Encouraging words are commonly found in the body of the speech.
II. An anecdote is best found in the introduction of the speech.
7.
I. An outline is a ranked list that shows the connection of ideas.
II. A speech for entertainment is meant for the audience to laugh.
8.
I. Diction is the meticulous way of choosing words.
II. Demography is the dimension of the audience analysis that pertains to audience size.
9.
I. Making your speech personal means appealing to the emotions of your audience.
II. Using highfaluting words improves the expertise of the speakers.
10.
I. Conducting a research about your audience is done after choosing a topic.
II. Editing for concision means keeping your speech clear.
