Preparing the Text for Delivery

We spend a lot of time in the public speaking course extolling the advantages of not reading speeches. Instead, I encourage students to look people in the eye and converse with them.

But there are times when you’ll want to deliver prepared remarks and will read a speech. It could be because it’s a formal occasion and the situation demands it. For example, the leader of a nation or the head of an organization usually has a prepared text when he or she makes a formal speech. You might want a script when the topic is so emotional that you might not be able to get through what you have to say without breaking down. Or the speech might be about something so sensitive that it’s imperative that you stay on message to avoid saying something that could make matters worse. Or, it simply might be a long speech and you want to make sure you get it right.

“…you don’t want to look and sound like you’re reading…”

Regardless of the reason for having a text, you don’t want to look and sound like you’re reading when you deliver it. You want to be present in the moment. You want to engage the audience with your eye contact as well as with your words. You want to sound and appear sincere and credible. And you want to be interested and interesting so people will keep listening. There are ways to do these things.

Writing and Preparing the Speaking Script

Include stories or personal experiences (Steve Jobs did a masterful job of that in his Stanford Commencement Address. But he probably could have read less since it was his story he was telling.)

Use vivid language to create visuals or images with your words.

Use a combination of long and short sentences so that you have a varying rhythm and people don’t get bored or lulled to sleep.

“Leave ‘air’ between the thoughts.”

Don’t cram everything together, thought after thought. Too often, written speeches sound like written papers and the two are quite different. The former is intended for listeners, who, unlike readers, can’t re-read a difficult passage or come back later to ponder a complex idea. A listener has limited opportunities to get what the speaker is saying. That’s why examples, illustrations, and stories are essential and repetition of important points is vital in a speech. And frequent pauses allow the listener to catch up and absorb what the speaker is saying. Pause before and after important content. Let it sink in.

Use big type, upper and lower case, and ample spacing when you type up the script.

Don’t have more than one or two paragraphs on a page and, whenever possible, end the page with a complete sentence so that you aren’t forced to turn to the next page to finish the thought.

Create Stage Directions

Spell out numbers and measurements. Instead of $3,000,000, write out three million dollars.

Spell phonetically any strange or difficult to pronounce name or word. For example, if you’re going to refer to former Army General John Shalikashvili, spell it out as Shall-e-cash-veelee.

Don’t worry about traditional punctuation rules. Rather, punctuate for speaking not for reading. For example, use lots of ellipses (…) or write PAUSE when you want to indicate a break between phrases or thoughts.

Repeat important information

If you’re using a quote, you can write “Quote” before and “Unquote” after the citation instead of using quotation marks. But it’s even smoother if you can use your voice and strategically-placed pauses before and after the quote to let the audience know when the quote begins and ends. Inserting “quote” and “unquote” interrupts the flow of the speech and just sounds clunky.

Make sure that you “flag” what’s important in your speech. For example, when you get to something that you want to make sure your audience pays attention to, say something like, “But what I want you to take away (or remember) is this…”and pause briefly, then say it.

Put page numbers on top and bottom of each page.

Mark up the script

• Underline, put in color, or put in bold those words you want to stress
• Set off those words or phrases you can easily speak in one breath

For example:

Four score…and seven years ago / our fathers / brought forth…upon this continent /a new nation…conceived in liberty / and dedicated to the proposition / that all men / are created equal /

Another way to arrange the words on the page is to literally put on each line what you want to say with each breath. For example,

Four score
and seven years ago
our fathers
brought forth
upon this continent
a new nation
conceived in liberty
and dedicated to the proposition
that all men
are created equal.

Churchill wrote out the final draft of his “Their Finest Hour” speech in blank verse format, with short, indented “stanzas”. This format no doubt helped him achieve the kind of rhythm and tone he wanted to communicate.

Delivering the Speech

“When you actually say the speech out loud, you’ll find words or phrases that might be hard to say or contain mouthfuls of syllables.”

Practice delivering the speech—preferably before people you can trust to give you honest feedback. If possible record it, too. When you actually say the speech out loud, you’ll find words or phrases that might be hard to say or contain mouthfuls of syllables. If you find yourself stumbling over certain words, replace them with ones that are simpler and easier to say. If you have lots of syllables, try to use shorter words. If you record the speech, you can also time the speech as you speak it and get a sense of how long it will take to deliver it. This is much better than counting words or reading the speech to yourself.

Memorize the first sentence or two so that you don’t have to begin by reading. Likewise, know the final words you want to say to conclude the speech so that you’re looking at the audience—not down at your paper—when you end your remarks. To see how powerful being released from a script can be at the end of the speech, look at the ending of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. He looks like he’s about to be raised from the podium by the time he’s repeated “free at last” for the third time. He’s not bound to any text. Or to the earth.

Before you begin the speech, take a breath or two. These are quiet, deep breaths which will settle you down, not loud, panicky-looking gasps.

Look around and smile…and when the room is settled down and ready to listen…find the friendly faces in the crowd and relish the joy of finally getting to say what you’ve been waiting and wanting to say your entire life.

Final Note

Someone who does a very good job of reading a speech is Hillary Clinton. Take a look at her Concession Speech (2008). Note how she looks down at the text to grab a line of copy and then looks up again to deliver it. She repeats this process throughout the speech. She isn’t speaking while looking down, only when she is looking out at the audience. Something else to notice about this speech is the pride, the gratitude, and even the pain she is feeling being up there addressing this particular audience of loyal campaign staff and ardent supporters. These feelings didn’t come from the page, but from the heart. Emotions aren’t found in the words, but in the body language and the way each speaker delivers the words.

Another very good speaker of a prepared text is the novelist, Isabel Allende. She’s reading every word, but it sounds and feels like a speech, not a reading or a lecture. Look at the eye contact she gets on important points and notice how she expresses her feelings whether she’s telling a humorous anecdote or a serious story. She has clearly written in a way that captures her voice…and our attention.