What to avoid when writing a speech

A written speech is a good way to prepare a monumental speech. Writing it down helps focus on the ideas and also avoid repetition. There are however various things that speech writers often overlook or overdo some things. Speech writing is very sensitive whether for yourself or for another person. More caution should be taken specifically for a speech that is not yours. A speech writer has to consider the personality of the speech giver while writing the speech. There are very key factors that any speech writer should avoid.

Sentence construction

The speech has to be made up of perfectly constructed sentences that do not have content that may distract the listener from the main point of the speech. The various factors that should not the in a speech include clichés. These are overused statements or expressions. Such kind of expressions do not thrill the listener as much anymore and they should be avoided. Metaphorical statements should be avoided because the non-literal sense of the expression is open to translation most of the times. It can also be confusing because some of the non-literal connotations may at times need to be translated literally.

Figures of speech

While making comparisons, be careful not to use old similes that no longer make sense to the listeners. A speech with similes like as happy as Larry may come off as a speech with no meaningful content. The same case applies to figures of speech. These are very similar to metaphors and similes. If a figure of speech gets overused, it becomes worn out somehow and most listeners may lose interest in the speech very fast. Slang and colloquialisms should not be used in a speech. For example, shortening cannot to can’t, would not to wouldn’t. This is not acceptable in an official speech that is meant to give a meaning and strength to what is being driven at.

Pomposity

A major fail is when a speech writer thinks that the speech will be better if pompous words were used. A speech should be made up of simple words that go straight to the point. The listeners do not need to have dictionaries for the speech. A simple and comprehensible speech is easily taken in by the audience. Finally, a speech should not include shorthand writing especially if the speech is being written for someone. They are not very universal and should not be read out in public none the less. Most people do not find them meaningful. It is conclusive that for a speech to be successful, it needs to be very clear to the audience to make it easy to understand.

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11 2016

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