by Gary Wollenhaupt

Created on: February 09, 2009

Speech writing is an ancient and honorable art, yet one that is often misunderstood. Speech writing, or the writing of words to be spoken by another person, dates back to the Greeks. In modern times, politicians and corporate leaders still use speech writers for many occasions.

Really, speech writing is simply the act of planning what a person is going to say before he or she speaks the words. It required a lot of work on the part of the writer, and a meeting of the minds between the writer and the speech giver.

The challenge for a speech writer is to capture the rhythms and cadence of the speakers voice, their vocabulary and mannerisms in such a way that the speech feels natural.

As a speech writer, I found the best way to capture a person's natural speech was to talk over the issues with the person in private. Take notes, record their voice, and sit with the speaker as they talk to other people during the course of meetings. A speech writer has to be able to get inside the speaker's head, and make the words come out in a natural manner.

There are a number of rhetorical devices and tricks that can be used. President Barack Obama uses alliteration and repetition, devices used since ancient times that can also be found in African-American churches. A good speech writer will learn the tools of the trade, will know the rules and how to break them for maximum effect.

Some speakers are reluctant to use a speech writer, for fear that it will make them look elitist. One corporate executive I slaved over a speech for, read it intently in the days leading up to the event. He took it up to the podium with him, withdrew the papers from his jacket pocket and rolled them up. He said, "I'm going to depart from my prepared remarks and speak from my heart." Then he proceeded to give the speech nearly word for word. But he made it own, and believed in what he said.

To learn the art, study speeches old and new. It's rare that speech writers will become known, but recent presidential speechwriters such as Peggy Noonan, President Reagan's scribe, have lifted the veil on this rare art form. To see speech writers in action, I suggest watching episodes of the TV Show "The West Wing," especially those built around the State of the Union speech. It's one of the few times outsiders catch even a fictional glimpse into the art of writing a memorable speech.The best compliment a speech writer can receive is to have someone say, "That didn't sound like a speech at all."

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