A good Master of Ceremonies makes all the difference to any social occasion. In fact you could say that the M.C. is the oil that lubricates the event and makes go smoothly. It doesn’t matter if he is the M.C. for a wedding, an award ceremony or a concert. What is important is how he makes those present feel welcome and in the mood to enjoy or take part in that particular event. His welcome to those attending should, therefore, be warm and if he is welcoming guest speakers he should do so graciously. Naturally a good M.C. will do his homework about the occasion and people in question. He will know their attributes and background before introducing them. If he can add a topical touch to what he says so much the better. He should know what announcements have to be given during the event and so he should announce the cutting of the cake at the wedding for instance. If there is a break in proceedings such as at a concert he will make an announcement about where drinks are served and about the timing of the interval. At the end of the occasion he should thank all who have contributed to the occasion. Above all his farewell words should leave those present with a feeling of satisfaction. In other words a good M.C. ensures everyone goes home with that intangible feel good factor.

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What is the best advice you can give to a speechwriter? The answer is probably to make your speech short. After all it is better to have your audience saying “Aw” because you have finished than “Is he ever going to end?” Making a speech short is, of course, very challenging. You have to find your topic and deliver your message like one of those famous short, sharp shocks. Think of all the well known sayings in the world that have an important message for all of us but that are only two or three lines long. The same applies to your speech. The secret is to take your message and cut, cut, cut. That does not mean that you have to lose out on what you want to say. It is merely that you have to find a shorter way to say it while retaining the original meaning. It’s not easy, writing a good speech never is. Even professional speechwriters will admit that it takes time to write a short speech. So say what you want to say but say it in as few words as possible.

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Speakers don’t have to spell but it is important that they spell out what they mean. If they use the word sale for instance are they speaking about the sail on a boat or the January sales? Does a speaker speak about a hoard of hidden treasure or a horde of people? Hail is a greeting but it may mean that someone is hale and hearty and in good health. Someone may have a flair for art while those in distress at sea may set off a flare. Obviously these are just examples of the differences in spelling itself and would probably only confuse children learning to read. In a good speech there should be no ambiguity at all regardless of the spelling. The message you want to get across should be clear and concise. Editors often tell journalists to make their sentences shorter and the same should apply to a good speechwriter. Lyrical writing is often beautiful to read but if you are trying to convince a hall full of people about something use plain language. Remember that listeners cannot go back on the page for clarification the way a reader might. So they have to understand what you say the minute you say it. It’s tempting to be clever with words but you can be too clever and thus misleading. So use simple words and short sentences and get that message across, succinctly.

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Writing a good speech means more than being entertaining, persuasive or informative. Your speech should say all that ought to be said on the occasion. If you are the father of the bride, for instance, you should speak of your love for and pride in your daughter. You should welcome the groom and his family into yours and of course you should toast the happy couple. If you are writing a retirement speech it should pay tribute to your fellow workers. You might add how much you were helped by certain people. It should thank those present for any gift you have been given and it should, above all, be optimistic about the future Military speeches should refer to duty and patriotism and the contribution fighting men and women made to their country. A wedding anniversary speech should refer to the past, to the couple and to their future. So don’t just say a few words, make them the right words.

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Giving a speech is like skating on ice. It’s very easy to slip. Even the length of your speech can be wrong. If you go on too long you may bore your audience. If your speech is too short they may not get the message. Take a best man’s speech for instance. The bride may not appreciate his telling the wedding guests about previous girlfriends. Alternatively, he may alienate the bride’s mother by telling stories about the groom’s escapades while they were on vacation together. A speechwriter who is giving an informative speech has to be very, very careful about his or her facts. If he or she says that 2 million people annually die of Aids while the figure should be 10 million there will be somebody in the audience who will know the real figure. A speechwriter should always check his facts. A persuasive speaker is skating on even thinner ice. If he is speaking about abortion for instance he must be careful what he says. Obviously he has to retain the courage of his convictions but he can express them without offending others. That does not mean watering down his beliefs. It simply means finding the right way to say that he understands the trauma of an unplanned pregnancy and the havoc it can wreck in a life. Yet he would continue by comparing an abortion to giving the death penalty to an innocent prisoner. He could say that is why he believes it is murder. In other words he is expressing his own strong belief, hopefully in a way that will make people think. So think of your audience before you write that speech and make sure you don’t say anything offensive. A good speaker is like a talented ice skater who will enthral and entertain his audience without slipping.

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Debating is probably one of the best ways to help your public speaking ability. A good speechwriter will do his or her research before giving a speech. Debaters often have to speak off the cuff or with little time to prepare their arguments. That means thinking on your feet. It means being able to think of the positives and negatives of the subject quickly and accurately. It means asking yourself the whys and wherefores of a typical subject. If you are part of a debating team it means consultation and you will be surprised at how people think differently about the same subject. If the subject is that Chinese families should have more babies you will find that there will be those who will argue that they need them to support an ageing population or that babies are the future of the world. There will be others who will think of the negatives such as lack of food to feed all these extra children. If the subject is suicide there will be those who argue that those who commit suicide were so unhappy that it is a merciful relief that they no longer suffer. Others will see it as a failure on behalf of Governments and society in general. It will be up to you to think of variations on these ideas because stating the obvious is not enough in a debate. So if you want to be able to give convincing and compelling speeches try joining a debating society for a while. You’ll be surprised at what you will learn, especially from the opposition!

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Look them in the eye when you are giving a speech. That’s something many public speakers forget to do yet it is critically important. After all if you are speaking to someone individually and they avoid looking at you, you will find it difficult to connect with them. Giving a speech is all about connecting with your audience. Whether you are giving an informative speech, a wedding speech or a persuasive speech you want the audience to empathise with you. You want them to be interested in what you say. If you cannot even look them in the eye how can you expect them to do so? That is why experienced public speakers don’t read their notes. Instead they will look up and speak directly to their audience. They will smile at that audience just as most of us do when talking to someone face to face. Eye contact then is our way of saying “I have something to say to you”. It’s a way of saying, “I hope you agree with me and that you find this topic as fascinating as I do.” It’s a way of telling your audience that their reaction is important to you and that you want them to be involved in the topic you have chosen. Of course it can be hard to look people in the eye if you are shy but we have all heard the comment, “He is the sort of person who doesn’t look you straight in the eye” and it is not meant as a compliment. No matter how bashful a public speaker is he should remember that audiences usually want a speaker to be successful. They want to hear what he has to say. They want to connect with him. A good speech is essential of course but so too is eye contact.

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Has it ever occurred to you that a book launch is like giving a speech? It is the culmination of lots of hard work and use of the imagination. An author, like a speechwriter, has to be professional in his or her writing. Some writers are asked to write certain books just as some speakers are asked to give certain speeches. Their topic is chosen and all they have to do is write the book or the speech and deliver it on time. Other writers, of course, choose their own topics just as other speakers do. Both of them have to do their research, put their ideas in order and start off their work in a way that will appeal to the audience or to the readers. It helps, of course, to know their audience. If a writer is writing heavy tome about economics he will not be addressing it to the man in the street. If he is writing a thriller he will have a much wider potential readership but he will also have much more competition. A speaker, on the other hand, won’t have that competition but will have to know his or her audience. The subject he or she chooses has to be of particular interest to that audience. A speaker has one advantage over the writer. His or her audience is captive and usually there because he or she is interested in the subject matter of the speech. Even those who are there because they are in a certain club or association and who have no interest in the topic can become enthralled. It’s up to the speechwriter. If the speech is humorous enough or captivating enough even the most disinterested listener may sit up and take notice. Writers have book launches and television or radio interviews to sell their work. A speechwriter does not have these advantages. If he or she writes a good speech, practises it and delivers it he or she won’t have to wait to see if it gets into the charts. If he or she gets a hearty round of applause he or she will know that their speech was a winner.

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Writing a speech is like painting a picture. Both have to have structure and form. You can paint in black or white or in glorious colour and your speech can be factual or colourful. The length of your speech is the size of your canvas and some of what you say should be the background for the picture you are painting in the minds of your audience. If you go to the opening of an art exhibition, for instance, you are faced with choosing the painting you like the most. One will probably reach out and appeal to you more than the others. A good speechwriter will ensure his or her speech has an opening that will grab your attention the same way. It may be with a question or the speechwriter may choose to open by saying something controversial or funny. Just as an artist will decide on his or her subject the good speechwriter will have done the same. He or she will have chosen a length and a topic. Moreover he or she will have decided on how the message should be got across to the audience. He or she may speak from personal experience of the dangers of alcohol or of how suicide affects the family and friends of the deceased. Alternatively, he or she may choose to motivate the audience by telling them to plant a tree or donate an organ. The speaker may decide to have a more light-hearted approach to life by speaking of beds and bunks. Whatever the topic of the speech it should, like a painting be divided into sections, such as the sky, the horizon and the grass. So the speaker illustrates his or her talk with explanations, points of view or facts. Just as the painter knows that the painting does not need one more brushstroke so too the speechwriter must know when and where to stop that speech. The ending should summarise what he or she has to say in a thought-provoking or memorable way. Unlike a painting you cannot buy and bring home a speech. If it is well written, however, it will last in the memories of those who have heard it.

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Writing a speech is like putting up a Christmas tree. It has to be the right size and shape for the occasion. We have all bought trees that have to be cut down to size because the have been too tall for the ceiling. Sometimes too trees are too small to make an impression in the room. So basically our speech too has to be the right length, not too long and interesting enough to catch the attention of the audience in the room. Obviously it shouldn’t be too short either because it has to be long enough to get your message across. Shape is also important and, of course, the shape of our speech has to be just right. That means it has to be controlled, with no unruly branches sticking out that really have no relevance to the speech. So those unnecessary sentences will just have to be pruned. When it comes to decorating the tree we all have our preferences. We may prefer a silver theme or red ribbons on every branch. The same applies to our speeches. Some of us will use word pictures, yet more of us will tell anecdotes. Whatever we say though has to add colour to the speech. The lights on the tree add a very special finishing touch. Our speeches too have to be illuminating. There is no point in talking a lot and saying nothing worthwhile. A lovely tree adds to the ambiance of the season. A good speech also adds to the occasion and, if memorable, unlike a tree, will not fade away and die.

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