CREATIVE DRIVE

The newsletter for people who want it real, today, right now

NUMBER 29

A speechwriter uses words for effect, and so should you.

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I DON'T GIVE speeches for a living, but as a professional editor I fix them for people who do. Occasionally these things are pep talks meant to encourage a strong corporate effort in the face of flagging sales, and sometimes they introduce new technologies that promise to be epochal. A recent project for an overseas company even talked about the "democratization" of smart devices and apps, meaning they could ultimately benefit people in places that don't currently have digital infrastructure.

Apple events are exciting, and I suppose the Android-oriented meet-ups are too. Certain Tesla events have been . . . shattering. However, aside from outright laughter–as resulted from the use of an actual rock instead of one made from cookie dough–what do we expect to occur during and after a speech?

Applause is what we expect. Emotion is what we want. Dry, statistical reporting is definitely not what we crave when we gather by the hundreds or the thousands to hear the words of our corporate idol whose face or a foundation-heavy self-mask can be seen above on a super-large screen. If we can cheer and clap our hands; if we can feel the tears in our eyes and collectively chuckle as the speaker attempts a bit of standup, we'll think of the encounter as a success. We'll put faith in what we hear, knowing that many others heard it too.

I'm not talking about demagoguery. I'm talking about the cultivated ability to capture emotion through prosaic speech. It's the willingness to paint with words; the desire to fly with them as they wing their way toward eager minds and hearts.

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"Well, what if you're a politician or a celebrity and you just don't need a written speech?"

You might mean the kind of . . . person . . . who likes to appear at a rally, talk about himself for an hour and then rake in donations. That isn't a speech, though. It's a rite for the cult of personality. There's a broad canyon between that kind of thing and the thoughtful sincerity of a well-crafted speech. With a cult of personality the speaker simply needs to appear. He can talk about anything that pops into his skull because the audience has no interest in a topical discussion. In the case of a speech, the presenter has something different–a subject–and he or she knows it in depth.

Imagine a renowned CEO who's set to appear before an audience of stakeholders, journalists and others. The corporation's new product, possibly a new-energy vehicle or a smartphone, is set to capture the global market with features unimaginable just a year ago. Every single person in the place wants to try the product; to drive it or maybe answer that very first call. The air is electric with excitement and anticipation.

The colored lights swivel into position, and a pin spot hits centerstage. Out walks the CEO. The sound of cheering and applause is almost deafening. The CEO gently taps his microphone headset and speaks:

"Hello, everyone! How are you tonight!? Is everybody feeling good!?"

The audience erupts: "RrrrAAAAAaaaaahhhhh!!!" (That's the sound of a thousand or so product-hungry people going, "Rrraaaaaaaaaahhhhh." You know what I mean.)

"Well, I know you're all ready to hear the news, so I won't make you wait too long."

"RrrrAAAAAaaaaahhhhh!!!"

"Honestly, after at least two years, I feel relieved to be here on this stage, let me tell you."

"RrrAAA . . . ."

"Please, just a moment . . . . Thank you. So, I must announce that there will be no new XS product this time. Well, thank you all for coming. Goodnight!"

What the hell was that!? What the f*#k just happened!?

The people are stunned. They got the CEO, their hero, but they got no product. They didn't get to see the dazzling new creation that had filled so many dreams and caused so many hours of sleeplessness.

The audience doesn't leave. Now a unified force of discontent, the refusal is defiant.

"MOR-GAN! MOR-GAN! MOR-GAN!" they chant, stomping their feet as they do. The call for their CEO continues until there's a return to the stage.

"Please . . . . People, I know how disappointed you must be . . . ."

Someone near the front shouts.

"You're damned right, I'm disappointed! I've bought every single product in your line. I've given them to family members every Christmas for years, and if I could handle your stock price I'd buy shares in the company. Hell, I drove all the way from Minnesota to be here! But now you come out here and say there won't be a product!? What kind of scam is this!? Are you some kind of con artist!?"

"BOOOOO!!! Get off the stage, loser!"

It isn't at all the kind of response that the CEO could've wanted. He might've expected it, though. After all, he had the nerve to appear without fulfilling expectations.

This is an imaginary scene, so we can stop the video and start over. Try it this way:

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The crowd applauds enthusiastically as the CEO crosses the stage. He activates his microphone and gives a smile.

"How are all of you out there!"

"RRRrrrAAAAAaaaaahhhhh!!!"

"Hey, it's that 'rah' thing. I dig it, of course. In fact, let's all do a big 'rah' together! Here we go . . . ."

"RRRrrrAAAAAaaaaahhhhh!!!"

"Oh, that was fun. I must say, you're the ones who deserve the big cheer. I might be the head of this company, but you, my friends, are the ones our great products are meant to please. Let's give a big hand to you, our loyal stakeholders and consumers!"

"RRRrrrAAAAAaaaaahhhhh!!!"

"Okay, let's get down to brass tacks. Please, may I have your attention for a minute or two . . . . Thanks.

"As you all know, the Magma company keeps an eye on the future; on tomorrow as a very real moment in time. But because tomorrow is never something we can actually touch, as much as we might want to, it remains a concept. Tomorrow is the dream we can never experience in real life. Think about that for a moment.

"Now, as a company . . . and as a community of dedicated designers and cross-cultural marketers . . . we're aware of that concept. We treat it not only as a promise but as one with the power to propel our most heartfelt effort. If there is anything . . . ANYTHING . . . that should be possible in this life, it's the fulfillment of a dream. The only thing we can do is try. We can try, as we always have, to fulfill the dream of tomorrow today. We strive to make it reality now, in this moment."

The crowd erupts in a hugely cathartic "RRRrrrAAAAAaaaaahhhhh!!!"

"You share the dream with us. I know you do, and everyone at Magma knows you do. We believe you hold the secret to our success. We feel that somewhere, deep within the vast realm of your collective potential, the answer to a prayer waits to be revealed. It's there, somewhere, and together we'll find it. Are you ready?"

"RRRrrrAAAAAaaaaahhhhh!!!"

"Yes, yes. I'm ready too. But the dream is tomorrow, and tomorrow is the dream we are yet to have. It's the answer to a question we still must ask. That's why it's a bit sad, and why it's difficult, for me to announce that the product for which you've so patiently waited isn't quite ready.

"It's painful for me to say it, but even the might of Magma's all-out effort hasn't produced the result for which we'd so fervently hoped. It hasn't shown us the way to make the XS faster, cleaner, brighter, safer and easier to handle.

"We do not stop, nor have we been idle for so much as a minute. That's why we're so close . . . so very close . . . to the goal. Thus, I will ask you this. I must ask you this . . . .

"Please be a little more patient. Wait till tomorrow. Look forward to tomorrow. When tomorrow arrives, and when you can see that glorious dawn of blue and gold, look around you. We'll be at your side, ready with the answer to a long-held dream . . . .

"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. We'll talk again, soon."

"Gosh . . . . I didn't expect to cry about a product. I don't even know what it is."

It's okay. I'm crying a little too, and I'm the one who made it up. You're moved because you can sense the connection between the speaker and the audience. You're affected by the situation, which is fairly serious as a potential loss for the company. You're influenced by the speaker's request for sympathy, and you're proud that the audience is willing to grant that sympathy.

Regardless of the product or whether there is one at all, the speaker was able to address the audience honestly and in terms they'd appreciate. The speaker offered the gift of respect.

We can think of a speech as a poem, and we can look at a poem as a gift. A poem is created as an offering to unknown recipients. They have minds and hearts, but in all likelihood the poet will never know them. Their names are foreign to the poet, but the commonality of thought the poet seeks can be experienced by innumerable souls. It can do so for years to come. That's why it's brave to be a poet. Imagine that you've made a beautiful, very special thing and wrapped it up. The package contains your deepest, most unguarded thoughts and aspirations, but there is no tag. You leave the package on a bench at the park or maybe on the sidewalk near a busy intersection. Have you placed your name anywhere on the package? How will the one who finds it ever thank you?

It's brave to give a speech too. You stand before a crowd of whatever size, and if you're lucky you'll find comfort in a few familiar faces. However, the question of who you are ceases to be important. Instead, what you say will have to matter. So, it's best to prepare. Be ready for honesty, however frank. Be ready with sincerity. Be armed with knowledge. Be gracious in generosity. You'll demonstrate all those characteristics through the words you craft in preparation for the moment.

Check your watch. Is tomorrow the day your dream will be fulfilled?

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The Essence of It

The distinction between copywriting and speechwriting isn't what an aspiring wordsmith is apt to expect. The difference has nothing to do with structure or style because but instead has a lot to do with one's fundamental purpose in writing. If your practice of copywriting is as an art that speaks to the reader, you are already a speechwriter. You're simply the speaker as opposed to the generator of sentences for someone else. If you're diligent in the process, you'll care about every word. You'll rehearse the work as you write so that you can spot tongue twisters and wind-sapping clauses. Moreover, in a business speech you'll look for anything that could insult. I corrected one that would've caused big trouble if it'd been left as it was.

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A QUICK EXERCISE

A good speech is dynamic. Like music, it's rhythmic and memorable. As with a song, it presents a story in emotionally staged chapters. So, the speech begins with an element that invites the audience to listen. It could be a simple idea such as the question, "What was your happiest day?" You can begin calmly and gently so as to carry the listener on a journey.

Let's create a six-sentence speech with the following as an opener:

Didn't you love the arrival of snow when you were a child? 1) It made_________________________________________, as if __________________________________. 2) Of course, we ________________________________________ in a given day, but ______________________________________________. 3) That's why _______________________ should ______________________________ what it _______________________. 4) We can trust ______________________________ to ______________; to __________________________________ it most. 5) So, let's ___________________________ and _______________________ our ____________ for

_____________________. 6) Together we __________________________________________

for _______________________________.

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See you next time!

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? Copyright 2024 by Lawrence Payne. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed without permission from the author.