Skills Needed to become a Speech Writer
Speech writers do not usually have a set education or career track that catapults them into an instantly-illustrious occupation. Many who become speech writers have a bachelor's degree in communications, English or political science. They often spend years proving that they have an intuitive relationship with language by working as journalists, editors, composition teachers, public policy experts, political analysts or freelance writers. Others do not take any of these paths. They are simply gifted with words and know how to craft inspiring speech. So, the entry into this profession can be made through many doors. A person who wants to become a speech writer should decide how his own personal experience can be used to walk through a door.
What Skills Must a Speech Writer Have
There is a common misconception that speech writers work mostly on political campaigns or speeches for elected officials. There are so many leaders and professionals who need dedicated speech writers. Corporate CEOs, nonprofit organization leaders, philanthropists, religious leaders, public relations and management firms, professional athletes, and celebrities seek writers who can help them develop a credible public voice. To do so, a speech writer should be endowed with certain intrinsic skills:
-The ability to consult several credible sources to gather information and research. Speeches are filled with subtext and require knowledge of background information that would make the subtext make sense to a niche audience. Some speeches also give family or organization history and require factual research.
-A solid understanding of how media works and be up to speed on social and electronic media. This includes being savvy with the latest technology and software applications that are important to speech writing.
-The ability to argue effectively for either side of an issue. Speech writers are sometimes called on to promote ideas or positions that they disagree with personally. They must be able to remove their personal convictions in order to perform the job they've been paid to perform.
-The versatility to cater to different kinds of audiences. Even if a speech writer exclusively focuses on one particular kind of speech writing, every single audience will be different. A competent writer tailors the tone of the message to reach the audience.
-Thick-skinned acceptance of criticism. Much of what a speech writer does is determined by the person or agency who hires him. Work for hire is quite different from the work that writer does for himself. If a draft of a speech misses the mark, the person who hired the speech writer may have many revision notes. It literally does not pay to take it personally. The speech is a product, and it has be made right to fit the customer.
-The ability to establish a voice. Once a speech writer has a long-term contractual agreement with one or more clients, it is important to make sure each client has a unique identifiable voice. This means avoiding making all speeches sound only like the person who actually wrote them. This may require a speech writer spending time with clients, shadowing them and learning some of the expressions that certain clients are known for repeating.
Income and Career Outlook
Speech writing is not a career that will be fading any time soon. There are an abundance of leaders worldwide who are eloquent at speech delivery but have no idea where to start the writing. Many of them know they are horrible at grammar and even worse at organizing their own ideas. They happily hire speech writers. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects the field for speech writers to continue growing at eight percent until 2018. As of November 2010, Payscale.com estimated the median salary for speech writers to be between $40,324 and $96,857 annually.
How to Get Started
It may a bit intimidating to try calling yourself a speech writer without any notable experience. This is true for beginning writers as well as for writers who have spent years in a writing profession. The important thing to remember is to get focused on creating a path that leads to speech writing. Here are some steps that could easily lead you there:
-Sit in on speeches and critique them. The best results come from recording speeches, breaking them down into parts (introduction, main points, conclusion, etc.) and analyzing how effective they are. This is a surefire way to learn the art of basic rhetoric and discover how speeches are put together. Try different types of speeches to learn different approaches.
-Be willing to write some speeches for free in order to gain experience. This may seem almost sacrilegious to the speech writer who is anxious about income. However, it may be considered an investment in personal advertising. Once enough people are familiar with the good work that a speech writer does, he will be in demand. Follow up speeches written for free by attending those speeches to gauge how well they go over with an audience. If the speech is all the rave, mingle with the crowd when the speech is done and distribute your business cards so that others who need similar services can contact you.
-Start branding yourself as a speech writer. If you promote yourself as a speech writer enough times, everyone starts to associate your name with the profession. Place this in signatures on email, on social media pages, voicemail, business cards and anywhere else that identifies you. Even if you are just beginning, labeling yourself a speech writer will ensure people remember that about you.
-Join organizations that help you network and connect to potential new clients and other speech writers. This may not only include organizations like The National Communication Association and Toastmasters, which both focus on speeches, but it can be local Chambers of Commerce, Visitors & Convention Bureaus, trade organizations that represent fields for which you're interested in writing speeches, journalist groups and press associations and local business groups.
-Set up a website or blog and drive traffic in order to establish yourself as an expert. Blogs have the incredible power to building a loyal group of followers who will believe in what you claim to know. If the writing on the blog is articulate and comes from a genuine place, traffic will continue to build. Before long, you are an expert who is called on to write speeches and paid for your time and talent. This also is true when you write articles or guest blogs for other sites. Writing articles is a way to keep a connection and establish yourself as trustworthy.
