Quick Speech Writing

Wedding Speeches in 3 Steps...
Speech Writing Made Easy

Does speech writing take you forever?

Don't worry. Here is 3-Step formula that will save you hours of agony!

Speech Writing in 3 Simple Steps

Step 1: Write down every idea that comes to mind.

Step 2: Arrange your favorite ideas into the Speech Body's Main Points.

Step 3: Prepare your Introduction followed by your Conclusion and Toast.

Believe it or not, you should start organizing a speech with the body.

Why? Because the speech body is the longest part of the speech.

Once you have the speech body in place, you only need an opening in the introduction and closing toast in the conclusion.

Then, your speech writing is over.

Let me tell you a little more about the 3 steps.

Step 1: Write down every idea that comes to mind.

In this speech writing step, you just want to generate ideas for the speech. Don't worry whether the ideas seem good or bad.

Some ideas might include:

*How you and the bride/groom met

*Childhood, college, or work stories

*Word(s) or Phrase(s) to describe the bride or groom--and example(s) of how she/he fits the word/phrase.

*Favorite Poem(s)

*Favorite hobbies or sports

Try to do this speech writing step without interruption. When you have at least five ideas, move onto step 2.

Step 2: Arrange your favorite ideas into the Speech Body's Main Points.

Look over your list. Which ideas are your favorites?

Jot down a few words to help you discuss each idea.

It's time to use our favorite ideas to arrange the main points.

How should you arrange your main points?

There are lots of ways to arrange your main points.

Here are several examples:

Main points organized by time- An example of this format could be a childhood memory, a high school experience, and a recent experience as your three main points.

Main points arranged by place- An example of this format could be the conferences that you both attended for work in Boston, Chicago, and San Diego as your three main points.

Poems- Briefly share two poems that fit the occasion as your main points.

The list goes on. Be sure to tell why these items are special to the bride or groom.

Find two or three interesting ideas that are not embarrassing to anybody. If you do this, the guests are bound to enjoy your speech.

Keep These Ideas Brief

When you've decided which main points to include, I strongly recommend that you AVOID writing every word of your speech body.

If you write every word, it will be very tempting to read your entire speech. If this happens, you won't look at your audience.

Instead, jot a few words for each idea that would remind you of what you would like to mention in your speech.

Once you have created the Body, it's time to move onto Step 3.

Step 3: Prepare your Introduction followed by Your Conclusion and Toast

Again, there won't be much speech writing needed. You'll create a brief opening greeting and closing toast.

You've already completed the rest of your speech during the first two steps.

For the introduction, you'll want to:

*Say Your Name and part in the wedding (Best Man, Maid of Honor, etc.).

*Mention Your relationship with the bride/groom (brother, friend, etc.)

*Thank the guests for attending

*Parents of the bride/groom only: Welcome the in-laws to the family and say a warm comment about the person who will marry your son/daughter (when you first met him/her, positive characteristics, etc.).

*Thank the host(s) of the event

*Finally, say the main points that you will discuss during the speech body.

You're almost finished!

For the conclusion and closing toast, follow this plan:

*Repeat Your Main Points. This is a signal to the audience that your speech is coming to an end.

*Ask everybody to please raise their glasses for a toast to the couple.

*Give Your Toast--Give a brief complement to the couple and wish them well.

*Say Cheers! and expect a similar response from the guests.

I urge you to follow these three steps. You'll see that speech writing can be much quicker than you ever imagined.

Would you like to see an example? Visit the Sample Wedding Speech Page.

Need some space to build your speech? Visit the Speech Writing Plan to quickly and painlessly organize your speech.

Where should you go from here?