Key Steps to Prepare a Speech

A need to make a speech can appear spontaneously or it can be one of the requirements in your Public Speaking class or a formal occasion, at work, promotion, etc. Sometimes, people are asked to share their congratulations greetings on informal events, like the birthday of your friend, a wedding, or an anniversary. If you were assigned to do an oral presentation in class, it is suggested for you to get acquainted with the specific requirements and features for scholarly presentations, and follow them during the preparation and the occasion itself.

How to write a speech? Suggestions and Hints

Choose a topic. Sometimes it is helpful to narrow the general subject, if you have already been given a specific subject. It will help you find the detailed information.
Remember to take into consideration your target audience. Keep in mind your potential listeners and prepare accordingly. Be confident that the chosen topic is useful and interesting to your listeners.
Make an advanced research about the area of interest that you are planning to address. Educate yourself with the major positions and views on the issue you are addressing. It does not mean that you need to agree with them, but you should be aware of all the details.
One of the helpful speech writing tips is to make a draft of your basic points. Develop every thought into a paragraph. Try to combine the alike.
Look for supporting sources and facts for every main point you are planning to make.
After the preparation work is done, you can start writing an introduction. It should not be as long as other paragraphs, just a few sentences. Do not forget to introduce yourself, if you are a new person to the audience, and the subject you want to address. In order to prepare your listeners in advance and capture their attention, it is a smart idea to say approximately how much time you are planning to take up. Leave some time for any questions afterwards, show your interest in those questions, and be prepared to answer them. Think in advance about those possible questions. In case some of them are tough to answer, do not be shy or show that you are lost, just simply thank for them and say that you are going to do extra research.
Another step to speech writing is a summary with a concluding sentence, summing up the whole talk. The introduction of the presentation and the way you finish it are the most difficult parts; one of them is framing your ideas. Remember to thank your audience for their attention.

Speech Topics

Three main conditions should be considered, while choosing a topic for informative speech:

Be passionate about your chosen topic
Educate yourself
Be attentive to your audience, their interests, current events, and topics

If you decide to describe difficult topics in your speech, make sure your research is well and consider it with all the possible caution. Some speakers think that if you pick a “smart” topic, you have all the benefits in your hands. Actually, very often it happens contrariwise. The topic of your choice should be interesting for you, first of all, even if it seems too difficult, do not run away from it. Nowadays, there are so many ways (online sources, libraries, etc.) to find all the necessary arguments, needed terms, and so on.

Another urgent point to make, there is a category of controversial topics. It is necessary to be tremendously careful with them. There are always many zealous proponents and opponents of the creation or evolution, euthanasia, gay marriage, and other disputable subjects. Those areas are better to avoid, since audience may not share your viewpoints, and argue or ignore all your supporting evidences.